Why Every Product-Based Store Should Be Using Volume Discounts and Subscriptions
If you're running an online store and you're only selling one product at a time with no recurring options, you're missing out—plain and simple. And if you're not using Shopify as your platform, you’re probably making it harder than it needs to be. Shopify makes it easy to add both volume discounts and subscription functionality through apps and built-in integrations.
There are two conversion tools that are wildly underused by eCommerce sellers: volume discounts and subscriptions. Used correctly, they can increase average order value, increase customer retention, and simplify your marketing efforts.
A real-world example? Let's talk about Katie, the founder of Mudd House Mercantile, a sustainable online store that had been live for 5 years—yet made zero online sales before joining Mastering P.o.P's Inner Circle in June 2024.
From Brick & Mortar to Online Success
For five years, Mudd House Mercantile had a charming brick-and-mortar presence but struggled to get traction online. That changed when Katie joined Mastering P.o.P. Within just 5 1/2 months, Mudd House crossed over $4,000 in online sales. Soon after, Katie made a bold move: she closed her physical store to focus fully on scaling her online business.
The turnaround wasn't magic—it was strategy.
Full-Site Optimization in 60 Days
Within 2 months of joining the membership, Katie:
- Migrated from Squarespace to Shopify with Mastering P.o.P's help within 48 hours (all 200+ products)
- It took well over a week for Squarespace to transfer the domain (screenshot below)
- Rebuilt and optimized her entire site for conversions
- Added key apps like volume discount, subscriptions, push notifications, and email marketing
- Integrated a blog using DropInBlog to drive organic traffic (M.P members get about 35% off the app)
- Activated the Frequently Bought Together feature to lift cart size
One of the biggest wins? Adding volume discounts and subscription options directly to her product pages.
What Are Volume Discounts and Subscriptions?
Volume Discount: Encourages customers to buy more by offering tiered discounts. (Example: Buy 3, save 10%.)
Subscription: Lets customers set up recurring orders (monthly, bi-monthly, etc.) so they never run out of what they love—and you keep getting paid.
These two tools are often overlooked, but when implemented correctly, they become silent revenue generators.
Real Proof It Works
In one recent order from Mudd House, a customer named Annabel used volume discounts to buy:
- Multiple Redecker Dish Wand Replacements
- Several Cotton Cloths
Now ask yourself: would Anabel have bought more than one of each product if those volume discount options weren’t there? Maybe. But maybe not. Katie didn’t leave it to chance—she created the opportunity right on the product page.
With that one small tweak, she increased her average order value and made the buying process easier and more rewarding for her customer.
Strategic Implementation
You don’t have to offer volume discounts and subscriptions on every single item. Choose the products that make sense:
- Consumables (cloths, brushes, refills, household essentials)
- Repeat-use items (things customers reorder regularly)
- Giftable items (perfect for subscriptions)
These tools work best when you align them with buyer behavior.
A Word for Paparazzi Sellers and Others with Pricing Restrictions
If you sell products that you’re not allowed to discount (like Paparazzi jewelry), subscriptions are a perfect workaround.
You can’t cut prices—but you can bundle value.
Imagine offering:
- A monthly mystery jewelry subscription
- A themed accessory drop every other month
People love surprise and convenience. Subscriptions do both.
What's the Point Here:
If you’re only selling one product at a time, you’re doing the hard work of acquiring a new customer—every single time. That’s expensive, time-consuming, and hard to scale.
With volume discounts, you sell more right now. With subscriptions, you sell more over time.
And when you combine both? You create a smarter, more sustainable business model.
Ready to Scale Smarter?
Katie didn’t grow Mudd House Mercantile by guessing. She implemented proven strategies that helped her:
- Make her first online sale in weeks (after 5 years of none)
- Grow to $4,000+ in under 6 months
- Transition fully from brick-and-mortar to eCommerce
And now? She’s not slowing down.
What’s Next for Mudd House Mercantile
Katie is expanding into digital sustainable bulk gift cards—an innovative move to attract corporate buyers. She’s creating dedicated collection pages optimized for each industry, starting with:
- Real Estate Agents & Agencies
- Breweries
- etc.
Why? Because these industries often search for bulk gift card options—whether or not sustainability is part of the search term. By customizing each page with industry-specific messaging and SEO, Katie is positioning herself in front of high-intent buyers.
This approach isn’t random—it’s mapped out. She’s already:
- Written the copy for each collection page
- Designed and created her digital corporate gift card
- Installed the Shopify app that handles bulk discount cards
Would Katie have thought of all this before joining Mastering P.o.P? Maybe… but maybe not. What matters is she saw the opportunity, and now she’s executing.
We’ll be keeping you posted as she continues building—and you should be thinking about how you can do the same.
How We Work
In case you didn’t know, P.o.P in Mastering P.o.P stands for Profitability Over Popularity. Because we believe success isn’t about chasing trends—it’s about building a business that actually works—and generates real money, consistently.
In Mastering P.o.P’s membership, each member has a customized SEO strategy that they are actively executing. For any online business owner with a website, having a clear SEO strategy is important—it helps attract the right audience, rank well in search results, and drive traffic to the site. As part of this strategy, we track 100 keywords for each member. These keywords are carefully selected based on competitors performing well with them, alignment with our product offerings, and the expected traffic they can generate.
Members regularly receive tips like these within the community and during weekly Zoom calls, which are recorded, timestamped, and organized with agendas to make the guidance clear and actionable. Learn How We Work!
