Pausing Subscriptions
Instead of losing a customer to cancellation, offer to pause their subscription. This saves 20-30% of at-risk customers.
Why Pause Works
Reduces churn — Customer comes back later
Cheaper than reacquiring — Pause is 10x cheaper than acquiring new customer
Improves NPS — Shows you understand their needs
Recovers revenue — Many paused subs resume
When to Offer Pause
Offer pause when customer:
Requests cancellation
Payment fails repeatedly
Usage drops significantly
Sends negative feedback
Pause Setup
Go to Subscriptions
Select subscription
Click Pause
Set Pause Duration:
30 days (most common)
60 days
90 days
Custom date
Click Confirm Pause
During Pause
✅ No charges to customer
✅ No invoices created
✅ No payment attempts
✅ Access suspended (optional)
✅ Subscription state = "Paused"
Auto-Resume
When pause period ends:
Subscription automatically resumes
State changes to "Active"
Billing resumes on original schedule
Email sent: "Your subscription has resumed"
Manual Resume
Customer or support can resume anytime:
Go to Subscriptions → Select paused sub
Click Resume
Billing resumes immediately
Confirmation email sent
Pause Best Practices
Offer during cancellation: "Want to pause instead?"
Email value: "We'll miss you. Pause for free, resume anytime."
30-day default: Most customers resume within 90 days
Track pause cohorts: Measure resume rate by cohort
Win-back campaign: Email 7 days before resume: "Ready to get back?"
Metrics
Pause rate: % of customers who pause instead of cancel
Resume rate: % of paused customers who resume
Pause recovery: How much revenue you save by offering pause
Tips
Average resume rate: 40-60% (industry depends)
Paused customers have 2x longer LTV than those who cancel
Win-back offers (free month, discount) increase resume rate
Monitor pause duration — very long pauses = churn