It’s 2024, and starting—let alone building—a brand is more difficult than ever. The temptation to sell everywhere, all the time, is strong, and it can be tricky to know what to focus on if you’re a brand.

That’s why we’re unpacking customer retention today. Our founder and CEO, Sajag Agarwal, curated a marketing and eComm expert panel to share their strategies and tactics for using email, SMS, customer service, and post-purchase experiences to boost Shopify revenue.

You can watch the webinar at your leisure, or you can also get the Sparknotes version below.

We discussed three topics…

How to approach email marketing to drive growth

Jordan Doughty, Managing Director of Open House Media, has leveraged email marketing to generate $50M in sales for his clients. 

How so?

By focusing on three steps. 

• First, capture attention through top-of-funnel marketing, such as organic and paid social media.
• Second, hook the audience through “lead magnets” like discounts or free trials. 
• Last, convert the audience through automated flows (based on customer behaviors) and content-driven campaigns (like newsletters and campaigns). 

Jordan highlighted that brands need to align their email strategies with both the product they’re selling and the customer journey. 

For example, a pre-purchase flow is most important for high-ticket items like luxury furniture, while high-LTV brands, like fashion retailers, should focus on emails that cross-sell. 

With zero overhead costs and zero risk of being de-platformed, email marketing is a highly reliable and often under-tapped revenue source.

Using SMS marketing for high-intent audiences

Jesse Clemmens, Co-Founder & CEO at Hi-Tide, believes that consumers opting in for email and SMS marketing is the most important moment in the brand marketing lifecycle. 

As marketing technology undergoes dramatic changes  –– from browser and OS restrictions to expanded privacy regulations –– having direct connections and owned audiences should be a strategic priority for all eCommerce brands in 2024. 

SMS marketing is the most effective way to grow and engage with high-intent audiences. Its average click-through rate is 36%—8x that of email (4.5%). But as brands focus on collecting more SMS opt-ins, they must think beyond a single on-site pop-up.

Audiences should be converted wherever possible, but Jesse emphasized the power of growing lists through organic social media, with evergreen CTAs, events, planned posts, and direct messages.

The key to delighting your customers

Will Cooper, Co-Founder at Revup Technology, underscored the importance of exceptional customer service in differentiating brands in a competitive market. Brands should offer compelling reasons to buy directly on Shopify, like exclusive offers or loyalty programs. 

Sajag reinforced this message and raised the importance of creating exceptional post-purchase experiences to delight customers. This includes implementing follow-up communication to gather feedback, ensuring satisfaction, and maintaining high product quality standards. 

Both emphasized that customer service, including product quality and efficient resolution of customer issues, is crucial for proving the quality of your brand and building customer trust. 

Why should you care?

As consumer behaviors and technology evolve, brands must remain agile and prioritize owned channels like email and SMS over social ones. These channels offer greater control and resilience against external disruptions, ensuring sustained engagement and revenue growth. 

At the same time, by focusing on customer retention and delivering exceptional experiences around their products, brands can build enduring relationships with their audience and strengthen their market position.