Hello Subscription

Hello Subscription is a subscription box discovery platform. With over 6,100 subscriptions listed in its directory, the affiliate site provides reviews, comparisons, deals, and spoilers.

• Dramatically reduced managed hosting costs with improved site performance.
• Attracted loyal users: 30%–40% of website sessions are from returning visitors.
• Served expanding user-base outside the US: in the EU, the UK, Canada, and India.

The Challenge

“Hello Subscription isn’t a traditional online store,” notes Hello Subscription Founder and Editor Brandy O‘Grady. “We catalogue and link information. WooCommerce is super-powerful, but to make it work with our affiliate model we needed to customize the platform with complex new features and metadata.”

The new website is not just about look and feel. It’s about all these new features built for how people want to use the platform.

Brandy O’Grady, Founder & Editor, Hello Subscription

The Stakes

• Staying ahead of the growing number of competing directories
• Keeping up with changing user expectations
• Protecting and optimizing affiliate business
• Growing the user base outside the US

Process

“Up until that point, I had maintained the site myself,” says Hello Subscription Founder and Editor Brandy O‘Grady. “To be willing to let go of control, you have to find a team that you really trust. Saucal has done everything perfectly for me. I trust them.”

Prioritizing & executing ideas

“I kept a running list of ideas for things I wanted to do. The Saucal team looked at them with me and helped me prioritize. Then they ran with it.”

Regular communication & updates

“The way they work with you as a client is really structured. I always have a lot of questions. To always know what they’re working on, and for me to be able to ask questions about what they’re doing, has been really helpful.”

Dependable delivery

“Now I don’t want to deal with site improvements or updates at all. I just say to them, ‘You guys go do it!’”

I always have ideas for the site, and now I have people who can actually make the ideas happen. Working with Saucal is really great.

Brandy O’Grady, Founder & Editor, Hello Subscription

Solutions

• Made quick, crucial fixes to improve site performance, reduce the cost of managed hosting, and automate parts of the review-publishing workflow.
• Worked with UX designer to completely rebuild the Hello Subscription site following user-centered principles.
• Developed “notify me” feature that allows users to get email alerts and discounts for specific subscription boxes.
• Built Instagram-inspired “hearting” feature that allows users to like items and save them for later.
• Laid the metadata groundwork for future features, including geographic search that will let users find subscriptions that ship to where they live.