Re-Engagement Email Examples: Wake Up Quiet Subscribers

A re-engagement email asks subscribers who've stopped opening or clicking whether they still want to hear from you. Send a short series with a clear reason to click and an easy way to choose fewer emails, then stop sending to those who don't respond.

It feels wrong to send less to people on a list you worked hard to grow. But mailing people who ignore you tells inbox providers your mail isn't wanted, and that can hurt delivery for the people who do read it.

• Define quiet by clicks and orders: Apple's Mail Privacy Protection can record opens nobody made, so opens alone will overcount the engaged. Clicks and purchases are firmer evidence.
• Match the window to your sending: Someone quiet for 90 days means more on a daily list than on a monthly one. Pick a window that covers enough of your emails.
• Leave recent buyers out: Someone who bought last week isn't quiet, even if they ignore your emails.
• Leave new subscribers out: Give them time to get to know you first.

Space these several days apart, and remove anyone who clicks. Skip clever guilt lines like "Did we do something wrong?" They read as cheap, and they can feel manipulative to the people you'd like to keep.

Stop sending them regular campaigns. That's the point of a sunset flow. You can suppress them and keep their record, so past orders and consent stay on file and they can sign up again at any time. Our guide on how to clean your email list covers the wider job, including bounces and spam traps.

Inbox providers watch how people treat your mail. When a big part of your list ignores it, your engagement looks weak, and mail is more likely to land in spam. Some abandoned addresses even get reused as spam traps. A smaller, more interested list tends to reach the inbox more often, as the email deliverability guide explains.

Say exactly what will happen and make staying easy. A clear version: "We've been emailing you for a while, and it looks like these aren't landing. We'd rather send less than clutter your inbox, so we'll stop on Friday. If you'd like to stay, click below. Nothing else needed." Plain, polite and specific, it often does better than something clever, and anyone who leaves goes with a good impression.

• Counting opens as engagement: With automatic opens, a quiet subscriber can look active. Use clicks and orders where you can.
• Running it once: Make it a standing flow, so people get a re-engagement series as soon as they go quiet.
• Sending to your whole quiet segment in one go: A sudden send to a large inactive group can raise bounces and complaints. Split a big first run across several days.
• Keeping people who didn't respond "just in case": That defeats the purpose. Keep the record and stop the mail.
• Offering the biggest discount you've ever given: Deal seekers will click and go quiet again.

Texting is different. There's no open data, and every text costs money, so don't run a long sequence. Send your quiet subscribers one good message with an easy reply option. If they never click or reply, simply send to them less often. STOP should always work.

SmartyTap segments can find people by engagement and orders, a flow can run the sequence with emails, delays and splits, and the preference center lets customers choose their language or stop marketing email while still getting order emails. List hygiene and automatic suppression are built in. You can edit a flow's messages at any time. What's been delivered stays delivered, and customers still waiting get the new version at their next send.

An email to subscribers who've stopped opening or clicking, asking whether they still want to hear from you. It's usually part of a short series that ends by removing those who don't respond.

When someone hasn't clicked or bought for a period that covers plenty of your sends. Many stores look at 90 to 180 days, but test against your own sending frequency.

Re-engagement targets people who stopped interacting with your emails. Win-back targets customers who stopped buying. One person can be either, both or neither.

You should stop mailing them, which protects your sender reputation. Suppressing them is often better than deleting, because you keep their purchase and consent records.