The industrial sector has had a rough year; with supply chain disruptions and ongoing concerns about the talent pool, manufacturers need solutions to keep them agile and growing—and they need them fast. The latest numbers from the Federal Reserve show a decline across the board (utilities, mining, process, and discrete) in total output production and capacity utilization, continuing a trend of numbers that are failing to reach their pre-pandemic or long-run average levels. However, manufacturers who have developed (or rapidly pivoted to) a subscription revenue model to support more traditional capital sales figures have weathered the storm better than most, and those companies that have not are increasingly investigating subscription models for some of their best-suited product offerings as the innovative answer they’re after. 

Previously, we’ve explored what subscription models might look like for manufacturers and why Salesforce is the ideal platform to support your subscription processes from a technology standpoint. Now, the big question remains: how do we get started? Let’s look at four areas a manufacturer stepping into subscription management—from a product and revenue perspective—must consider from the very beginning: product suitability, organizational culture, financials, and partner collaboration. 

Are your offerings suited to this change?

First things first: you have to evaluate very honestly if your current business offerings are realistically suited to a subscription model in the first place (without complete overhaul). It’s one thing to acknowledge subscriptions are the latest and greatest innovation disrupting multiple industries, but that doesn’t automatically mean it’s right for you. Retooling your entire catalog and operations around a revenue model is rarely a sound strategy.

Subscriptions can be a powerful and creative way for manufacturers to stay on top of evolving market expectations and competitive offers, but not every manufacturer or their product is destined to take advantage of these. Take a look at your products and seriously consider…

Want to keep reading? Download the complete ebook now: Manufacturer’s Guide to Subscription Management.