By Morten Suhr Hansen
I’m writing this on my MacBook. Which I – naturally – have as a subscription.
This has increasingly become my everyday life. I have glasses on subscription from Synoptik. I have a bike on subscription from Swapfiets. And my computer is delivered as an ongoing service from myway.
And honestly: I find it hard to go back. Not because it simply spreads the payment out. That is almost the least interesting benefit. What’s interesting is that the companies I subscribe to are not selling me a product. They are selling me an outcome.
I don’t subscribe to a bike. I subscribe to worry-free transportation. I don’t subscribe to glasses. I subscribe to good eyesight. It sounds like a small linguistic nuance.
It isn’t. It is a fundamental shift in how value is designed and delivered.
Product-as-a-Service is not a trend. It is a logical consequence.
When products become subscriptions – or product-as-a-service – something interesting happens. Responsibility shifts from the customer to the company. When I buy a product, the risk is mine. When I subscribe, the responsibility is theirs.
This means the company suddenly has a strong incentive to:
- make sure the product works over time
- keep it updated
- ensure I use it correctly
- make sure I stay – and don’t cancel
In other words: relationship replaces transaction. This is why the best product-as-a-service models often feel better for the customer. They are designed to work in real life – not just in a sales situation.
And yet, the development is slower than you might think.
Despite all the good examples, less is happening in this space than I expected. I recently bought new earbuds from Bang & Olufsen, Beoplay Eleven. And it has been a great experience: fantastic product, great sound, high quality. But also a classic one-time purchase, and I couldn’t help thinking: why aren’t they a subscription?
Why can’t I get ongoing upgrades, battery service, insurance included, automatic replacement after X months, and continuous access to new models?
In short: why am I still buying hardware when my real need is “great sound in my ears – always”? The same can be said for a wide range of other product categories.
Which products will be next to become subscriptions?
Once you start seeing the world through a product-as-a-service lens, new opportunities quickly appear. Furniture is an obvious example. Not because no one has tried. But because the potential is still enormous.
Why do we still own dining tables, chairs, and sofas when our life situations constantly change? A furniture subscription that combines design, flexibility, maintenance, and continuous replacement could be extremely relevant.
Other obvious candidates?
- Headsets and audio equipment
- Gaming hardware
- Kitchen equipment
- Baby and children’s equipment
- Outdoor gear
The common denominator is not the product. It is that the customer’s need is ongoing – and the value is created over time.
The difficult part is not the idea. It is the transformation.
I recently had a very good sales meeting with a company that is considering moving in this direction. They see the potential: more loyalty, more stable revenue, closer customer relationships. But they struggle with the classic question: How do you actually do it?
Because product-as-a-service requires a mental shift. From: “How do we sell more units?” to: “How do we deliver value over time?”
And yes – it is complex. But the alternative is not risk-free either. Because once one player in the market succeeds in turning a product into a service, customer expectations change very quickly.
If you work in a company that still primarily sells products transactionally, it is tempting to start with the question: “What should the monthly price be?”
That is almost always the wrong place to begin. Start here instead:
- What is the real outcome the customer wants?
- How long does the need last?
- What happens after the purchase today?
- Where do frustrations arise?
- Where could we take more responsibility?
The future belongs to those who dare to own the relationship
I am quite convinced that product-as-a-service is still in its early phase. Not because all products must become subscriptions. But because more companies will discover that owning the relationship over time is a far stronger position than winning a single transaction.
And until then? I enjoy my subscriptions. But I am still waiting for the day when I can subscribe to my earbuds. Because honestly – I don’t need to own them. I just need them to work.
