1. 10 Automated Emails Retailers
Should Consider
January 2013

2. 2
Following are 10 emails/programs that retailers should
automate and consider adding to their email marketing
program.
Why? Recipients love them or they provide value to them;
they typically deliver high conversion rates; and since
they are automated – they deliver revenue for you every
day while you focus on other parts of your program.
What are your waiting for, get started!

3. 1. Welcome /
Onboarding
2. Browse
Abandonment
3. Cart
Abandonment
4.
Recommendation
5. Product Review
Request
6. Happy Birthday
7. Replenishment
/ Reminder
8. Cross Sell
9. Purchase
Anniversary
10. Re-
engagement
Contents
3

4. 1.Welcome / Onboarding

5. Welcome / Onboarding Emails: Playbook
• What: Email or series of emails triggered upon opt-in.
• When: Immediately upon opt-in and follow-on emails over a period
of days or weeks.
• Why: Controlled initial experience; educates new subscriber on
brand and email benefits; can lead to immediate conversion,
reduces inactivity.
• Best Practices:
– Send within minutes of opt-in
– Create a series of emails – often 2-4 emails, each designed with a
specific objective
– Better yet, create on onboarding series that is unique to each
subscriber – with personalized content and offers based on pre-opt-in
behavior and preferences/profile data.
5

6. Within two months of
opt-in, the open rate typically
falls 20% to 25%.
Source: MarketingSherpa

7. 1/3 of U.S. largest retailers
Send zero welcome emails
Source: Silverpop study of the Internet Retailer 500

8. Single Email Welcome Email Series

10. 35 X
Broadcast
Revenue
2.5 X
Broadcast
Revenue

11. Move to onboarding based
on behavior/preferences…

12. WebTracking Behavior
?

13. Mint
Welcome
13

14. Mint Activation 1
14
Users who have not
added their banks
after 7 days

15. Mint
Activation 2
15
Users who have not
added their banks
after 14 days

16. Mint Mobile Welcome
16
New Mint users from
mobile channel

17. Additional Resources
• The Welcome Email Is Dead! – article
• AlohaWelcome Email & Unsubscribe Best Practices –
Webinar presentation
• Engage New Subscribers with aWelcome Email Program –
article
• Using Welcome Emails to Drive Increased Engagement and
ROI - presentation
17

18. 2. Browse Behavior

19. Browse Behavior-Based Emails: Playbook
19
• What: Emails that are triggered based on a customer or prospect
abandoning aWeb page(s), form/calculator or process.
• When: Immediately or shortly after abandonment and then over days and
weeks as part of a series.
• Why:To capture sales over time from a prospect that showed interest,
but didn’t convert. Higher in the conversion funnel than cart
abandonment, the opportunity is also significantly larger.
• Best Practices:
– Focus on a few or coreWeb pages that are drivers of conversion
activity or have high conversion rates.
– Since prospects are earlier in the buying process, focus on nurturing
and education that leads them closer to a purchase.
– Use videos, calculators, product reviews and employee/customer
stories to educate prospects and help them make a purchase decision.

20. Browse Abandonment: Expressing Interest
Sent
Delivered
Opened
Clicked
Product Views
Cart Additions
Checkouts
Orders
Revenue
Units

21. Browse Behavior
• 37.6% Open Rate
• 7.35% CTR
• $0.44 Rev/Email

22. Browse Behavior

23. Browse Behavior

24. Browse Behavior

25. Additional Resources
• Beyond the Cart: 5 Process Abandonment Messages
to Implement – blog post
• How toTurn Cart and Process Abandonment
Scenarios into Revenue – white paper
25

26. 3. Cart Abandonment

27. Cart Abandonment Remarketing Emails: Playbook
• What: Series of emails triggered after a customer abandons their
shopping cart.
• When: Within an hour or so – or 24 hours maximum – after
abandonment, followed by 2-3 emails over several days.
• Why: Abandonment is a huge challenge for retailers, however,
remarketing can recapture a sizable percentage; cart remarketing
has a very high conversation rate – typically from 10%-50%
• Best Practices:
– Send initial email within an hour if possible/24 hours maximum
– Create a series of several emails
– Hold off on discounts and incentives until the final email(s)
– Include a direct link to the cart
– Include product description, reviews
– Incorporate personality and a reassuring tone and approach.
27

28. 87% of consumers abandon carts
…75% say they will return to
complete the purchase.
Source: Amaze/University of Glasgow

29. — Multiple Sources
“60–70%”
Abandoned Carts, Lost Revenue
29
Up to 70% of Shopping Carts are Abandoned before Checkout

30. Following up with
abandoners by email
yields
up to 50%conversion.

31. Issues to Consider
Abandon
Type
Timing
Single or
Email Series
Discounts /
Incentives
Product
Inclusion
Design
Copy / Style

32. SampleCart AbandonmentTypes
Recency
Cart
Expiration
Product
Availability
Price
Change

33. Timing Factors
• Immediate
• 24 hours
• 3-5 days, 1 week
• Factors/Issues:
– Product type (e.g., travel)
– Feed timing
– Did they purchase after abandoning?

34. Develop Creative Strategy (DEMCO)
Message
#
Days
after
cart
filled
Message Offer
A 1 Courtesy reminder – you still have
items in your shopping cart
None
B 3 Important notice – we have reserved
these items for you
None
C 5 Special offer Free tote
with offer
Started with a 3-step messaging approach…

35. MessageA – 1 day after

36. Message B – 3 days after

37. Message C – 5 days after

38. DEMCO Results
Cart Email A
Day 1
Cart Email B
Day 3
Cart Email C
Day 5 AVERAGE
Open Rate 40% 39% 32% 37%
Click-to-Open 44% 47% 28% 41%
Click-thru-Rate 18% 18% 9% 15%
Conversion Rate 22% 15% 24% 20%
Sales/email $8.60 $8.40 $5.04 $7.46
Conversion rate is just as high on the first email as it is on the last email
– without an offer

39. 2-Part Series:Tafford Uniforms

40. Did You
Forget
Something?

41. A Special
Offer To
Return To
Tafford

42. Annualized AbandonedCart Indexed Results…

43. Use Promotions, but with care
• Promotions will generate lift, and
incremental profit
• Best practice is to promote on the last of
your sequence
• Capture maximum margin
• Avoid training the customer to expect a
promotion
Cumulative
conversion
Conversion
per stage
Unsubscribe rate
1 2 3
Lift
Stage Conversion Open Rate Revenue /
email
1: Real time 22% 70% $11
2: 24 hours 7% 65% $4
3: 7 days 6% 60% $3
Total 35% Average 65% Average $6
Source: SeeWhy

44. Simple Promotion – Save 15%

45. Subtle, helpful

46. • Service tone
• Human
• Multiple
channel options
• Reassurance
• 50%
conversion

47. From a human

48. Multiple “reminders”

49. Additional Resources
• Recover Abandoned ShoppingCarts with Email –blog post
• Using EmailTo RemarketTo Customers – article
• Beyond the Cart: 5 Process Abandonment Messages to Implement –blog
• DoYou Still Have Abandonment Issues – article
• Cart Abandonment:Actually, It's A GoodThing – article
• DEMCOAbandoned-Cart Emails Kicking Patooty –Magill Report
• Beyond the Cart: 5 Process Abandonment Messages to Implement – blog
How toTurn Cart and Process Abandonment Scenarios into Revenue –
white paper
• Cart Abandonment: Zero to Sixty in 45 Days - presentation
• EverythingYouWanted to Know for CartAbandonment Email
Remarketing Success - presentation
• Cart Abandonment Email Best Practices – presentation
• Cart Abandonment Email Best Practices – presentation
• The 5 BestTechniques for Recovering Abandoned ShoppingCarts with
Email and Social Media – Webinar presentation
49

50. 4. Recommendation Emails

51. Recommendation Emails: Playbook
51
• What: Emails that are triggered after a purchase recommending
additional items based either on related products; products often
purchased with the original item; or by like purchasers.
• When: In order confirmation emails; shortly after a recent purchase; in
cart and browse abandonment emails; etc.
• Why:To capture additional/follow sales from an already engaged
customer or prospect; often high conversion rates; incremental revenue.
• Best Practices:
– Test timing on follow-on recommendation emails.
– Optimize business rules for highest converting products and
categories
– Test amount of product information to include; whether to include
product pricing; and how many products to show
– Test incorporating recommendations in various types of automated
emails to see what impact they have on conversions and negative
impact on the primary CTA.

52. Amazon Recommendation Email

53. Recommendations

54. Order Confirmation Recommendations
Recommend accessory items
or complementary items for
each product in cart

55. Review Posted: Recommendations
Recommendations based
on segmentation

56. SmartPak: Abandon Cart w/ Recommendations
The results:
• 38.5% open rate
• 10.15% CTR
• 50% conversion rate
• $4.80 revenue/email
Dynamic product
recommendations

57. 57
5. Product Review Request / Post Notification

58. Product Review Request Emails: Playbook
• What: Emails sent after a purchase requesting the purchaser write a
product review; follow-on email thanking the customer for posting a
review.
• When:Varies based on product type/category – but typically a minimum
of a few weeks following customer’s receipt of the product.
• Why: 1) Main driver/source of product reviews; 2)Which drivers additional
conversions; 3) Email touches lead to additional follow-on purchases.
• Best Practices:
– Test impact of timing of emails on number of review postings
– Include product photos, description and link directly to the review page
– Make it as easy as possible to contribute a review or rating
– Use personality; speak to the importance/value of reviews, consider an
incentive.
– Send reminders; also send “Your review has been posted” thank you
emails.
58

59. SmartPak Post-Purchase Review
“Customer input gives shoppers the
confidence to buy, increasing sales,
conversion, average order value,
and more.” Source: Bazaarvoice
• Launched home-grown product review tool
in early 2006
– Gathered 5,000 customer reviews
• Use Bazaarvoice (launched January 2009) to
handle customer reviews
• Sent generic broadcast email to customers to
review products they have purchased
• Launched a daily triggered email to review
first time ordered products post-purchase
– Currently have over 80,000 product reviews

60. Tafford
Review
Request

61. S&SWorldwide Product Review Email
14% of those
who click place
another order
Second highest
conversion rate
next to Abandon
Cart emails.

62. Products Review Notification
12% of those
clicking on this
email go directly to
make another
purchase.

63. Review Posted: Recommendations
Review
Recommendations based
on segmentation
Incentive

64. Additional Resources
• HowTo Attract Customer Reviews
• Post-purchase email helps SmartPak gain a
6X increase in review volume
64

65. 6. Happy Birthday Email Programs

66. Happy Birthday Emails: Playbook
• What: Emails distributed to a customer on or near their birthday.
• When:Varies from first day of recipient’s birthday to day of
birthday and everything in between; Also, post birthday.
• Why: If you have birthday data, these are easy to set up and
provide high ROI for the level of effort (LOE).
• Best Practices:
– Capture birthdate data at every key touch point
– Have fun with your creative – don’t be boring
– Consider including a birthday incentive to increase conversions
– Create a series of emails that are automated based on whether the
birthday recipient opens, clicks or converts off of the initial and
ensuing emails
– As part of the above series, send reminders before your birthday offer
expires.
66

67. 1. Everyone has a birthday!

68. 2.They get results!

69. Sample Birthday Campaign Indexed Results…

70. Sample Birthday ROI Calculation

71. Collect Birth Date Everywhere
Preference center
Welcome emails
Call center, in-store cards
Standalone emails / Surveys
Social media

72. Initial Birthday Email Delivery Options
On the birthday itself
In the birthday week
Within a few weeks of the birthday
At the start of the birthday month
Well in advance of birthday

73. Silverpop Survey: 75% send on birthday or
up to a week before

74. Results
• 52% Open Rate
• 13.8% CTR
• 10% higher
conversion rate than
their broadcast emails

75.  Unique copy for each month
 Famous birthdays
 35 days

76. Standard Retail Incentive

77. 77
Don’t stop with a single birthday email … create a
behavior-based series …

78. Survey: 77% send one email;
23% 2 or more

79. Birthday Follow On Emails
Birthday
Convert
Share
Request
Open/Click Incentive
No Action Reminder

80. How about 2-3 more emails?
e.g., March 16, 30 & April 20*
*Received March 1 for March 16 birthday

81. Additional Resources
• Birthday Blueprint – Guide to Building World-Class Birthday Email
Programs – white paper/guide
• Birthday Emails - Samples and Analysis – presentation
• Saying Happy Birthday –How to Build aTopTier Birthday Email
Program that Delights and Drives Revenue –Webinar slides
81

82. 7. Replenishment / Reminders / Reorder

83. Replenishment / Reminder Emails: Playbook
• What: Emails distributed to a customer reminding them to make a
gift purchase or re-purchase of an previously purchased.
• When:Typically on or around the estimated time period of when
the product will run our or need replacement; or on a user
determined reminder date.
• Why: Makes it easy for customers to make a repeat purchase of an
item they like; often high conversion rates.
• Best Practices:
– Include link to product page or shopping cart
– Include product photos and pricing
– Test including last purchase date
– Incorporate cross-sell and recommended products
– Test impact/need for incentives.
83

84. Reorder

85. Replenishment
Goal: Increase sales of repeat
purchases
Timing: Based on a calculation of
when product will run out
Results:
- 29.4% Open Rate
- 3.56% CTR
- $0.41 Rev/Email
- 9.56% Conversion Rate

86. Autoship Reminder Email
• Reminds customer of upcoming SmartPaks
order
• Allows customer time to make changes
before order is processed
The results:
• 36% open rate
• 13% click-through rate
• $1.39 revenue-per-email
• 18%+ conversion rate

87. Important Dates Reminder Email

88. Your dates trigger an email…
21 days before occasion
Personalized with name
Occasion w/ date
Coupon code
10% Off
31% CTR
Highest revenue
generating email

89. 8. Cross Sell / Upsell

90. Cross Sell / Upsell Emails: Playbook
• What: Emails designed to cross- or upsell a customer based on an
existing/previous purchase.
• When: In post transaction emails and an appropriate time period
following a purchase.
• Why: Moves customers to higher value, repeat customers – higher
conversion rates from satisfied customers; incremental reveune.
• Best Practices:
– Target customers based on specific past purchases and likely needs
– Test inclusion of previous product purchase photo
– Incorporate customer reviews and recommendations
– Test need for incentives
90

91. Purchase Cross-Sell
Goal: Increase sales by
marketing a relevant
product to customers
- Targeted customers with
a particular need
- Reused previous creative
Results:
- 19.41% Open Rate
- 4.31% CTR
- $0.58 Rev/Email
- 12.5% Conversion Rate
Subject Line: “Stop Sore Feet in their
Tracks”

92. Purchase Cross-Sell
Goal: Increase supplies sales of
supplement buyers by marketing
a relevant product to them
Results:
- 26.59% Open Rate
- 6.73% CTR
- $0.23 Rev/Email
- 2.6% Conversion Rate
Subject Line: “You Might Like the Back
on Track Saddle Pad”

93. SmartPaks Upsell Emails
• Customers suppressed from
promotional marketing stream
to keep them focused on the
most important product
purchase
• Program checks before each
mailing to determine if they
purchased a SmartPak or not.
If yes, removed from program
and placed back in
promotional marketing stream
– If no, get next mailing in line
on specified scheduled date

94. SmartPaks Upsell Emails

95. 9. Purchase Anniversary

96. Purchase Anniversary Emails: Playbook
• What: Emails distributed to a customer on/near the anniversary of
a purchase.
• When:Typically on or just prior to the one-year anniversary of a
purchase; plus any follow-on emails; can also be other appropriate
anniversary time frame.
• Why: Makes it easy for customers to make a repeat purchase of an
item they like; anniversary timing adds some cache’; “reminder
revenue”.
• Best Practices:
– Include link to previously purchased product (as appropriate)
– Use personality, consider it like a birthday email (as appropriate)
– Test impact/necessity of using incentives
– Incorporate cross-sell and recommended products
– Promote secondary CTAs, including “Update Preferences.”
96

97. Purchase Anniversary
15% higher conversion
rate than average from
broadcast messages

98. Purchase Anniversary + Reorder

99. #SPOPWebinar
10. Reengagement of Inactive Subscribers

100. Reengagement / Inactives Emails: Playbook
100
• What: Email program designed to “re-activate” unengaged
subscribers.
• When: Best approach is right after a pre-determined
period of inactivity.
• Why: Inactives, typically 40+% of a retailer’s database,
reduce ROI, potentially deliverability and are a significant
lost revenue opportunity.
• Best Practices:
– Determine timeframe of inactivity when most subscribers
never re-engage – for many retailers this is about 3 months
– Using a database query and marketing automation, move these
inactive subscribers into a special “early activation” or
reactivation program
– Treat differently those who don’t re-engage after activation
program.
– Remove long-term inactives typically only if you have
deliverability issues.

101. “Inactives” are about
human behavior…
not deliverability.

102. Typical Actives vs. Inactives Ratio

103. Hypothetical Lost Revenue Recapture Opportunity
Actives Inactives
# Subscribers 250,000 200,000
Average Revenue Per
Email Delivered
$0.12
4 X week X 53 weeks
~ 212 emails
$6.4M
Potential Lost
Revenue $5.1M

104. InactivesAction Plan

105. InactivesAction Plan
Root
Causes
Define &
Segment
Reactivate
Automate
Minimize

106. Why Recipients Go Inactive
Never fully engaged - just wanted the incentive
Interests / needs have changed
Content did not meet expectations
Emails are being routed to junk folder
You send too often for their taste
You send un-personalized, irrelevant emails
Long sales/purchase cycle
Inability to update email address / change preferences

107. Determine Root Causes
Are certain acquisition sources producing a higher rate of
inactives?
Has increased frequency numbed them?
Is your email program stale and boring?
Are you attracting the right audience?
Are you delivering against expectations?
Do you have deliverability issues?

108. Analyze…
By list source
Age on file
Customer segment/profile
Subscriber survey responses
Creative test results
Response by message type/frequency changes

109. Defining Inactives – Sample Parameters
Email activity (opens & clicks)
Time on list
Purchase/Conversion activity
Web site/Other channel activity
Sales/Purchase cycles/Seasonality
Customer value/Ideal profile

110. Typical Reactivation Rate: 1%-2%
High Performers: 10%+

111. Standard Re-engagement Series - Incentives

112. Re-engagement Series Results
• Performs poorly (not
unexpected)
– 5.8% Open rate
– 1.8% click through rate
– 1-2 orders per fiscal quarter
• Non-responders are
removed

113. Tell us what you want

116. SmartPak: Reactivation Metrics
Metrics Reactivation Other Emails
Bounces 3% - 7% 0.57%
Open Rates 3% 18%
Reactivated 13,000 so far
AOV $111.19 $119.09
Avg Rev/Email $0.06 $0.20

117. Action Plan - Automate

118. Automate: Activate Early Inactives
New subscribers who don’t open/click
first XX messages/X weeks
Move these early inactives into
“activation” track
Send survey, different offers; best of,
diff subject lines, testimonials, etc.

119. Sample “Month 4” and “Month 7” Program
Sweepstakes Unique Offer New Brands
Update
Preferences
Broadcast emails: 3-5 per week
No activity for 3 months – moved to reactivation track
Month 4: 1 email per week
Month 5-6: Normal 3-5/week
Promote other
channels
Unique Offer
What You Are
Missing
Survey
Month 7: 1 email per week

120. Inactive
Re-Engagement
• Goal: Reactivate customers
before they become inactive
• Results:
• Open Rate – 5.6%
• CTR – 0.5%
Email recipient
does not open,
click or purchase in
45 days
Inactive Re-Engagement Email:
Update Profile - 1.1
Opens or clicks any
email or makes a
purchase in 75
days
Inactive Re-Engagement Email:
Pays to be Smart – 1.2
Opens or clicks any
email or makes a
purchase in 90
days
Inactive Re-Engagement Email:
10% off Order – 1.3
Exits Inactive Re-
Enagagement
Program

121. Inactive Re-Engagement
Day 45: “Help Us
Serve You Better”
Day 75: “It Pays to
be Smart”
Day 90: “We Miss
You! Come Back
and Save 10%”
Evaluate for 30 days for activity, move into
once a month frequency for 6 months.

122. Additional Resources
• Inactives Webinar – recording
• Inactives Webinar - Presentation
• Inactives Client Presentation (US)
• Inactives Client Presentation (UK)
• Inactive Subscribers:What'sYour Strategy? – blog post
• Reactivating Inactives:ThreeTips to GetThem Back on Board
- article
• Unengaged Subscribers Are CostingYou – blog post
• Re-engage Inactive Subscribers - video
122

124. Interested In Learning More?
silverpop.com/marketing-resources
www.slideshare.net/silverpop
Twitter.com/silverpop
Facebook.com/silverpop