This presentation was given at the Ometria Lifecycle conference in London on 10/02/2015 and explores how you can build & optimise user email activation and retention funnels that drive sales as well as lifetime value.

1. Customer Email Activation & Retention
Kiyan Foroughi – CEO & Founder
10 February 2015

2. Confidential 2
• Most people view acquisition as the most important part of
the funnel
– Getting users in is only the first step and to really drive
lifetime value, you need to focus on the later stages of the
funnel as much as the first one
• Activation is the process of turning your prospective leads
(emails in this case) into users that perform a specific
action (i.e., an order, a subscription etc.)
• Lead acquisition and activation is one of the best ROI (and
formulaic) online acquisition channels but it is not as
commonly used as you would think due to the discipline it
requires
Introduction
#Boticca

3. Confidential 3
• Boticca is a global curated
marketplace that allows
customers to discover
independent designers of
fashion accessories,
discover their stories and
purchase directly from
their studios
• 330+ designers from over
40+ countries
• Orders made from 60
different countries every
month – AOV of £110
• Email database of over
800,000
• VC backed by MMC
Ventures and ISAI
Background: Boticca
#Boticca

4. This session will explore how you can build
and optimise user email activation + retention
funnels that drive sales

5. Is lead acquisition right for you?
Step 1
1 - Is it right
for you?
2 – Mapping
out your ideal
user flow
3 – The
Landing Page
4 – Driving
Leads
5 – Measuring
& Optimising
6 – Driving
Repeats &
LTV

6. Confidential 6
• One of the marketing channels available to
(nearly) all businesses online
• Surprisingly, one of the least well-used
channels despite how formulaic and
profitable it can be
• Deciding if it is right for you is more about
having the right state of mind and internal
team culture / mentality
Step 1 – Is it right for you?
#Boticca

7. Confidential 7
• The checklist:
– Are we analytical?
– Are we iterative?
– Are we able to iterate? (not to be confused
with previous)
– Do we have the right tools in place to measure?
– Do we have the capabilities required to make
changes and optimise?
– Do we have the right skills in-house?
(acquisition, CRM, Dev, BI)
Step 1 – Is it right for you?
#Boticca

8. Mapping out your ideal user flow
Step 2
1 - Is it right
for you?
2 – Mapping
out your ideal
user flow
3 – The
Landing Page
4 – Driving
Leads
5 – Measuring
& Optimising
6 – Driving
Repeats &
LTV

9. Confidential 9
• This is different from business to
business
• If you’re starting out, it begins with a
hypothesis
• It is a living, breathing thing that needs
to be shaped by the data as you go along
Step 2 – Mapping out your ideal user flow
#Boticca

10. It can be as simple as…
Confidential 10
Step 2 – Mapping out your ideal user flow
Sign Up Email offers Purchase
#Boticca

11. Or as complicated as…
Confidential 11
Step 2 – Mapping out your ideal user flow
Sign Up
Welcome
Programme 1
Welcome
Programme 2
Welcome
Programme 3
Welcome
Programme 4
Sign Up
Purchase 1
No
Purchase
Welcome
Programme
Part 2
No
Purchase
Welcome
Programme
Part 3
List
Hygiene
Repeat High
Value
Repeat Low
Value
Purchase 2
No
Purchase
Repeat
Purchase Part
2
High Lifetime
Repeat 1
High Lifetime
Repeat 2
Purchase 3
VIP
Programme
#Boticca

12. Confidential 12
A few tips
• Start simple and then expand with your flow
• Have different Welcome programmes depending on source of the lead
• Have fall back Welcome programmes for those who haven’t converted from
the first ones
• Have a “honeymoon” period where you block out all other communications
• Personalise your emails in the relevant ways you can
• Segment between high-value and low-value customers
• Measure and optimise… constantly.
• It’s OK to give up… maintain list hygiene
Step 2 – Mapping out your ideal user flow
#Boticca

13. The Landing Page
Step 3
1 - Is it right
for you?
2 – Mapping
out your ideal
user flow
3 – The
Landing Page
4 – Driving
Leads
5 – Measuring
& Optimising
6 – Driving
Repeats &
LTV

14. Confidential 14
Step 3 – The Landing Page

15. Confidential 15
A few tips
• Keep it simple, clear
• Make sure the CTA (and offer) is prominent
• Add testimonials/reviews to create trust
• Add a local touch
• Good copywriting wins
• Push scarcity
• Short loading times
• Mobile friendly and keep it above the fold
• A/B test this page… a lot.
Step 3 – The Landing Page
#Boticca

16. Confidential 16
Avoid
Step 3 – The Landing Page
#Boticca

17. Driving Leads
Step 4
1 - Is it right
for you?
2 – Mapping
out your ideal
user flow
3 – The
Landing Page
4 – Driving
Leads
5 – Measuring
& Optimising
6 – Driving
Repeats &
LTV

18. Confidential 18
Step 4 – Driving Leads
• You can drive leads via:
– Onsite campaigns: use SEM, social ads,
media, video etc. to drive users to the
landing page(s)
– Offsite campaigns: CPL/CPM partnerships
with affiliate partners, lead acquisition
agencies, competitions
• Don’t buy or rent lists. Last time it
worked in 2002 was 13 years ago…

19. Measuring and optimising funnel
performance & activation
Step 5
1 - Is it right
for you?
2 – Mapping
out your ideal
user flow
3 – The
Landing Page
4 – Driving
Leads
5 – Measuring
& Optimising
6 – Driving
Repeats &
LTV

20. Confidential 20
Step 5 – Measuring and Optimising
• Look at the data on a flow-basis
7.8%
2.3%
1.5%
11.6%
4.3%
1.1%
0.7%
6.1%
1.7%
1.2%
2.9%
2.5%
0.0%
2.0%
4.0%
6.0%
8.0%
10.0%
12.0%
14.0%
Welcome
Programme
P1
Welcome
Programme
P2
Welcome
Programme
P3
Purchase
1
Repeat
High
Value
Repeat
Low
Value
Repeat
Purchase
P2
Purchase
2
High
LifeDme
Value
1
High
LifeDme
Value
2
Purchase
3
VIP
Programme
#Boticca

21. Confidential 21
Step 5 – Measuring and Optimising
• Look at the data on a cohort basis
#Boticca

22. Confidential 22
Step 5 – Measuring and Optimising
• And on an overall activation basis
0.00%
2.00%
4.00%
6.00%
8.00%
10.00%
12.00%
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
Number
of
Months
since
Acquisi3on
of
Cohort
Email
New
Buyer
Ac3va3on
Rate
Over
Time
#Boticca

23. Confidential 23
Step 5 – Measuring and Optimising
• Identify flows that performing and those that aren’t
• For flows that aren’t performing, try adjusting the creative,
copy, offer etc.
• Identify sources of emails that lead to higher activation
rates
• Measure your CPA based on your activation rate and the
original CPL you paid for the lead:
CPA = CPL / Activation Rate
Make sure that CPA < LTV
#Boticca

24. Driving repeats and lifetime value
Step 6
1 - Is it right
for you?
2 – Mapping
out your ideal
user flow
3 – The
Landing Page
4 – Driving
Leads
5 – Measuring
& Optimising
6 – Driving
Repeats &
LTV

25. Confidential 25
Step 6 – Driving repeats & LTV
• Once activated into a first-time purchaser,
you must now turn the focus on driving
repeat purchases
• Driving a 2nd purchase is hard
• Driving the 3rd purchase is even harder and
the key to unlocking the lifetime value in
the customer
#Boticca

26. Confidential 26
Step 6 – Driving repeats & LTV
• Implement early repeat purchase programmes (i.e., driving
the 2nd purchase within 60 days of the 1st)
• If the early repeat purchase flow is not successful, have
repeat and fall-back repeat purchase flows with increasing
incentives and offers to drive retention
• Implement VIP programmes for 3 times+ customers
• Make sure to:
– Personalise
– Make smart recommendations
– Hit users cross-devices and mediums
#Boticca

27. Confidential 27
• Lead acquisition coupled with activation and
retention funnels can be one of the most powerful
marketing strategies but is not as common as it
should be
• However, it requires a lot of discipline and some
resources to be successful
• Its formulaic nature makes it very attractive also for
fundraising purposes
• It also makes you feel in control when you’re
piloting your businesses
Final Thoughts
#Boticca

28. Any questions?
Thank you for your time.
kiyan@boticca.com

29. I’d rather wear a unique story