Online subscriptions are usually pretty easy to sign up for.
But you may have noticed they’re not always so easy to cancel.
It’s by design.
My wife and I recently decided to try anonline meal kit.
The process should be pretty straightforward, right?
Even after securing our freedom, we were subjected to a barrage of emails begging us to come back.
In the end, the cancellation process took two days to complete.
It was confusing, difficult, absurd.
And it was by design.
It’s a common tactic that too many online services are employing these days.
Everyone would be better off.
But too many services still apparently believe the dishonest approach is the best way to retain customers.
Welcome to the roach motel
I get it, companies don’t want to lose customers.
And it’s not just the small-time players that are resorting to these tactics.
Have you ever triedcanceling your Amazon Prime account?
Want to cancel your New York Times subscription?
confirm you have8 minutesto spare as you wait for a live chat representative to do it for you.
The cancellation funnel is typically a multi-step process that includes intentionally confusing language and ambiguous navigation buttons.
But too often the process is deliberately convoluted and includes elements of intentional deception.
Popular weight loss app Noom recentlysettled a class-action lawsuit for $62 million, based on similarly deceptive practices.
But the more you know about these tactics, the easier they are to escape.
If the service you’re considering doesn’t make that clear, move along and find something else.
Don’t stop until you get a message confirming that your subscription has been canceled.
In the meantime, we’ve already signed up with a different online meal kit service.
