Episode 77 - The Four Reasons Your Customers Churn

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📰 4 Reasons Your Customers Churn 

1. “I don’t feel the value fast enough to keep using this.”

Why it’s universal: Every subscription (content, physical, digital, hybrid) expects users to form a habit quickly. If the service doesn’t deliver an early “aha moment,” the user never fully engages.

Why it’s expensive:

• Users churn before first renewal → wasted acquisition cost

• Harder to win back a user who “never got it”

• This is the single most significant driver of early-stage churn

2. “I’m paying for something I don’t use, I feel guilty.”

Why it’s universal: All subscriptions are charged on a recurrent basis. When usage drops, guilt rises. Gyms, Netflix, meal kits, vitamins, meditation apps, gaming passes, and premium newsletters all have the same pattern.

Why it’s expensive:

• Users blame the brand for making them feel wasteful

• Can lead to passive (silent) churn, which is hardest to detect

• Low usage is the  #1 cause of mid-stage churn.

3. “The novelty has worn off, I’m not excited anymore.”

Why it’s universal: Human brains love novelty. They also habituate quickly.

Whether it’s:

• streaming libraries

• fitness content

• subscription boxes

• betting apps

• mobile games

• learning tools

• meal kits

…every category suffers from “excitement decay.”

Why it’s expensive:

• Engagement doesn’t just drop-  it falls off a cliff

• Users perceive the product as “samey,” even though new content/products are created 

• Novelty decay is the #1 cause of churn in months 3–6.

4. “I don't feel valued.”

Why it’s universal: Many brands intentionally or unintentionally create friction in:

• Customer service 

• Cancellation processes

• Plan changes

• Pausing

• Downgrading

• Price hikes 

Ultimately, this happens most of the time because policies and approaches are business-centric, leaving the customer feeling unvalued and unappreciated.

This causes inertia churn, where users continue paying while emotionally disengaging.

Why its expensive:

• Users stop engaging, but still cost

• Negative word of mouth of active users can hurt brand reputation

• Once they leave, they rarely reactivate   

The 6 behavioural mechanisms behind all churn 

These 4 churn problems are driven by six underlying human behavioural mechanisms that create the same retention problems everywhere.

1. The “Activation Threshold” Problem

Mechanism: Humans need a clear, fast, rewarding first experience to form a habit.
Most subscriptions fail because the user:

• doesn’t see value quickly

• is confused on day 1

• doesn’t know what to do next

• has too much choice

• doesn’t get a “quick win”

This drives: “I don’t feel value fast enough.”

In behavioural science:

• Success = Early Reward + Low Effort

• Failure = Delayed Reward + High Effort

If that first dopamine hit doesn’t happen early, nothing else matters.

2. The “Intention–Action Gap”

People want to use a subscription… but don’t because intentions don’t reliably lead to action.

Reasons:

• competing priorities

• low motivation

• The product isn’t tied to an existing routine

• The friction costs are too high

This drives: “I’m paying, but I don’t use it.”

This is why gyms, meditation apps, language apps, and meal kits share identical churn curves.

3. The “Hedonic Adaptation Curve”

Humans quickly normalise ANY ongoing experience, even good ones.

Delight fades. Novelty evaporates. Excitement drops.

This is pure evolutionary psychology.

What was exciting becomes normal. 

This drives: “The novelty wears off.”

It happens to:

• Netflix

• Subscription boxes

• Games

• Learning apps

• Fitness programs

• Meal kits

• Beauty clubs

• Even betting platforms

Unless the product intentionally replenishes novelty, churn is inevitable.

4. The “Cognitive Load Barrier”

When the experience feels even slightly overwhelming, people disengage.

This affects:

• too many choices

• too many features

• too much content

• too many workout programs

• too many betting markets

• too many plan options

Choice overload creates stress → stress creates avoidance.

This reinforces: “I don’t use it.”, “The novelty wears off.”

5. The “Negative Emotion Loop”

Subscriptions can trigger:

• guilt

• regret

• frustration

• anxiety

And here’s the kicker: When people feel negative emotions toward a product, they avoid the product, which increases churn.

And guilt is one of the top negative emotions for subscriptions: “I feel guilty for not using it.”

This is why even GOOD products lose users once guilt comes into play.

6. The “Friction–Loss Paradox”

Humans are intolerant of friction.

Customer Service Friction, Price Change Friction, Downgrade Friction, Pause Friction, and Cancel Friction cause emotional churn before behavioural churn.

• User feels undervalued 

• Users disengage

• Stop caring

• Mentally unsubscribe

• Talk negatively about the brand

• Reduce usage to zero (even if they’re still technically paying).

This drives: “I don't feel valued”

The paradox: Friction increases revenue (e.g. by making it difficult to downgrade or cancel, fewer people do so) or reduces costs (e.g. long service wait times) in the short term, but increases resentment, churn, and negative word of mouth in the long term.

Retention Diagnosis

Would you like a Retention Diagnostic Worksheet version of this model, designed to run workshops or audits, or to plug directly into your retention conversations?

I’ve already mapped this into a one-page framework. Email me back, I’d be happy to share: [email protected] 

Until next week,  

Tom 

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