Subscription-Based Email Lifecycle Flow
Beyond Emails
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Posted Jul 15, 2025
Developed a subscription-based email lifecycle flow for retention education and upselling.
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Flow Type: Subscription-based post-purchase lifecycle
Objective: Retain, upsell, and educate current subscribers through a phased email journey
Platform: Klaviyo
Timeline: 60+ days
The Strategy
The goal was to create a multi-stage lifecycle flow that speaks to both new and returning subscribers based on their order behavior—while introducing upsells, education, and incentive nudges over time.
Each step of the flow was based on purchase history, product use cycle, and timing relevance, with wait periods designed to align with usage patterns.
Flow Logic Overview
Trigger:
When someone is added to a new subscription segment
→ Enters a post-purchase engagement sequence
Step 1: Conditional Split
Checks if the customer has ordered a product in the last X days.
Yes (Returning Subscriber): Branch A
No (New Subscriber): Branch B
Branch A (Returning Subscriber)
Wait 2 Days → “You Made the Right Choice ✨💙”
Open rate: 47.4%
Placed order: 0.2%
Purpose: Acknowledgement, quick win, community reinforcement
Wait 4 Days → “How to: Clean Towels XL 📚”
Open rate: 50%
Click rate: 4.7%
Purpose: Product education for longevity + trust
Wait 15 Days → “Still Using 1 Pack? Let’s Talk”
Open rate: 25%
Placed order: 0%
Purpose: Soft upsell to upgrade to multi-pack
Branch B (New Subscriber / No Previous Order)
Wait 2 Days → “You Made the Right Choice ✨💙”
Open rate: 62.4%
Placed order: 0.3% ($1.46K revenue!)
Strong initial engagement
Wait 4 Days → “How to: Clean Towels XL 📚”
Open rate: 62.3%
Click rate: 5.3%
Placed order: 0.1%
Value-driven content, good click rate
Wait 22 Days → “You're So Close to Your Reward 👀” (Punchcard)
Open rate: 53.4%
Placed order: 11% ($33.6K!)
Top-performing email — strong CTA, likely driven by loyalty reward / milestone
Wait 10 Days → “Free Gift with Next Subscription 💝”
Open rate: 56.3%
Click rate: 2.7%
Purpose: Retention + incentive
Key Flow Highlights
Loyalty-Driven Punchcard Email:
$33.6K from a single flow step — major revenue driver. Reinforce this in future flows.
Educational Touchpoint:
The “How To” email got strong click-throughs—include more “value-first” emails early.
Upsell Needs A/B Testing:
The “Upgrade to 4 pack” underperformed. Could test alternate subject lines or bundle positioning.
Segmentation Opportunity:
Consider separating first-time buyers vs. subscribers with 2+ orders for more personalized pacing.
Insight
This flow proves that retention is more than reminders—it’s relevance, value, and well-timed nudges.
Educational content builds trust. Loyalty rewards drive action. And the best-performing email wasn't the flashiest—it was the one that met the customer exactly where they were.