Stop the Leak: How to Optimize Dunning for Growth

Most dunning setups have the same problem in one word: short. A single default campaign, one generic email, and a window that closes before Recurly's retry model has time to work. In this session, Recurly's Hannah Wilden walks through 11 practical tips for fixing that, drawn directly from what's worked for customers like SmallPDF, Overleaf, and Kahoot — who saw uplifts of 8-12% simply by extending their dunning window and cleaning up their email strategy.

What's covered:

• Why on-brand emails matter more than almost anything else — and how mismatched branding erodes the trust needed for customers to click a payment link
• How to structure your dunning window length: 27 days for monthly plans, 60 days for annual, and why sending regular emails throughout drives more updates than a single notice
• Building urgency the right way: countdowns, shifting tone, and reminding customers exactly what they'll lose
• Setting up multiple dunning campaigns to speak differently to different customer segments
• Using in-app payment banners and Recurly Wallet backup payment methods to reach customers who never open the email at all