Post-Purchase Email Series
The customer journey isn’t over when they buy from you. Post-purchase emails are your chance to turn a one-time customer into a brand advocate who comes back to you time after time.
More Opens, More Clicks, More Revenue
Sending post-purchase emails is essential for growing your brand. It’s your way of turning a one-time purchaser into a loyal, repeat customer who loves and values your brand.
Post-purchase messaging consistently outperforms standard campaign emails in terms of engagement and revenue per recipient. As you’re reaching highly engaged customers at a key point in their journey with your brand, it presents a strong opportunity to drive additional revenue through relevant product recommendations, personalised messaging, and ongoing brand engagement.
Building Customer Relationships
As the name suggests, this flow is triggered by the placement of an order. Unlike transactional order and shipping notifications, which keep customers informed about delivery updates, the post-purchase series is designed to extend the relationship beyond fulfilment.
By following up on a customer’s recent purchase, you ensure they feel valued and supported. You can direct them to additional information, FAQs, or your customer service team, and most importantly, introduce further products that may be of interest. You can also request valuable customer feedback or reviews, which can help build trust and drive future sales.
Here’s an example of a simple post-purchase series:
Email 1
A thank you. It’s best practice to thank your customer for their purchase, reassuring them they made the right choice and that your team is there for them if they have any questions. You should include links to sources of help, blogs or information about warranties if this is appropriate. If this is not, this email could be a simple encouragement to create an account with your brand.
Email 2
A follow up after delivery. Consider any additional information your customer might want, alongside their new product. Share instructions, if they’re necessary; how-to guides, or recommend additional products that complement their existing purchase.
Email 3
A request for feedback. This should be received once the customer has had enough time to experience and use the product - this timing will be product specific. Ask for feedback, or for your customer to leave a review.
Keep It Personal
It’s important to keep this messaging personalised and dynamic, to encourage customers back to your brand and towards another purchase. Consider your product or service, and how your messaging will vary between a first-time buyer, in comparison to a repeat customer, and for a low value order compared to a high value order. Their needs and wants may well vary and you need to reflect that. For a first-time customer, you might want to encourage them to sign up to your newsletter, join a loyalty programme or subscription model, depending on your product offering. For a repeat purchaser, you might want to recognise and thank them for returning to you, update them on their loyalty or VIP status, or ask them for further information.
Timing Is Everything
Another key aspect of the post-purchase series is ensuring that timing is carefully considered. You’ll want to make sure the first email in your series does not arrive too close to your transactional Shopify emails, such as order confirmations or shipping updates.
Considering the typical shipping time between order and delivery will allow you to schedule follow-up emails more effectively. While this can become complex, the goal is to communicate with your customer at the most valuable moments: soon after purchase, shortly after delivery, and once they’ve had enough time to use and review the product.
Post-purchase flows are essential foundational flows for any ecommerce account, hugely valuable for both revenue driving and customer relationship building. Capitalise on your existing customers by reaching them at key points in their purchase journey, and you’ll see results - for your revenue and brand engagement.
At Eastside our email marketing experts are dedicated to creating the best emails and flows for our clients. If you want us to help you unlock the power of a well-implemented email strategy, get in touch and we’ll get started!