Latest / The Retention Marketing Podcast with Fexingo: Email, SMS, and Loyalty for Repeat Customers / How a Coffee Brand Uses SMS to Boost Repeat Rate by 40 Percent
Transcript
- Lucas: So Blue Bottle Coffee — the specialty roaster, now owned by Nestlé — had a problem that a lot of direct to consumer brands have: people would buy a bag of beans during the holidays, often as a gift, and then they'd never come back. Luna: Right, the classic one-and-done. They get the spike in December and then January is a ghost town. Lucas: Exactly. So they looked at their data and realized that customers who opted into SMS were way more likely to convert again than those who only gave an email. So they built a three-part SMS sequence targeting first-time buyers who had opted in to texts. Luna: Three texts over how long? Lucas: Thirty days. The first one went out three days after delivery. It wasn't a sales pitch — it was a brewing tip. Something like, 'Hey, your beans are at their peak flavor right now. Try a 1:16 ratio for a cleaner cup.' That's it. No offer, no ask. Luna: So pure value. Builds trust before you ask for anything. Lucas: Exactly. The second text came on day ten. This one was personalized based on what they bought. If they bought a light roast, it might say, 'Loved that Ethiopian Yirgacheffe? You might also try our Kenya Kirinyaga — similar floral notes, a bit more body.' It's a recommendation, not a hard sell. Luna: And by day ten, they've probably brewed the first bag a few times. They know if they liked it. So the timing is smart. Lucas: Right. Then the third text came on day 25. This one had a limited-time offer: 'Start a subscription and get 15% off your first three deliveries. Code: SIP15.' But here's the key — the offer was only available for 48 hours. Luna: Scarcity. And it's SMS, so it feels more immediate than email. People check texts within minutes. Lucas: Exactly. The results: among customers who received the full sequence, repeat purchase rate within 60 days went up 42% compared to a control group that got no SMS. And the subscription conversion rate was 8% — which is high for a cold list. Luna: So the sequence itself acts like a funnel: educate, recommend, then offer. I love that they didn't try to sell on the first or even the second text. Lucas: And they tracked everything. They knew that customers who clicked the brewing tip link were three times more likely to convert on the offer later. So engagement on the first text was actually predictive. Luna: That's a great insight. You could use that to segment further — maybe send a different offer to people who didn't click the first one. Lucas: Absolutely. And Blue Bottle is actually doing that now. They're testing a version where the second text is different based on whether you clicked the brewing link. So it's getting more sophisticated. Luna: One thing I'm wondering: why SMS over email for this audience? A lot of brands default to email for post-purchase sequences. Lucas: Good question. They looked at their email open rates for first-time buyers: around 22%. SMS open rates were 97%. And the click-through rate on SMS was 28% versus email's 3%. So the engagement gap was massive. Luna: Ninety-seven percent. That's almost everyone. But you have to be careful not to abuse that channel. Lucas: Right. And they were careful. They only sent three texts over a month, and only to people who opted in. They didn't bombard them. The whole point is that SMS is high-engagement, so you have to respect it. Luna: What about the copy itself? Was it casual or more formal? Lucas: Very casual. They used the brand's voice — kind of warm and knowledgeable, like a barista you trust. No exclamation points, no all-caps. Just simple, conversational texts. For example, the brewing tip: 'Your beans are at their peak. Try a 1:16 ratio for a cleaner cup. Happy brewing.' That's it. Luna: It feels human. Not like a marketing automation. Lucas: Exactly. And they personalized the second text with the actual product name. That takes a little data work — you need to map the purchase to the flavor profile — but it pays off. Luna: So what's the takeaway for other brands? Let's say you're a small business with a product that has repeat potential. Lucas: I think the core lesson is: don't lead with the offer. Lead with value. Give them something useful first. Then, when you do ask, they're more likely to say yes. And use SMS only if you have permission and a clear reason to text. Luna: And test the timing. Three days, ten days, twenty-five days — that cadence worked for coffee. Might be different for, say, skincare or pet food. Lucas: Absolutely. You have to match the consumption cycle. For coffee, people brew a bag over about two weeks. So day three is when they're still excited, day ten is when they're thinking about reordering, and day twenty-five is when they've run out. It's perfectly mapped to the customer journey. Luna: That's the real secret, isn't it? Not the channel or the offer, but the timing that aligns with how the customer actually uses the product. Lucas: I think that's the biggest takeaway. And it's something we talk about a lot on this show — the best retention strategies are built on understanding the customer's real behavior, not just pushing a discount. Luna: If these marketing conversations have sparked something you've actually used in your own work, that's the whole point. And listener support is what keeps these episodes free for everyone. Lucas: Yeah, if you find value in the show, consider tossing a coffee our way at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It helps us keep doing this without ads. Luna: We appreciate it. Alright, so back to Blue Bottle — one more thing I wanted to ask: how did they handle the opt-in? Because getting SMS opt-ins is notoriously hard. Lucas: They used a post-purchase pop-up on the thank-you page. It said something like, 'Want brewing tips and exclusive offers via text? Enter your number.' They also added it to the email receipt. And they had about a 12% opt-in rate, which is pretty solid for SMS. Luna: That's a good benchmark. So the key is to ask at the moment of peak excitement — right after they've bought something. Lucas: Exactly. And then deliver on that promise. If you say you'll send brewing tips, actually send them. That builds trust for the eventual offer. Luna: Alright, so to recap: three texts over 30 days, value first, personalized recommendations, then a limited-time offer. That sequence boosted repeat rate by 42%. Anything else we should note? Lucas: Just that this is replicable. You don't need a huge budget or a fancy platform. Most SMS marketing tools like Klaviyo or Postscript can handle this. What matters is the strategy and the data. Luna: Great episode. Thanks, Lucas. Lucas: Thanks, Luna. See you next time.