Paytronix Launches Subscription-Building Tool For Restaurants, C-Stores

Paytronix has launched Paytronix Subscriptions, a subscription-building product that will allow any restaurant or convenience store to set up and manage a subscription program for its customers, the company announced on Wednesday (Nov. 11).

Paytronix Subscriptions will be a key component of its customer loyalty platform. The company said the product will help lower barriers to entry for smaller businesses to establish their own subscription programs.

“Restaurants and convenience stores are in the middle of a permanent pandemic-driven shift to digital ordering, and subscription programs have already proven to be a powerful purchasing and loyalty tool within ecommerce,” Paytronix Head of Data and Insights Lee Barnes said in a statement. “By lowering the friction for consumer purchases, these programs strengthen the relationship between customer and brand while also providing the brand with recurring revenue.”

Subscription programs have become all the rage in recent months, with companies launching them for everything from coffee takeout to streaming media services to fresh food delivery. According to Paytronix, Americans spend approximately $640 a year, on average, for subscription services, with 34 percent likely to enroll in more subscription programs in the next two years.

Pandemic social distancing has also made subscription programs more attractive, along with boosting demand for online ordering and payment.

Paytronix also noted that subscription services are particularly attractive to younger consumers. Citing a recent survey, the company said around 12 percent of younger customers consider whether a brand has a subscription service when they make their buying decision.

Paytronix said its subscription product is designed for ease of use, with Paytronix handling all the data. Users will then be able to make data-based decisions on how to modify or tweak their subscription programs to make them more successful.

The Paytronix platform will be able to track recurring payments, send out automated customer reminders, create streamlined enrollment experiences, manage rewards, and manage the tokenization of credit cards, among other services.

The product rollout comes as many convenience stores and restaurants struggle to keep afloat amid the ongoing pandemic.

In a recent interview with Karen Webster, Paytronix CEO Andrew Robbins said that while some stores and restaurants have seen their revenues drop by 60 percent or more in recent months, owners and operators remain optimistic about the future.

“It was just amazing that the sentiment I am hearing is: ‘If this is the toughest thing the world can throw at us, we can beat it,’” Robbins said. “That, I think, is where they are all aligned — a positive feeling that the future’s going to be better, that they are winning, that they can innovate, and the innovations are working.”