How 5 Top Brands Earn Loyalty with Triggered Emails

As an email marketer – and a consumer – you’ve likely seen some triggered emails in your own personal inbox. These messages are incredibly powerful when used correctly.

Think about it: When was the last time you took advantage of free shipping or a discount from a retailer after abandoning your cart? It jumpstarted your loyalty.

Triggered email messaging can also be used for more than just abandoned shopping carts or welcome emails.

Here’s how you can use triggered emails to achieve success.

Inactivity Reminders

Sometimes it can feel like there are not enough hours in the day, so it’s no surprise you might not see a customer for a while. After all, people get busy and things come up, so a customer might need a little reminder they have something waiting for them or an incentive to get them to stop by.

Inactivity reminder emails are different from abandoned cart or site activity triggered message because you’re sending them to someone who hasn’t interacted with your brand for a while.

These examples of re-engagement campaigns from Van’s and Pinkberry work because they keep the brands top of mind, give users a monetary incentive to return (a coupon and a free yogurt) and are time sensitive.

Date-Based Triggers

Who doesn’t love flowers or a card on your anniversary or birthday? Give your customers a little birthday or anniversary gift – and get them to visit your site and re-engage with you – by sending a date-based email on their birthdays or anniversaries with a special offer.

Anniversary emails can be especially effective because most customers aren’t going to remember the date they signed up to be a customer or subscriber, and they show customers you value their business. These examples from Loft and Ulta Beauty give incentives to start shopping.

Social Sharing

Maybe a customer has just RSVP’d to one of your events. Maybe he or she just scored a great deal during one of your sales. Encourage your customers to share their exciting wins with their friends on social media.

Sharing does two things: It encourages further engagement with your brand and helps to spread the word about your brand, sale or whatever you’re promoting. In the example below, Sephora encourages recipients to create and share styles on Facebook.

Don’t just think of triggered emails as shipping and purchase reminders. Look at your data and get creative to find new ways to engage and delight your subscribers.

Get more insight into what interests your customers. See how third-party data can enhance your marketing with Email Intelligence.