Offer Cycles

Every offer in Vrio uses "cycles" to control the customer experience and configuration, including pricing and billing frequency. Think of cycles as different stages in your customer's relationship with your offer - from their first purchase through renewals and beyond.

Understanding cycles is crucial because they determine how your customers progress through different pricing, billing, or even product configurations over time.

What Are Offer Cycles?

Cycles represent stages in the customer lifecycle, each with potentially different configurations:

• Cycle 1: First purchase experience
• Cycle 2: First renewal experience
• Cycle 3+: Subsequent renewal experiences

Each cycle can have completely different settings - different pricing, different billing timing, different items (for Custom offers), and even different automation rules.

How Cycles Work

Cycle Progression

When a customer completes the cycle they're currently on, they automatically move to the next cycle. The timing depends on how you've configured each cycle's billing schedule - it could be after 7 days, 30 days, or any custom schedule you set.

Cycle Completion

Customers continue on their current cycle based on its billing configuration until one of these happens:

• They move to the next cycle (if one exists)
• They reach the last cycle configured and continue indefinitely
• They reach a cycle marked as "final" and the subscription completes
• They cancel their subscription

Important Notes

• One-Time Sales: Use only Cycle 1, automatically marked as final
• Shared Offers: Limited to single cycle only (no progression)
• Custom Offers: Can have multiple cycles with full configuration flexibility

Example of configuring multiple cycles in a Custom offer. This shows Cycle 1 with bill for $50.00, followed by Cycle 2 that will bill for $99.99 every 2 months until cancelled. Notice how each cycle can have different pricing, billing frequency, and timing configurations.

Cycle Configuration Options

Each cycle can be configured independently with its own:

Billing & Pricing

• Billing frequency: How often customers are charged in this cycle
• Pricing amount: What customers pay during this cycle
• Billing timing: When charges occur (immediate, delayed, specific dates)

Items (Custom Offers Only)

• Item selection: What item customers receive in this cycle
• Item variations: Size, color, or other variation options
• Shipping configuration: How items are delivered in this cycle

Business Rules

• Cycle duration: How long customers stay in this cycle before progressing
• Final cycle marking: Whether this cycle ends the subscription
• Skipping permissions: Whether customers can skip this cycle
• Automation triggers: Cycle-specific responders and actions

Final Cycles

What Are Final Cycles?

A final cycle is marked to indicate that the subscription should complete after this cycle ends - no more renewals will occur.

How Final Cycles Work

1. Customer completes billing and receives item for final cycle
2. At the end of the cycle period, offer status changes to "Complete"
3. No future billing occurs
4. No cancellation needed - subscription gracefully ends

When to Use Final Cycles

• Fixed-term programs: 6-month courses, seasonal subscriptions
• Limited series: Set number of deliveries or installments
• Trial-to-purchase: Convert trial to one-time purchase
• Payment plans: Split large purchase into installments

Benefits

• Predictable completion: Customers know exactly when subscription ends
• No cancellation friction: Automatic completion reduces support burden
• Clear value proposition: Customers understand total commitment upfront
• Revenue certainty: Know total revenue per customer at signup

Example of marking a cycle as "final" to automatically complete the subscription. This shows Cycle 2 configured as the final cycle, meaning customers will automatically be moved to "Complete" status after this cycle ends, with no future billing or renewals.

Next Steps

To effectively configure cycles for your offers:

1. Define Your Customer Journey: Map out the ideal progression experience
2. Plan Cycle Transitions: Determine timing and triggers for progression
3. Configure Billing: Set up billing timing for each cycle
4. Set Pricing: Configure pricing logic for each cycle
5. Plan Communication: Design cycle-specific customer communication
6. Test and Monitor: Track cycle performance and optimize based on data

Remember: Cycles are powerful tools for creating sophisticated customer experiences, but they add complexity to your offer management. Start with simple cycle configurations and add complexity as your business needs evolve and you gain experience with customer behavior patterns.