Latest / The Retention Marketing Podcast with Fexingo: Email, SMS, and Loyalty for Repeat Customers / How a Wine Club Uses Email to Retain Members
Transcript
- Lucas: You know, Luna, when people think about retaining subscribers, they usually picture meal kits or streaming services. But there's one industry that's been doing retention marketing for decades, and they do it with almost no discounts. I'm talking about wine clubs. Luna: Wine clubs? Like the monthly delivery thing? I've seen those, but I always assumed they just send a bottle and hope you forget to cancel. Lucas: That's exactly the stereotype, and it's what a lot of clubs do wrong. But the best ones, especially those tied to high-end wineries, have built what's called an allocator model. It's based on scarcity and access, not discounts. And their email strategy is the engine that makes it work. Lucas: And that's part of why we keep this show ad-free. We'd rather give you the actual mechanics than have a mattress company interrupt. If that's been useful to you, you can support us at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It keeps this going without any sponsors. Luna: Yeah, I mean, we've covered retention for everything from cashmere to pet food, and it's all because listeners keep asking. That kind of support is what lets us stay independent. Lucas: Exactly. So, let's unpack the allocator model. The idea is that each member gets access to limited-production wines that aren't sold in stores. The email's job is to remind them that they're part of an exclusive group, and that if they don't act, they might lose access. Luna: So it's kind of like fear of missing out, but with a nice glass of cabernet. How does that translate into actual email sequences? Lucas: Well, take a Napa Valley winery I looked at recently. They have about two thousand members, and their renewal rate is over ninety percent. That's way above the industry average. And they do it with three key email touchpoints: the allocation release, the winemaker's note, and the personalized reorder reminder. Luna: The allocation release sounds like a drop. Is it a one-time email or a series? Lucas: It's a series. When a new allocation opens, they send a teaser email three days before, then a launch email on the day, then a follow-up a week later if you haven't purchased. Each email emphasizes that the wine is limited and that members have first access. And they always include a countdown timer in the email, which they've tested to lift click-through by eighteen percent. Luna: A countdown timer in an email? That's a nice touch. But what about the winemaker's note? That sounds like the opposite of urgency. Lucas: Right, and that's the balance. The note is a longer email, like a story about the harvest, the weather, the flavor profile. It's not selling, it's educating. But it does something important: it builds the emotional connection to the wine, so when the next allocation email lands, you're not just buying a product, you're buying the story. Luna: That makes sense. And the personalized reorder reminder? I'm guessing that's not just a generic 'you're running low' email. Lucas: No, it's smart. They track each member's purchase history and consumption patterns. So if you typically buy a case a quarter, and you haven't ordered in three months, you get an email that says something like, 'Based on your last order of the 2019 Cabernet, you might be ready for a refill.' And they include a one-click reorder button. Luna: That's a lot of data. But I'm guessing the winery doesn't have a huge marketing team. How do they automate all this? Lucas: They use a CRM that hooks into their point of sale and their email platform. So the triggers are automated: if a member hasn't purchased in thirty days, send this; if they open the email but don't click, send a gentle reminder. The key is that every email is personalized with the member's name, their vintage preferences, even their favorite varietal. Luna: And this is for a wine club, but it could work for any subscription, right? The idea of creating scarcity around a product that's actually limited. Lucas: Exactly. The allocator model works because the product is genuinely scarce. But you can adapt the principle: if you have a limited batch of something, or a special edition, you can create that same dynamic. The emails have to be honest about the scarcity, though. If you fake it, customers will see through it. Luna: So what's the one thing a marketer should take away from this? Is it the urgency or the personalization? Lucas: I'd say the combination. The urgency gets the click, but the personalization and the story build the loyalty that keeps them renewing. And that's the real lesson: retention isn't just about the last email, it's about the whole journey from the first allocation to the thousandth.