Note
This article applies to Customer Portal v3 (CPv3). If you're using the older Customer Portal v2 (CPv2), refer to our help docs here.
Before you start
Consider your retention strategy before configuring experience settings:
Which actions do you want customers to handle themselves versus contacting support?
How much flexibility should customers have with skip intervals and frequency changes?
What guardrails do you need to prevent impulsive cancellations or extreme modifications?
Which actions should be prominent versus hidden in a "More" menu?
What are the experience settings for?
The Customer Portal Experience tab controls what actions customers can take in their portal and how those actions are organized. These settings let you tailor the portal to match your retention strategy by deciding which subscription management options are available to customers and how they appear in the interface.
Use these settings to balance customer autonomy with business goals like reducing cancellations, maintaining order frequency, and protecting revenue.
How to access experience settings
In your Skio dashboard, go to Customer Portal > Portal settings.
Click the Experience tab.
The experience interface shows a live preview on the right. Changes appear in real-time as you configure settings.
Customize actions and workflow
The Actions & workflow section controls which subscription management actions are available to customers and how they're organized. Buttons appear prominently at the top of the subscription detail page. These are the primary actions customers will take most often.
More menu items are hidden within a "More" button. These are secondary actions customers might use less frequently.
To reorganize buttons, click and hold the drag the six dots next to an action. Drag it up or down to reorder within the same section, or drag between sections to move it from visible buttons to "More" menu or vice versa.
Get now
Get now lets customers process their upcoming order immediately instead of waiting for the scheduled date. This is helpful for customers who want their order sooner.
Toggle Get now on to enable this action. When enabled, customers see a Get now button they can click to place their order right away.
Skip
Skip lets customers delay their next order to a future date. This helps reduce cancellations when customers temporarily don’t need a shipment.
Skip configuration options:
Type of interval controls how skip intervals are calculated:
Relative: Adds the skip interval to the current date.
Billing cycle: Adds the skip interval based on the subscription’s billing frequency.
Billing interval multiplier defines the skip duration options customers can choose from. You can add up to 3 multiplier options:
0.5x subscription interval: Skips for half a billing period.
1x subscription interval: Skips for one full billing period.
2x or 3x subscription interval: Skips for two or three billing periods.
To add an option, click Add option and enter the multiplier value. Click the trash icon to remove it.
Pause
Pause lets customers temporarily stop their subscription without cancelling it entirely. This reduces cancellation risk by offering a middle-ground option when they need a break.
Pause configuration options:
Length of pause determines how long customers can pause:
Temporary: Customers must select a specific end date.
Indefinite: Customers can pause without an end date and must manually resume.
Type of interval controls how pause duration is calculated:
Relative: Based on calendar time from the current date.
Billing cycle: Based on the subscription’s billing frequency.
Billing interval multiplier defines preset pause options when using billing cycle intervals. You can add up to 3:
1x subscription interval: Pauses for one billing period.
2x subscription interval: Pauses for two billing periods.
3x subscription interval: Pauses for three billing periods.
To add an option, click Add option and enter the multiplier value. Click the trash icon to remove it.
Edit frequency
Edit frequency allows customers to change how often they receive their subscription orders.
Frequency configuration options:
Allow custom interval: Lets customers enter any custom frequency instead of choosing from preset options. Toggle this on to give them full control over delivery timing.
Next order date
Next order date lets customers choose when their next order ships. This is useful when they want to delay or move up a specific delivery.
Apply discount
Apply discount lets customers enter discount codes directly in the portal to reduce their subscription price.
When this option is hidden, the entire discount section is removed from the summary area of the subscription detail page—not just the button.
Split
Split lets customers divide a subscription with multiple products into separate subscriptions. This gives them more control over delivery schedules for different items.
Merge
Merge allows customers to combine multiple subscriptions into one. This simplifies management for those who prefer receiving all products in a single shipment.
Cancel
Cancel gives customers the ability to end their subscription. While this supports self-service, you can configure guardrails to reduce impulsive cancellations.
Note: The Cancel action always appears in the interface preview, but you control whether customers can actually cancel in the live portal.
Product skip
Product skip lets customers remove individual items from their upcoming order without skipping the entire subscription. This is especially valuable for subscriptions with multiple products.
Gift on skip
Gift on skip offers customers the option to gift their next order to someone else instead of skipping it. This turns a potential skip into a positive engagement opportunity.
Product quantity
Product quantity controls whether customers can adjust how many units of each product they receive in their subscription.
Set timing and rules
These settings help protect your business by setting constraints on when certain actions can be taken.
Limit next billing date: Set how far in advance customers can schedule their next order. For example, entering 90 limits next billing to within 90 days.
Required days before cancellation: Set a waiting period before cancellations are allowed. For example, entering 7 means customers must wait 7 days before a cancellation goes through.
Display money saved by subscription
The money saved feature shows customers how much they're saving compared to one-time purchases, reinforcing the value of their subscription.
Toggle Show amount money saved on to display savings information in the portal.
When enabled, customers see a calculation showing their total savings from subscribing versus buying products individually at full price. This reminder can improve retention by highlighting the financial benefit of staying subscribed.
Enable customer payment management
These settings control whether customers can manage their payment methods through the portal or must handle payment updates through Shopify's default methods.
Toggle Allow in-portal payment management on to let customers add or update payment methods directly in the portal.
Toggle Allow in-portal backup payment on to let customers add a backup payment method that will be charged if their primary payment method fails.
When backup payment is disabled, Skio follows Shopify's default method for handling failed payments.
Best practices for experience settings
Prioritize your top two actions. Keep your most important customer actions visible as buttons. Move less critical actions to the "More" menu to reduce visual clutter.
Enable skip before disabling cancel. If you're considering restricting cancellations, make sure skip and pause options are available. Customers need alternatives when they can't cancel immediately.
Use skip intervals strategically. Offer 1x and 2x subscription intervals as skip options to match your typical use cases. Avoid too many options that create decision paralysis.
Test the customer flow. Use the preview to click through common customer scenarios and ensure the experience makes sense from their perspective.
Balance control and constraints. Give customers meaningful control over their subscriptions while setting reasonable guardrails that protect your business from extreme modifications.
Consider your product type. High-frequency replenishment products (coffee, vitamins) benefit from quantity editing. Lower-frequency products may not need this complexity.
Customer Portal experience FAQFAQ
What happens if I disable an action that customers are currently using?
Disabling an action in the portal only prevents customers from taking that action going forward. It doesn't undo any actions customers have already taken. For example, if you disable skip, customers who have already skipped orders will still have those skips in place.
Can customers still contact support to take actions I've disabled in the portal?
Yes, disabling actions in the portal only affects self-service capabilities. Your support team can still perform any subscription action on behalf of customers through your Skio dashboard.
Should I show the cancel button even if I require days before cancellation is permitted?
Yes, showing the cancel button lets customers initiate the cancellation process. The required days setting determines when the cancellation actually processes, giving you time to engage at-risk customers.
How does gift on skip work with product skip?
When both are enabled, customers see the gift option when skipping an entire subscription. Product skip is for removing individual items from an order, while gift on skip applies to the full order.
Can I have different experience settings for different customer segments?
Not directly through these settings. All customers see the same portal experience. However, you can use custom CSS and JavaScript in the Advanced settings to create conditional experiences based on customer tags or other attributes.
What's the difference between pause types (temporary vs indefinite)?
Temporary pause requires customers to set an end date, after which the subscription automatically resumes. Indefinite pause has no end date and requires customers to manually resume their subscription.