Email drives 10-40% of ecom revenue. The gap between 10% stores and 40% stores isn't list size. It's flow depth. This is the flow stack that takes email from bolt-on to primary revenue channel.
Flow 1: Welcome Series (4 Emails, 3 Days)
Triggers when someone subscribes via popup or checkout opt-in. Runs regardless of whether they bought.
Email 1 — Send immediately: Deliver the promised discount. Subject: "Your 15% off is here." Body: code, CTA, one product hero. No other content. Don't make them hunt.
Email 2 — Send Day 1: Brand story. Who you are, why you started, what makes the product different. No selling. Builds trust.
Email 3 — Send Day 2: Best-seller showcase. 3 products with social proof (review counts, star ratings, UGC shots). This is the conversion email.
Email 4 — Send Day 3: Urgency close. "Your code expires tonight." Last chance framing. Converts the fence-sitters.
Expected performance: 8-15% of welcome subscribers convert within the series. If yours is under 5%, the discount is too small or the product hero is weak.
Flow 2: Abandoned Cart (3 Emails + SMS)
Triggers when someone adds to cart but doesn't buy within 1 hour.
Email 1 — Send at 1 hour: "You forgot this." Product hero, cart preview, 1-click return to cart. No discount.
SMS — Send at 4 hours: (Only to opt-ins.) "Still thinking? Your cart is saved here: [link]." Short, no discount.
Email 2 — Send at 24 hours: Objection handling. Shipping info, return policy, 3 reviews from buyers who had the same hesitation.
Email 3 — Send at 72 hours: Last chance + 10% off code. This is where the discount goes. Not earlier. Earlier discounts train customers to abandon on purpose.
Expected recovery: 15-25% of carts. Under 10% = the flow is broken (usually SPF/DKIM issues or a weak 24-hour email).
Flow 3: Post-Purchase (4 Emails, 30 Days)
This is the flow that turns one-time buyers into 3-time buyers.
Email 1 — Send Day 0: Thank you + order details. Sets expectations. No marketing.
Email 2 — Send Day 3-5 (after delivery): How to use the product. Video or step-by-step. Reduces returns, builds usage confidence.
Email 3 — Send Day 14: Review request. Subject: "How's [product] treating you?" Link to review form. Include a $5 credit for submission.
Email 4 — Send Day 30: Cross-sell. Products that complement what they bought. This is where reorder revenue starts.
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Flow 4: Browse Abandonment (1 Email)
Triggers when someone views a product 3+ times in 7 days but doesn't add to cart.
Send at 24 hours after third view: "Still looking at [product]?" Product hero, 3 key benefits, 2 reviews that address common objections. Soft CTA. No discount.
Expected: 6-12% conversion. High-intent traffic, low-pressure send.
Flow 5: Winback (3 Emails)
Triggers when a past buyer hasn't purchased in 60-90 days (set by your repeat cycle).
Email 1 — Day 60: "We miss you." Product catalog highlights. Soft CTA.
Email 2 — Day 75: 15% off code. "It's been a while, here's 15% off."
Email 3 — Day 90: Last chance. "Your account goes inactive in 7 days. Here's 20% off if you want to come back."
Expected reactivation: 4-8% of lapsed buyers. Anything below 3% means the product doesn't have strong reorder demand, not that the flow is broken.
Flow 6: Sunset Flow
The flow nobody wants to set up. Also the flow that protects your deliverability.
Triggers when a subscriber hasn't opened an email in 120 days. Three options:
- Single re-engagement email. "Still want these? Click here to stay subscribed." If they click, keep. If not, suppress.
- Auto-suppress after 180 days of zero engagement. Cleanest option.
- Move to a "reduced frequency" segment (once/month sends). Keeps them warm without hurting sender rep.
Sunset aggressively. Your sender reputation depends on engagement rates. 10K inactive subscribers drag your inbox placement below 70%, hurting every send to your active list.
Metrics That Matter
Skip open rate. Apple Mail Privacy Protection broke it. Focus on:
- Click-to-purchase rate: of clicks, what percent buy. Target 5-10%.
- Revenue per recipient (RPR): dollar revenue divided by unique sends. Target $0.50-$2.00 per send.
- Unsubscribe rate per send: under 0.3% = healthy. Over 0.5% = you're burning the list.
- Spam complaint rate: under 0.1%. Above and your sender rep tanks.
The Install Order
New store: Welcome + Abandoned Cart + Post-Purchase first. They drive 80% of email revenue in the first 6 months. Add Browse, Winback, and Sunset in month 4-6. Don't overbuild early. Get the first three firing at operator-grade then expand. For a broader look at how to prioritize and scope this list for your specific store, see how many Klaviyo flows you actually need.