A newsletter sent whenever somebody remembers is not a strategy. Anyone searching for “email marketing for online stores” usually has a subscriber list built up over time, a platform they use a quarter of, and the feeling that email could sell more. What is almost always missing is automated flows: messages that go out by themselves, triggered by what each person does in the store.
We build them once, from the store’s data, and after that they work every day without anyone pressing “send”. The regular campaigns (new arrivals, discounts) stay, and sit on top of the flows.
Email marketing for online stores: the five basic flows
Each flow starts from an event in the store and stops by itself when it no longer serves a purpose. The email platform receives data about subscribers, baskets and orders from WooCommerce, and the rules decide who gets what and when.
The details make the difference. The abandoned basket message is cancelled if the order has been placed in the meantime. The review request is timed from delivery, not from the order; otherwise it arrives before the parcel. And someone who is in several flows at once does not get three messages on the same day: we set priorities and a frequency cap.
- Welcome: confirms the subscription, says which messages will follow and introduces the store.
- Abandoned basket: a reminder of the products left behind, with a link that restores the basket. It only works when the visitor’s email address is known.
- Post-purchase: instructions for use, then products that go with the one bought.
- Review request: sent after the product has arrived, with a single step to take.
- Win-back: for those who have not ordered in a long time, with removal from the list for anyone who does not respond.
Segmentation: who gets what
The same message sent to everyone is a common reason for unsubscribing. Segmentation divides the list according to real data: whether the person has bought or not, from which categories, how recently, whether they click. Someone who ordered last week has no reason to receive a welcome discount.
We start with a few segments, the ones for which different messages really do get written: subscribers who have not bought yet, first-order customers, returning customers, inactive ones.
Subscriber consent and the messages you are allowed to send
For commercial messages you need the person’s consent, given by a box that they tick themselves. We recommend double opt-in: after signing up, the subscriber receives an email and confirms their address. That way you can prove who subscribed and when. Every message has an unsubscribe link that works in one step.
Messages tied to an order (confirmation, dispatch, invoice) are of a different kind and are handled separately. The less clear-cut areas, such as an abandoned basket email to someone who is not a subscriber, the review request or offers to existing customers, are ones you settle with your data protection officer before launch, not after the first complaint.
Deliverability: SPF, DKIM and DMARC on your domain
Deliverability means how much of what you send lands in the inbox, not in spam. The first step is authenticating the domain, through records added to the DNS (the zone where the domain is managed). The major mailbox providers explicitly require it of bulk senders, along with an easy unsubscribe.
The rest comes down to behaviour: regular sending, a list free of dead addresses, few spam complaints. If the domain has not sent large volumes before, we increase the number of recipients gradually, starting with the most active subscribers.
- SPF: the list of servers allowed to send email on behalf of your domain.
- DKIM: a cryptographic signature that lets the recipient verify the message has not been altered on the way.
- DMARC: the rule that says what happens to messages that fail the checks and where reports about them are sent.
How we read the results without fooling ourselves
The open rate has become a weak metric: some email apps load message content automatically, and the message shows as opened. We look at clicks, at the orders coming from each flow, at unsubscribes and at complaints. Links carry UTM tags (parameters that say which message the visit came from), so that sales also show up in Google Analytics, not only in the email platform’s report.
A well-known trap: putting the discount in the very first abandoned basket message. Alert shoppers quickly learn that if they leave the basket for a day, they get a code. As a rule, the first message is just a reminder. And an honest limitation: email makes the most of the traffic and customers you already have; it does not take the place of good products or on-time delivery.
Frequently asked questions
Which email platform suits a WooCommerce store?
One that receives orders and baskets from the store, not just addresses: Klaviyo, Brevo, MailerLite and others have integrations of this kind. The choice depends on the size of the list, how much automation you need and how the platform charges.
Can I email people who have ordered but have not subscribed to the newsletter?
Messages about their order, yes. For commercial messages the rules are stricter and depend on how the data was collected. Check where your list stands with your data protection officer before starting the flows.
What does the cost of a system like this depend on?
On the number of flows, on how many messages need to be written and designed, and on how clean the data coming from the store is. Separately, the email platform has its own subscription, usually tied to the number of contacts or messages.
This is a typical project description: it shows how we usually approach this kind of work and does not present a project carried out for a particular client. Every real project starts from your company’s situation, and the stages, timescales and price are agreed after the initial discussion.