Amid the economic slowdown, entrepreneurs of Thai small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have to work harder to meet customer needs in a market with a wide variety of products and services. The membership system—or subscription model—is a key strategy that can help SMEs generate steady income and maintain customer bases against intense competition. Membership systems are often used with recurring payments to enhance efficiency, reduce processing time, and facilitate billing.

In this article, we explore membership systems in Thailand, including how they work, their benefits, and businesses in Thailand that use them. We also explain how SMEs can start a membership system. Owners of SMEs and larger businesses can implement a membership system to create stable revenue and promote sustainable business growth.

What’s in this article?

• What is a subscription model?
  
• Get to know the recurring payment system
  
• Advantages of membership systems
  
• Which businesses in Thailand use membership systems?
  
• How SMEs can get started with membership systems
  
• How Stripe Payments can help
  

What is a subscription model?

A membership system—or subscription model—is a business model where customers pay for services regularly, such as monthly or annually. They maintain continuous access to products or services. This model can help businesses have steady income and clearer cash flow forecasting. Customers experience the convenience of uninterrupted service without having to make a new purchase each time.

In Thailand, well-known examples of membership systems include streaming services (e.g., Netflix or Disney+) and mobile network providers (e.g., Advanced Info Service [AIS], True, and Total Access Communication [DTAC]).

Get to know the recurring payment system

A recurring payment system is a method of automatic billing that occurs regularly according to a predetermined payment cycle, such as monthly or annually. Customers must authorize the payment in advance. The system works by deducting money from the customer’s card on the scheduled billing dates. It can improve billing efficiency and provide convenience, as customers do not need to enter payment information or approve the payment each time.

Recurring payment system workflow

• Become a member: The customer subscribes to the service, fills in the payment information, and grants permission for automated billing.
  
• Set up recurring payments: The company sets up the system to charge the customer through their chosen payment method and according to the billing cycle (e.g., monthly on the 29th). The system should also verify membership fees, including taxes and discounts.
  
• Collect payments: When it is time to pay, the system automatically charges the customer’s card.
  
• Update payment status: The system notifies the company once the payment is complete and the receipt has been issued.
  
• Cancel or change package: Customers can cancel the service or change their membership package by going to the account settings menu.
  

Advantages of membership systems

Membership systems can help meet the needs of businesses ranging from SMEs to leading organizations. The main advantages of membership systems are the following:

• Steady income
  Monthly and annual membership fees can help businesses have stable and predictable income, reducing fluctuations from occasional sales. This is because membership systems are often used in conjunction with recurring payments, which can help reduce late payment issues.
  
• Better business planning and forecasting
  Having regular data on revenue and customer behavior can help businesses plan cash flow, inventory, production capacity, and investment budgets more accurately.
  
• Increased convenience
  Membership systems enhance convenience for both businesses and customers. Recurring payment systems can reduce workload for businesses. In addition, customers know transaction statuses for each payment period without entering information or approving payments each time.
  
• Steady customer base and lower marketing costs
  Customers who become members out of interest tend to repeat purchases. If a business maintains service or product standards and customer satisfaction, it can retain its customer base and increase trust. The business can also continuously add value without spending significant resources on advertising or constantly running promotions to attract new customers.
  
• Enhanced personalization
  Membership systems allow businesses to recommend products or content based on the customer’s profile and usage history. This creates a personalized experience, which can improve customers’ perceptions of brand value and help build brand loyalty.
  
• Increased upselling
  By understanding member behavior, businesses can customize product and service offers to better match customer preferences. This can lead to repeat purchases, upsells, and related sales (i.e., cross-sells). It can also increase sales, customer referrals, and the average purchase value per customer.
  
• High-quality insights
  Using a membership system allows businesses to legally collect data on customers’ behaviors and interests. This can provide high-quality insights that businesses can analyze, measure, and use to precisely improve products and services.
  

Which businesses in Thailand use membership systems?

There are many businesses in Thailand that use membership systems, ranging from entertainment and communication to software and everyday services. Here are some examples:

• Video streaming: Customers can watch movies and TV series with a monthly subscription to Netflix, Disney+, TrueID, Viu, and iQIYI.
  
• Music streaming: Customers can listen to music without ads and with offline download features on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music (Premium), and JOOX.
  
• Mobile networks: Monthly internet, phone, and short message service (SMS) packages include AIS, True, and DTAC.
  
• Software: This includes software for work, such as Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, Adobe Creative Cloud, Zoom, and Canva.
  
• Online courses: Online supplementary learning platforms include FutureSkill, StartDee, Engoo, Skillshare, and Coursera Plus.
  
• Fitness: Customers can purchase fitness membership packages at locations such as Jetts Fitness, Fitness First, Virgin Active, and Fitness24Seven.
  
• Subscription boxes: These include monthly subscription box services that include beauty items (e.g., BeautyBoxy), snacks (e.g., Thai snack boxes), children’s books (e.g., Banana Book Boxes), and pet products (e.g., Hound Hamper).
  

How SMEs can get started with membership systems

Starting a membership system can seem challenging for SMEs. However, implementing the system is not difficult with proper planning and organization. It can be done according to the following steps:

Analyze the target audience’s needs

Before implementing a membership system, SMEs should determine if customers continuously use their products or services. They should also analyze the target group to determine whether customers have repeat purchasing behavior or are willing to pay in a membership format. Conducting surveys or testing sales through preorders can help accurately confirm demand. Additionally, they should study the overall market, including examples from competitors and case studies of both successes and failures.

Design membership packages to meet needs

A successful membership system includes flexible packages that consider the needs of customer groups. This can include offering membership on a monthly, quarterly, yearly, or half-yearly basis. Membership systems should also include a variety of packages for different customer segments, such as an affordable basic package suitable for beginners and a premium package with benefits such as free gifts or free delivery.

Plan the system structure and member experience

In addition to package design, technical planning is also important. The key point is to make a simple and straightforward membership system with minimal registration steps. Furthermore, it is important to plan various management systems, such as member management, dashboards, data access permissions, communication and notification systems, and member enhancement features. This can include a loyalty program or referral program.

Choose a payment system

Choose a platform that supports subscription-based payment systems. For example, Stripe is an all-in-one payment solution that supports recurring payments. It offers subscription payment systems specifically for membership programs with various payment options, including credit and debit cards, bank transfers, and digital wallets. This is an important tool for Thai SMEs aiming for sustainable growth, continuous revenue, and systematic customer retention.

Develop a marketing strategy and launch the membership system

Plan a go-to-market strategy for launching a membership system. This can include creating content—such as articles, videos, and reviews—or organizing launch activities to increase sign-ups—such as events and referral campaigns. SMEs can also offer attractive promotions or special discounts to encourage membership. They can use existing marketing channels—such as social media, email, websites, and LINE—to provide marketing messages emphasizing “exclusive member benefits” or “10% off every time” to create value. In addition, it is important to include financial planning and set performance target indicators.

Monitor results and improve

A membership system’s performance should be monitored to facilitate development, enhancement, and improvement. Businesses can monitor monthly recurring revenue, membership renewal rate (i.e., retention rate), average revenue per member, churn rate, customer lifetime value (LTV), satisfaction, and feedback. This information can help SMEs accurately adjust their strategies, increase value, build strong customer bases, reduce churn, and establish long-term revenue stability.

How Stripe Payments can help

Stripe Payments provides a unified, global payments solution that helps any business—from scaling startups to global enterprises—accept payments online, in person, and around the world.

Stripe Payments can help you:

• Optimize your checkout experience: Create a frictionless customer experience and save thousands of engineering hours with prebuilt payment UIs, access to 125+ payment methods, and Link, a wallet built by Stripe.
  
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• Unify payments in person and online: Build a unified commerce experience across online and in-person channels to personalize interactions, reward loyalty, and grow revenue.
  
• Improve payments performance: Increase revenue with a range of customizable, easy-to-configure payment tools, including no-code fraud protection and advanced capabilities to improve authorization rates.
  
• Move faster with a flexible, reliable platform for growth: Build on a platform designed to scale with you, with 99.999% historical uptime and industry-leading reliability.
  

Learn more about how Stripe Payments can power your online and in-person payments, or get started today.