Quick start

Guide to creating your first subscription plan for your product

In this guide, we'll walk you through the steps to create your first subscription plan for your product. We'll keep things simple and easy to follow, so you can get your subscription plan up and running in no time

Set up subscription plan

Step 1: Set up your first subscription

1.1 Choose a Product for Your Subscription Plan

Click on ‘Choose product’ in the Setup Guide. This will guide you to the Products page, where you can set up a subscription for your product

Step 1 setup guide

Select the product from your store’s inventory

Select product

1.2 Understand Subscription Plan Settings

Once you've selected your product, you'll be taken to the subscription plan settings page. Here’s what you’ll see:

• Product and Variant View: You can see the product you’ve selected, along with any variants (such as different sizes or colors).

• Preview Section: This is where you can preview how the subscription plan will look to your customers.

• Subscription Plan Settings: This is where the magic happens! Let’s break down the key options

Overview

Delivery frequency

Choose the Payment Type:

• Pay as you go: This option lets subscribers receive their shipments every time they make a payment.

• Pre-paid: This option lets subscribers pay in advance for multiple shipments

Set Delivery Frequency:

Decide how often the product will be delivered to your customers. You can set this to every few days, weeks, or months, depending on what suits your product best

Delivery frequency

Discount

Offering discounts is a great way to make your subscription plans more appealing to customers

• Set a Fixed Discount: You can offer a consistent discount for every order in the subscription

• Change Discount After X Cycles: If you want, you can set the discount to change after a certain number of subscription cycles

• Add Free Shipping: Consider offering free shipping on all recurring orders (excluding the initial order) to further incentivize your customers

Discount

Plan description

This section allows you to customize the subscription options that your customers will see.

• Change Frequency Title: Customize the title to make it clear and appealing

• Show Frequency Description: Add a description to explain how often the customer will receive their subscription

Plan description

Advanced settings

In the Advanced Settings section, you have more control over how the subscription plan works:

• Apply to All Variants or Specific Variants: Choose whether this subscription plan should apply to all variants of the product or just specific ones

• Set Max/Min Orders: You can set the required minimum or maximum number of orders before a customer can cancel their subscription or before it expires

Advanced settings

1.3 Save Your Subscription Plan

After you've set everything up, don't forget to click 'Save' to ensure all your settings are applied

Step 2: Add Subscription widget to your product page

Now that you’ve set up your subscription plan, it’s time to add the subscription widget to your product page. This widget is what your customers will interact with to subscribe to your product

Step 2 setup guide

Enable Joy Subscriptions

First, you need to enable the subscription widget on your product page:

• Click on ‘Add Widget’ in the Setup Guide: This will guide you to the Shopify theme editor where you can add the widget

• Enable the Widget: In the Shopify theme editor, locate the Joy Subscriptions widget and click ‘Save.’ This action will enable the widget on your product page

Choose the Position for the Widget

Next, you’ll want to choose where the subscription widget appears on your product page:

• Select Widget Position: You can drag and drop the widget to your desired location on the product page

• Recommended Position: Most merchants place the subscription widget below the quantity selector. This makes it easy for customers to see their subscription options right after they choose the quantity of the product they want to purchase

Step 3: See how it looks on your store

After setting everything up, it's important to preview how your subscription widget looks on your product page. This will ensure everything is displaying correctly and aligns with your store’s design

Click on ‘Go to Online Store’ in the Setup Guide: This will take you directly to your product page where the subscription widget is now active

Step 3 setup guide

Review the Layout: Take a moment to see how the widget looks on your product page. Make sure it's positioned correctly and that all the options are clear and easy for customers to understand

Live widget

This final step helps you confirm that your subscription setup is not only functional but also visually appealing to your customers. Once you're satisfied, your subscription plan is fully ready for action!