Latest / The Email Marketing Podcast with Fexingo: Newsletters, Open Rates, and Subscriber Growth / How Email List Winbacks Cut Churn for a Fitness App
Transcript
- Lucas: So Luna, you know that moment when you open an app you haven't touched in months, and it feels like the app is almost surprised to see you? That's exactly what one fitness app tried to replicate in their email winback campaign. Luna: Oh, I love that framing. Like the app is saying, 'Oh, hey, you're back. Missed you.' But isn't that risky? If the user hasn't opened the app in months, they might not want to be reminded. Lucas: Right, and that's the tension. But the team behind this app, a mid-sized player in the home workout space, cut their churn rate by 28 percent with a carefully sequenced winback flow. And the key wasn't just reminding people, it was changing the conversation from 'come back and exercise' to 'here's what you've been missing.' Luna: That's a smart pivot. So they weren't just saying 'we miss you, come back,' they were saying 'look at this cool stuff we've added.' What was the sequence exactly? Lucas: So the flow had three emails, spaced about four days apart. The first one went out after seven days of inactivity. The second after fourteen, and the third after twenty-one. But the content and tone shifted dramatically from email one to email three. Luna: How so? Usually, you'd expect the first to be soft and the last to be a discount. But that's not what they did? Lucas: No, actually it was the opposite. The first email was a gentle nudge. Subject line was 'We miss you,' but the body was a simple, almost minimalist recap of what they'd achieved last time they worked out. It was like a pat on the back. No ask, just a memory. Luna: That's a bold move. Most brands would start with a discount. But they didn't even ask them to come back. They just showed them their own progress. Lucas: Exactly. And the data showed that email one alone reactivated about 12 percent of the lapsed users. That's huge for one email. But the interesting part is what happened with the second email. Luna: What did they change? Lucas: The second email was a direct ask, but framed as a challenge. It said 'You're one workout away from your best week.' The subject line was 'Your streak is waiting.' And they included a quick-link to their most popular workout. That felt a bit more urgent, but still without a discount. Luna: And how did that perform? Lucas: It added another 10 percent of users back. So together, the first two emails got them to 22 percent reactivation. But the third email was the real outlier. And it wasn't a discount either. Luna: Okay, now you have to tell me. What was the third email? Lucas: It was a personal story from the founder. Not a discount code, not a 'come back' plea, but a short, sincere note about why they started the app. The founder talked about his own struggle to stay consistent with home workouts and how the app's algorithm adapted to his low-energy days. Luna: Wow, that's a risk. Founder stories can feel self-indulgent if not done right. But it worked? Lucas: It drove the remaining 6 percent of reactivations, bringing the total to 28 percent. And the open rate on that third email was nearly double the first two. The subject line was 'Why I almost quit.' That's a phrase that makes you pause. Luna: So the irony is that the most successful email was the one that had nothing to do with the product itself. It was about the person behind it. Lucas: Exactly. And it ties into something we've seen across other businesses: people don't just buy a product, they buy a story. And this founder's story was authentic, so it resonated. Luna: But I have to ask, what about the people who didn't come back after the third email? Did they just do a final farewell? Lucas: Great question. After the third email, they didn't send a fourth. They moved those users to a long-term nurture list that got a monthly newsletter, not a sales pitch. And they found that some of those users came back on their own months later, without any active campaign. Luna: That's a smart approach. You're not burning the bridge; you're leaving the door open. Lucas: And that's a key takeaway. The goal of a winback campaign isn't to force anyone back; it's to make it easy for them to return if they want. And by not being pushy, the brand actually built more trust. Luna: Which brings me to something I think our listeners would appreciate. We're able to have these deep conversations about email marketing without interruptions, and that's because we keep the show ad-free. A lot of podcasts rely on ads to cover costs, but we've chosen a different path. Lucas: Yeah, it's a deliberate choice. We want to give you straight, practical insights without a sales pitch in between. If these marketing conversations have sparked something you've actually used in your own campaigns, and you want to support that kind of content, there's a simple way to do it. Luna: You can head to buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It's a way to keep the show independent and free for everyone. No pressure, just if you find value here. Lucas: And speaking of value, let's get back to that winback sequence, because there's one more layer to it that I think is often overlooked. Luna: Which is? Lucas: Timing. They didn't just send the emails; they used behavioral data to determine when each user was most likely to be receptive. For some, that was morning; for others, evening. And they found that sending the first email within a specific time window after inactivity increased open rates by 15 percent. Luna: So it's not just what you say, but when you say it. Lucas: Right. And they also tested different times for the second email. They found that waiting a full week instead of four days actually performed better for the second email. It gave users more time to miss the app. Luna: That's counterintuitive. You'd think you'd want to strike while the iron is hot, but they found the opposite. Lucas: It's like dating, honestly. You don't text someone three times in a day after a great first date. You wait a bit, build anticipation. Email marketing can be the same way. Luna: I love that analogy. And it makes me wonder if there's a broader lesson here about not being too aggressive with re-engagement. Lucas: Definitely. Many brands panic when they see a drop in engagement and bombard users with emails. But this case study shows that a measured, empathetic approach can yield better results. You're not just trying to win back a user; you're trying to win back their trust. Luna: So, for our listeners who are thinking about their own winback campaigns, what's the one thing they should steal from this example? Lucas: Start with data, not discounts. Look at what your inactive users actually did on your platform. What were their habits? What did they engage with? Use that to craft a message that speaks directly to their past behavior. That's what makes the first email feel personal, not generic. Luna: And the founder story? Is that something every brand should try? Lucas: Only if it's authentic. If you're a large corporation with a CEO who wasn't the founder, a personal story might not resonate. But if you have a founder who's genuinely passionate, that can be your secret weapon. It humanizes the brand, and that's powerful. Luna: That's a great point. And I think it also highlights the importance of measuring not just open rates, but actual reactivation. Because an open doesn't mean they came back. Lucas: Absolutely. The team tracked not only opens and clicks but also whether the user logged in and completed a workout within two weeks of receiving the email. That's the metric that matters: did they actually come back and engage? Luna: So, with that, any final thoughts on winback emails? Lucas: Just that they're a reminder that even lapsed subscribers aren't lost forever. A well-crafted winback sequence can be the bridge that brings them back. And if you're not thinking about it, you're leaving money on the table. Luna: Well said. And if you have your own winback success story, we'd love to hear about it. Until next time.