Hey it’s Idris from Retentiononly.
Most brands are sitting on a goldmine without realizing it.
They're spending hundreds of thousands every month on Meta ads, Google ads and creators to acquire subscribers…
…and then completely waste that opportunity with a weak welcome flow.
A random discount email.
A founder email nobody reads.
A few promotional emails.
And then silence.
The result?
Thousands of potential customers disappear without ever placing their first order.
Over the last few years, we've analyzed the welcome flows of some of the biggest e-commerce brands in the world, including AG1, Magic Spoon and IM8.
We distilled everything we've learned into one welcome flow structure that's consistently converting more subscribers into first-time customers.
Here are the 7 emails every brand should be sending.
Prefer to watch instead of read? Watch the full breakdown here: [VIDEO LINK]
Email #1: Deliver the offer and build trust immediately
Example from Fat Cow Skincare
Most brands make this way too complicated.
Someone signs up because they want 10% off.
So give them the 10% off.
Every touchpoint should reinforce the same message.
Your popup.
Your subject line.
Your hero section.
Your CTA.
Don't make subscribers think.
At the same time, introduce your key benefits, add a money-back guarantee and show customer reviews.
What to do:
Reinforce the offer everywhere
Add benefits that solve their problem
Include social proof
Add a CTA in every major section
Email #2: Founder email + shocking fact
Example from Waterdoctor
People don't buy products.
They buy solutions to problems.
Use a plain text founder email that reveals a surprising fact about the problem your audience is facing.
Then explain how your product solves it.
This feels personal, authentic and usually gets significantly higher engagement.
What to do:
Send it from the founder
Reveal a surprising fact
Explain your solution
Reinforce your guarantee
Email #3: Create urgency
Example from Protein.com
Most people don't buy because they believe they'll come back later.
Many never do.
This email exists to change that.
Tell them their discount is expiring.
Remind them that tomorrow they'll have to pay full price.
Then support the message with social proof.
What to do:
Create a genuine deadline
Reinforce urgency throughout the email
Add customer proof
Email #4: Turn your best ad into an email
Example from Mars Men
Your winning ad is already telling you what works.
Use it.
If social proof is driving conversions in ads, build an entire email around it.
Big customer numbers.
Testimonials.
Results.
Statistics.
Trust is often the only thing standing between someone subscribing and someone buying.
What to do:
Take your best-performing ad and turn it into an email.
Example from IM8
Trust can be built in two ways:
Social proof
Authority
This is why brands like IM8 work so well.
Celebrity endorsements.
Doctors.
Scientists.
Experts.
Anything that makes customers think:
"These people know what they're talking about."
What to do:
Show the people behind the brand that increase credibility.
Email #6: Differentiate yourself
Example from IM8
Your customers are comparing you to something.
Maybe a direct competitor.
Maybe another solution entirely.
Don't avoid the comparison.
Own it.
Some of the best-performing emails we see directly answer:
"Why should I buy from you instead of them?"
This immediately removes hesitation.
What to do:
Create a comparison email that highlights:
Premium ingredients
Better results
Better experience
Better value
Answer the question before they ask it.
Email #7: Ask why they didn't buy
Example from Manly
This might be the most underrated email of them all.
If someone received six emails and still didn't purchase…
Ask them why.
Send a simple survey.
You'll uncover objections that are currently invisible to you.
Price
Trust
Confusion
Offer
Messaging
These insights will improve every part of your marketing.
What to do:
Ask three questions:
Why did you subscribe?
Why haven't you purchased yet?
What would make you try us?
Here's what happens when you implement this
Your welcome flow stops being a series of random emails.
It becomes a customer acquisition machine.
More first-time customers.
Lower CPA.
Higher LTV.
More revenue from the traffic you're already paying for.
And the best part?
You don't need more ad spend.
You simply need a better system.
If your brand is doing at least $100k/month, book a free audit and we'll show you exactly how we'd improve your welcome flow to convert more subscribers into customers.
Or, if you prefer consuming content in video format, watch the full breakdown here: [VIDEO LINK]
Book your free audit: [FREE AUDIT]
Speak soon,
Idris