We’ve got another feature-packed Five on Friday for you. In this week’s edition, PYMNTS explains how free trials help subscription companies turn tryers into buyers, Adblock Plus celebrates a Germany court ruling, Inc. explores why Netflix wants to buy a billboard company, INMA offers insight into how the news media is shifting its subscription strategy by leveraging customer emotions, and Amy Porterfield shares the six principles of GDPR which goes into effect May 25. May the 4^th be with you! 

Converting ‘Tryers’ into Subscription Buyers with Free Trials 

Sixty-five percent of the most successful subscription companies use free trials, reports PYMNTS, citing data from the Subscription Commerce Index. Some companies opt not to use free trials because they take money and effort, and they don’t offer a guarantee that a tryer will become a buyer.

‘Think of it this way: a free trial is not giving away your product for free, but rather making your user acquisition process more effective,’ said Kristin Eberth, director of marketing and communications for Press Reader, a news subscription service in the PYMNTS article.

‘You’re making it easier for people who need and want your product to become paying customers. You’re bringing them partially on board without having to address every one of their questions, hesitations and concerns. And from their point of view, you’re bearing all of the risk if they don’t like your product, rather than forcing them to incur a financial risk. The free trial helps to minimize friction for users at the outset,’ Eberth added.

PYMNTS cites Netflix is a good example of a company that has successfully deployed the free trial feature. According to PYMNTS, 9 percent of Netflix at any given time are free trial users. The company’s conversion rate is 93 percent! Learn more about free trials and how they turn tryers into buyers on PYMNTS.

German Court Says Ad Blocking is Legal

In an April ruling by the German Federal Court of Justice, the court found that Adblock Plus, an ad blocking app and browser extension, does not violate the country’s Unfair Competition Act, essentially saying ad blocking is legal. This was the final nail in the coffin in publisher Axel Springer’s series of lawsuits against Eyeo, parent company of Adblock Plus. Axel Springer argued that Adblock Plus’s business practices were unfair and illegal, particularly because publishers could pay to have their sites whitelisted.

Tom Woolford of Adblock Plus commented on the company’s behalf in an April 19 blog post:

‘This ruling confirms – just as the regional courts in Munich and Hamburg stated previously – that people have the right in Germany to block ads. This case had already been tried in the Cologne Regional Court, then in the Regional Court of Appeals, also in Cologne – with similar results. It also confirms that Adblock Plus can use a whitelist to allow certain acceptable ads through. Today’s Supreme Court decision puts an end to Axel Springer’s claim that they be treated differently for the whitelisting portion of Adblock Plus’ business model.

We are excited that Germany’s highest court upheld the right every internet citizen possesses to block unwanted advertising online. As we have since 2014, we will continue to fight for users’ rights in Germany and around the world,’ Woolford wrote.

Why Netflix Wants to Buy a Billboard Company

Though Netflix has brought streaming video viewing into a new area, it is looking at an old school marketing tool to boost its bottom line – billboards. Yes, billboards. Netflix is pondering a purchase of Regency Outdoor Advertising, which owns low-tech, outdoor billboards in the Los Angeles area, reports Inc. in ‘Netflix Believes in Billboards. Why Internal Communication Should, Too‘ by Alison Davis. Davis suggests two reasons for Netflix’s consideration of such a buy:

1. Netflix knows that not everyone is on a screen all the time, so they need to find other ways to reach potential customers.
2. Billboards have become a thing on social media with people taking selfies with billboards.

According to Reuters, earlier this month Netflix made an offer of $300 million to Regency Outdoor Advertising. If the offer is accepted, the acquisition would be Netflix’s biggest acquisition to date. While that’s a big price tag, over time, Netflix could save money on the deal, suggests Reuters.

Leveraging a Customer’s Emotions as a Subscription Strategy

At the INMA Media Subscriptions Summit in London last week, media subscription experts talked about leveraging their customers’ emotions as a subscription strategy.

‘We saw fantastic examples of high converting customer journeys, activities to motivate log-in, use of data, and so on. It became clear that activities and content that is personal, that manages to strike a feeling, is the content that not only sells subscriptions, but also the content that makes the subscribers stay,’ said Siri Holstad Johannessen, head of sales and marketing and CRO analyst for Schibsted Norway in a column for INMA.

Here are a few gems she gleaned from the conference:

–      Discover new areas of content that subscribers can relate to.

–      Produce content for fans, not for the one-and-done reader.

–      Align products to super users’ needs.

–      Give away free content, so users form a reading habit they won’t want to break.

–      Use data to better understand the customer journey from discovery to disenchantment.

Read more on INMA here. 

Amy Porterfield: The 6 Principles of GDPR

On May 25, the General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR, goes into effect in the European Union. Companies that do business with or collect data from consumers in the EU are required to comply with GDPR. If you need a primer, read ‘GDPR for Entrepreneurs: What You Need to Know‘ by Amy Porterfield here. We’ve written about GDPR many times before, so for the purposes of this Five on Friday, we are only going to cover the 6 principles of GDPR, as explained by Porterfield.

1. Data shall be processed lawfully, fairly and transparently.
2. Data can only be collected for specified, explicit and legitimate reasons.
3. Data processors should only collect the minimum amount of data needed for a particular purpose.
4. Data shall be accurate, current and corrected.
5. Companies should not keep a consumer’s data any longer than necessary.
6. Companies must keep consumer data as secure as possible, and if data breaches occur, companies must follow specific protocols.

You can read the full regulation, rules and guidelines at EUGDPR.org.