Win Back Emails

What is a Win-Back Email?

A Win-Back email is a carefully crafted message sent to re-engage inactive customers. It is primarily a motivation for inactive customers to come back and make a purchase at your store.

An inactive customer is someone who previously engaged with your store but they've not made a repeat purchase for a long time at your store.

Why are Win-Back Emails Important?

Win-Back emails play a crucial role in encouraging repeat purchases. Customers may stop purchasing for various reasons, such as switching to a competitor, no longer needing your products, or even having had a negative experience. Sending a Win-Back email is a sincere effort to re-engage them and address any concerns they may have.

What happens when you don't send these Win-Back Emails?

• You miss the opportunity to learn why a customer left.

• You forgo the chance to recover customers you spent significant resources acquiring.

• Studies show that 61% of eCommerce revenue comes from repeat customers. Additionally, acquiring a new customer can cost up to 300% more than retaining an existing one.

Best Practices to be Followed in Win-Back Emails

To maximize the effectiveness of Win-Back emails, consider the following best practices:

Some of them are listed below:

A Catchy Subject Line

The subject line is your first chance to grab attention in a crowded inbox. A compelling subject line increases the likelihood that inactive customers will open and read your email.

Examples of effective subject lines:

• "Hi Laura, We miss you at {{shop.name}}"

• "Laura, here's a small gift for you"

• "Many offers are waiting for you, Laura"

Email Content

The content of the email should be perfectly tailored with the intent to bring back inactive customers to the store.

• Email Personalization - Personalized Emails will always enhance customer engagement, and a personal connection will be much appreciated by the customers.

Example:

• Start with a warm greeting: “Hey Steffie…”

Engage with customers on a one-on-one basis. When personalized emails land in their inbox, customers sense that you miss them and genuinely want them back in your community.

• Short & Meaningful Conversation - Keep your Win-Back emails concise and impactful to boost click-through rates. Focus on two key points:

Two things to be focused on in your win-back emails:

1. Acknowledge your inactive customers’ absence

2. List out what they are missing

• Offering Strong Incentives - Discounts can be a powerful motivator for inactive customers to return. Studies show that nearly 82.4% of customers remain loyal to brands that consistently offer deals.

To rekindle shopping interest, consider personalizing a coupon code for an even greater impact on your business.

• Winning-Back by Highlighting the Benefits - If customers haven’t visited your store in a while, remind them of the benefits associated with your products or services.

Examples:

• Buy one, get three free offers

• Free shipping and returns

• Discount coupons for purchases over a certain amount

Including a very vigorous CTA can also facilitate bringing back inactive customers

• Call-To-Action (CTA) - A strong and clear CTA is crucial for encouraging inactive customers to take action.

Examples:

• Get your free rewards

• Welcome back!

• Collect your coupon

• Avail 10% OFF Now!

Win-Back Email Template Examples

For a clear picture, we have come up with some examples. It will help you in drafting the mail in a refined manner. Example 1

Takeaways from this email template:

• It is simple.

• Offers a strong incentive

• Has a clear Call-To-Action (CTA)

Example 2

Takeaways from this email template:

• Visually appealing design

• A strong incentive

• A direct CTA

• Product recommendations

Example 3

Takeaways from this email template:

• Small but meaningful conversation

• Benefits were highlighted

• Incentives were mentioned

You can replicate any of the email templates in your win-back emails and get better customer re-engagement rates.

Here is a video tutorial on setting up win-back email automation.

How to Set Up Win-Back Email Workflow

This workflow focuses on re-engaging inactive customers and encouraging them to return with personalized offers and incentives:

Go to the Retainful dashboard -> Automation and create a new workflow.

Retainful offers a pre-built workflow template for win-back emails—designed to re-engage customers who haven’t purchased in a while with personalized incentives like unique coupons.

1. Setting up Workflow - Trigger & Rules:

• Navigate to the Retainful dashboard and select the Win-Back Email Workflow from the pre-built automation templates.

• This template is designed to re-engage customers who haven’t purchased a specific time frame.

Now, you will be redirected to the ‘Automation Workflow Builder’ immediately.

2. Start of the Workflow - Trigger

To set up your win-back email workflow, customize the trigger to define when the workflow should start.

Choose a Trigger Block

• Select the event that activates the workflow. For a win-back sequence, the trigger should be: "Customer hasn't purchased in [X] days."

• Specify the inactivity period (e.g., 30, 60, or 90 days) based on your business goals and typical purchase frequency.

3. First Wait Sequence

Wait Blocks control the time between emails, ensuring that communications are sent at the most effective intervals, helping to re-engage inactive customers without overwhelming them.

Wait Block #1:

Set a delay of 45 days after the trigger to initiate the first email in the win-back sequence. This waiting period gives inactive customers time to miss your brand and creates an opportunity to entice them back.

By tailoring the wait period, you can better align the workflow with your audience's habits and improve re-engagement rates.

4. Coupon generation settings

Set up coupon generation within your welcome email series to offer new customers a personalized discount. Choose the type of coupon you want to generate, such as:

• Percentage discount (e.g., 10% off).

• Fixed amount discount (e.g., $5 off).

• Free shipping or other special offers

You can also set specific conditions for coupon usage, according to your preferences.

This ensures that each new subscriber receives a unique and tailored offer through your welcome email series.

5. Draft Your Win-Back Email Template

When designing a win-back email template, ensure a clean, user-friendly layout that grabs attention and encourages engagement.

Email Block

Once you customize the subject line and preview text, click the “Edit Content” button to design the email body.

Email Editor

Use the drag-and-drop editor to add or adjust text, images, and buttons. Position elements to ensure a visually appealing and responsive email layout. Once finalized, click “Save” at the top-right corner.

Coupon Code Configuration

• Apply Across Emails: Ensure the same coupon code is applied to all emails in the series (e.g., re-engagement emails 1, 2, and 3).

Testing Your Email Template

• Send a Test Email: Use the “Send test email” feature to preview how your email will look in the recipient's inbox.

• Verify that all dynamic elements (e.g., names, coupon codes) and links work correctly before activating the campaign.

6. First Email - Win Back Email

A Win-Back Email is sent to re-engage customers who haven’t interacted with your brand for a while. Its primary goal is to rekindle interest, remind them of your value, and encourage them to make another purchase by offering personalized incentives or showcasing new products.

Email 1: Reconnect with Gratitude

Timing: Send 45 days after the last purchase to re-engage inactive customers.

What to Say: Express your appreciation for their past support and let them know they are missed. Acknowledge their importance to your brand and offer a personalized incentive to encourage them to return, such as a discount or exclusive offer.

CTA: Motivate them to explore your latest products, check out new arrivals, or redeem the incentive provided to make their next purchase.

EXAMPLE "We miss you! It's been a while since your last visit. Here's a special [discount/code] to welcome you back. Explore what's new and treat yourself today!"

This message serves as the foundation to rebuild engagement and rekindle interest in your brand.

7. Final Wait Block

Timing: Set a delay of 3-5 days after the second email to provide enough time for the recipient to take action. This ensures a balanced pacing without overwhelming the customer.

8. Conditional Check for Coupon Use

Purpose: Create different paths based on customer actions.

1. Select the Rule: Use the condition “Coupon is not used” to identify customers who haven’t redeemed their coupon yet.

2. Action: For customers who haven't used the coupon, proceed with the final reminder email to encourage them to take action.

9. Send the Final Reminder

Email 2: Best-Selling Products or Limited-Time Offer

• Timing: Send this email 3-5 days after Email 1 (adjust timing as per campaign needs).

• What to Say:

  • Showcase your best-selling or most popular products.

  • Highlight what makes these products unique and valuable.

  • Emphasize the urgency by reminding them of the personalized coupon code and its expiry date.

• CTA: Encourage customers to browse your top products and use their coupon code before it expires.

10. Why is Adding an Exit Rule Important in Win-Back Automation?

Your Win-back email workflow will be ready now.

11. Test Your Workflow

• Send yourself a test email to make sure everything looks perfect on both desktop and mobile.

• Double-check your timing and triggers.

12. Activate the Workflow

• Once everything looks good, hit Activate and watch your emails work their magic.

Summary

Retainful’s Win-Back Campaign Automation helps you re-engage inactive customers with personalized email workflows designed to reignite their interest. You can set triggers, such as inactivity for a specific period, to automatically reach out with tailored messages.

Incorporate dynamic coupon codes to incentivize customers to return, and use wait blocks to time follow-ups strategically, ensuring a non-intrusive experience.

With split conditions, you can segment audiences based on their responses—whether they’ve clicked a link, used a coupon, or ignored previous emails—and send highly targeted follow-ups to maximize engagement.

This automation boosts retention, recovers lost sales, and strengthens customer relationships by delivering relevant offers and content at the right time.

The next automation is Product Review Request Emaila follow-up email that targets customers based on their interaction with a product, like a purchase, view, or cart addition.