OFFER
In this edition of Marketing Playbook, we’ll go over how The Cake Store, a third-generation UK family business, increased its email conversions by 32x and made $37,000 in email sales—all thanks to a single automated workflow.
Read on to discover how you can use their actionable insights to boost your own customer loyalty—without resorting to spamming your subscribers.
Results
- Engagement: The automation was sent to 30,774 subscribers, boasting a 43.07% open rate and a 4.73% click rate.
- Revenue: The automation generated $37,000 (£30,000) for the brand over its two-year lifespan.
- Lift over campaigns: The custom reminder automation garnered 32x better conversions for The Cake Store than regular promotional emails.
Custom reminder automation
When The Cake Store started on its email marketing journey, the goal was straightforward: remind the customer about the wonderful collection of cakes right before his/her special occasion.
The brand was looking for a tool that could automatically remind the customer that their special occasion is approaching and offer a variety of new products.
Using Omnisend’s unique “Product Picker” feature allowed The Cake Store to pick and import products straight from their store, which saved a lot of time in preparing their email campaigns.
Playbook
To create the same yearly reminder automation that The Cake Store used, do the following:
1. Segment your audience for seasonal shoppers
The Cake Store started by identifying their seasonal shoppers.
In their case, these were subscribers who had placed an order within the last 360 days but had not made another purchase in the last 355 days. This group was tagged as “Order in 360-355 days.”
The aim was to target customers who were likely to be interested in making a seasonal purchase without pestering those who were already frequent buyers.
2. Create a custom reminder automation
Set up an automated workflow that is sent to audiences when triggered by the special tag.
The Cake Store created an automated workflow specifically targeting the tagged audience of “Order in 360-355 days.” To ensure perfect timing, they introduced a one-day delay after the tag was applied to a subscriber.
The custom workflow single-handedly generated more than $37,000 (£30,000) in sales for The Cake Store and a whopping 32-times higher conversion rate compared to bulk promotional emails.
3. Build the reminder email
To save time and make the email-building process easier, The Cake Store used Omnisend’s Product Picker feature to quickly add 18 best-selling cakes straight from their online store.
Pro tip: Use Product Picker to swiftly insert your top-selling items into the email. And don’t forget to make sure the email is aligned with your brand identity and contains a clear CTA.
Tips for success
To make your automated reminder emails not only retain customer interest but also drive conversions, it’s a good idea to follow a few key best practices:
- Time it right. Send reminders at strategically timed intervals to capture attention without overwhelming the customer. For the Cake Store, the 300+ day interval made a lot of sense, while other businesses might find shorter spans between reminders more beneficial.
- Try to keep things simple. Less of a great product is better than thousands of products that are difficult to supply.
- Regularly update content. If you’re sending reminder emails occasionally, remember that content can get stale. Regularly update your messaging, offers, and visuals to keep things fresh and relevant.
Who can use this automation?
Whether you’re in the Food & Beverage industry like The Cake Store, or in fashion, beauty, electronics, or any other ecommerce sector, a timely and well-crafted reminder automation can serve as a powerful customer loyalty-building tool.
It’s especially beneficial for businesses that rely on timely events or seasonal sales, helping them engage with customers at the right times to drive conversions.
About The Cake Store
Established in the early 1900s as Slatter’s Bakery, The Cake Store has evolved into a third-generation family business located in Brockley, South London. Their mission: create high-quality, customized cakes for any and every celebration.
The Cake Store has been a trendsetter in the cake-making industry. With a team of full-time cake decorators continually innovating new designs, they have solidified their standing in the UK as a reliable go-to for extraordinary, bespoke cakes.
They were among the first in the UK to offer personalized cakes online over two decades ago. However, online success didn’t come easy or quick. Understanding the time-sensitive nature of their products, The Cake Store needed a way to stay top-of-mind year-round while sending timely reminder emails. That’s where Omnisend came into the picture, helping them engage their customers at the perfect moments.
