Amie logo

How Amie's Cancellation Flow Uses Transparency and Storytelling to Retain Users

AI calendar and meeting notes app · SaaS B2B / Productivity · 3-step cancellation flow

Most apps guilt-trip you when you cancel. Amie does something different. They tell you why they killed the free plan, show your personal usage data, highlight what's new, and offer a downgrade path. The whole thing feels more like a product update than a retention wall.

Narrative TransportationLoss AversionAnchoringChoice ArchitectureSunk Cost Framing

Questions Asked

None. Zero exit survey, zero feedback form, zero "why are you leaving?" Amie doesn't ask you anything. Instead they tell you a story about why the free plan doesn't exist anymore and show you what you've been doing with the product. The data speaks for itself.

Retention Offers

A downgrade to a cheaper Pro plan at $20/user/month (billed yearly, with 2 months free). No discounts, no "50% off if you stay" deals. The offer is structural: pay less for a smaller plan, not "pay less for the same plan temporarily."

Overall Pattern

3 screens that feel more like a product announcement than a cancellation flow. First they explain the business decision (killed the free plan). Then they show your journey and what's new. Then they offer a cheaper plan. Cancel is a tiny link at the very bottom of the last screen.

Step-by-Step: What Happens When You Try to Cancel Amie

Amie cancellation flow showing founder message explaining why the free plan was removed and new features like AI meeting notes and Workspaces
Step 1 of 3

"Amie No Longer Offers a Free Plan": Founder Storytelling as Retention

This is the screen that makes Amie's flow unique. A split modal. On the left, a founder avatar (Dennis) and a section called "What happened?" with 3 numbered points: (1) productivity apps are deeply personal and they're building a sustainable company to be here long-term, (2) AI meeting notes unlocked use cases early users love, (3) they can't support free users as much as they'd like. On the right, a blue gradient card titled "What's new?" listing 4 features: AI meeting notes (bot-free), Workspaces, AI Scheduling, and a cheaper plan (Amie Personal). The CTA is "View my Amie journey."

What it showsLeft panel: founder avatar + 3-point narrative explaining why free was dropped. Right panel: "What's new?" card with 4 feature updates including AI meeting notes, Workspaces, AI Scheduling, and a new cheaper plan. CTA: "View my Amie journey"
Principles
Narrative TransportationAnchoring
Why it worksInstead of "are you sure you want to cancel?" they're saying "here's what changed and why." The numbered list reads like a blog post, not a retention wall. Point 1 is emotional (we want to be here for you), point 2 is product (we built cool stuff), point 3 is honest (we can't afford free users). That honesty disarms the guilt you'd normally feel. And by putting "Cheaper plan" as one of the new features, they're anchoring the downgrade as a positive development, not a consolation prize.
Amie cancellation flow showing personalized user journey data including meetings recorded and todos completed on a blue gradient card
Step 2 of 3

"View My Amie Journey": Personalized Usage Data Without the Guilt Trip

Click "View my Amie journey" and the right panel changes to your personal stats. Joined Amie more than 2 months ago. Recorded 5 meetings. Created 2 todos and done 2. The left panel stays the same (the founder story). A "Continue" button at the bottom. This is loss aversion but done gently. They're not saying "you'll lose all this." They're saying "look at what you've built here." The tone is celebratory, like a year-in-review, not a warning.

What it showsPersonalized stats on a blue gradient card: time since joining (2+ months), meetings recorded (5), todos created and completed (2 and 2). Left panel unchanged with founder narrative. CTA: "Continue"
Principles
Loss AversionSunk Cost Framing
Why it worksThe data is real but the framing matters. "Recorded 5 meetings" isn't threatening. It's a gentle reminder that you actually use this product. The Spotify Wrapped approach works because it makes you feel like you have a history with the app, not like you're about to lose something. Sunk cost framing is subtle here. They're not saying "you invested time," they're showing you evidence that you did, and letting your brain draw its own conclusions.
Amie change to cheaper plan modal with Pro plan at $20/month yearly billing and small cancel subscription link at the bottom
Step 3 of 3

Amie's Downgrade Offer: Change to a Cheaper Plan Instead of Canceling

The final screen is "Change to a cheaper plan." A monthly/yearly toggle with a green "GET 2 MONTHS FREE WITH YEARLY" badge and a hand-drawn arrow pointing to the yearly option. Below, the Pro plan card: $20/user/month billed yearly, with features like unlimited recordings, bot-free recordings, Chat with Notes, upload audio as AI Notes, and AI Scheduling. A "Downgrade" button. And way at the bottom, a small coral "Cancel subscription" link. That's the only place in the entire flow where the word "cancel" appears with an actionable link.

OffersDowngrade to Pro plan at $20/user/month (billed yearly). Features: unlimited recordings, bot-free recordings, Chat with Notes, upload audio as AI Notes, AI Scheduling. Monthly/yearly toggle with 2 months free incentive for annual billing
What it showsPlan card with pricing and features, "Downgrade" button (neutral, full-width), and a small coral "Cancel subscription" text link at the very bottom of the modal
Principles
Choice ArchitectureAnchoring
Why it worksThe entire screen is designed around the downgrade, not the cancel. "Change to a cheaper plan" is the headline, not "are you sure?" The yearly pricing with "2 months free" gives you a reason to commit longer. The feature list reminds you what you'd keep, not what you'd lose. And the cancel link at the bottom is small, coral-colored, and easy to skip. The whole architecture says: the expected action here is to downgrade, not to leave.

Retention Tactics and Psychology in Amie's Cancellation Flow

?What Questions Does Amie Ask When You Cancel?

  • Nothing. Amie's cancellation flow has zero questions, zero surveys, zero feedback forms
  • Instead of asking you why you're leaving, they tell you why the free plan went away. The information flow is reversed: they explain themselves to you, rather than making you explain yourself to them
  • This is a bold choice. Most SaaS companies treat the exit survey as essential data collection. Amie is betting that the usage data they already have (meetings recorded, todos completed) tells them more than a radio button survey ever could
  • The absence of questions also reduces friction. There's nothing standing between you and the door except a story, some data, and a cheaper plan offer

$What Retention Offers Does Amie Give You?

  • Downgrade to Pro at $20/user/month (billed yearly): This is a structural offer, not a temporary discount. You get a real plan with real features at a lower price point. It persists
  • 2 months free with yearly billing: A green badge and hand-drawn arrow draw your eye to the annual option. This is classic anchoring, making the yearly commitment feel like a deal
  • No pause option: Unlike Substack or most SaaS products, Amie doesn't offer a way to freeze your account. It's either downgrade or cancel
  • No temporary discounts: No "50% off for 3 months." The only offer is a permanently cheaper plan. This is smarter long-term because temporary discounts create a cliff where the user has to decide again later

🧠Psychological Principles Behind Amie's Retention Strategy

Narrative Transportation

The founder story with numbered points reads like a blog post or changelog, not a cancellation wall. When people are absorbed in a narrative, they lower their defenses. Amie uses this to reframe the cancellation moment as a product update moment. You came here to cancel but now you're reading about why they killed the free plan and what they built instead.

Loss Aversion

Your personalized stats (5 meetings recorded, 2 todos done) are a soft version of loss aversion. They don't say "you'll lose this." They say "look at what you've done." The implication is the same but the tone is completely different. It feels celebratory rather than threatening.

Anchoring

Two anchors working at once. The "2 months free with yearly" badge anchors the annual plan as the smart choice. And listing the Pro plan features anchors the downgrade as a good product, not a stripped-down punishment. You're comparing downgrade vs cancel, not downgrade vs what you have now.

Choice Architecture

The entire flow is designed so that "downgrade" is the default action and "cancel" is the exception. The downgrade button is full-width and prominent. The cancel link is small text at the bottom. The headline says "Change to a cheaper plan," not "Cancel your subscription." Every visual element pushes you toward staying at a lower price.

Sunk Cost Framing

Showing your journey (2+ months, 5 meetings, 2 todos) activates sunk cost thinking without being explicit about it. You've invested time into this app. The data is right there. Your brain does the math on its own about whether it's worth throwing that away.

Frequently Asked Questions About Canceling Amie

Go to Workspace Settings > Billing, click "Cancel" in the top right. You'll go through a 3-step flow: first a founder message explaining why the free plan was removed, then your personalized usage stats, then a downgrade offer. The actual cancel link is at the very bottom of the third screen as a small coral text link that says "Cancel subscription."

No. Amie dropped the free plan. When you try to cancel, they explain why in a 3-point founder message: they're building a sustainable company, AI meeting notes unlocked valuable use cases, and they can't support free users at scale. They introduced a cheaper "Personal" plan instead.

Not a temporary discount. Instead, Amie offers a downgrade to the Pro plan at $20/user/month when billed yearly (with 2 months free on annual billing). This is a permanent cheaper plan, not a temporary discount that expires.

No. Unlike most SaaS products, Amie has no exit survey and no feedback form. Instead of asking you why you're leaving, they tell you why the free plan was removed and show your personalized usage data.

No. Amie doesn't offer a pause option. Your choices are to downgrade to a cheaper plan or cancel entirely. There's no way to temporarily freeze your account.

The cancellation flow doesn't explicitly state what happens to your data after canceling. It shows what you've accumulated (meetings recorded, todos created) but doesn't clarify retention policies. You may want to export your data before canceling.

More Cancellation Flow Analyses

Supademo cancellation flow
Supademo logo

Supademo

Interactive demo platform · 3 pasos

A step-by-step breakdown of the retention tactics, discount offers, and behavioral psychology behind Supademo's 3-screen cancellation process.

AnchoringCommitment & Consistency+3
MKT1 Newsletter cancellation flow
MKT1 Newsletter logo

MKT1 Newsletter

Paid B2B marketing newsletter · 4 pasos

MKT1 runs on Substack, so the cancellation flow is platform-level. But there are smart choices in how pause, free month offers, and exit surveys are layered to keep paying subscribers around. Plus a clever post-cancellation detail most newsletters miss.

Choice ArchitectureCommitment & Consistency+3
Canva cancellation flow
Canva logo

Canva

Design platform · 7 pasos

Canva runs one of the longest cancellation flows we've documented. 7 screens, personalized feature usage counts, a grandfathered pricing reveal, a pause offer, and a post-cancel feedback form. Every screen adds a new reason to stay.

Loss AversionAnchoring+3
Reforge cancellation flow
Reforge logo

Reforge

B2B professional education platform · 6 pasos

Reforge runs a refreshingly straightforward cancellation flow. No personalized usage data, no price anchoring, no pause offers. Just a required exit survey with reasons tailored to their unique business model (company reimbursement, live courses, team plans), an open feedback form, and a clean reactivation path. For a $1,000/year product, the simplicity is the strategy.

Commitment & ConsistencyLoss Aversion+2
Typeform cancellation flow
Typeform logo

Typeform

Form builder and survey platform · 8 pasos

Typeform does something no other product in this series does: they use their own product as the exit survey. A 3-question Typeform embedded in the cancellation flow that asks directly about competitors. Are you switching tools? Which ones? Why? It's a 4-step wizard with a progress bar, plan comparison, feature loss review, and a required survey that feeds their product strategy.

Choice ArchitectureLoss Aversion+3
View All Case Studies→