💬 Running campaigns and messaging focused on appreciating customers is a great initiative that, in my opinion, more SaaS and B2B brands should be doing - and if you're looking to also implement and try an initiative like this, I've got a few tactics below to check out, including some examples from amazing brands I like.
💬 Most of the below are low-cost and quite quick to test as part of existing automation flows, or even as single-focused campaigns - lots of ways to test/experiment. :)
I’m personally a big fan of this tactic, and more SaaS startups (regardless of size) should do something similar.
It’s a great way to quickly build positive rapport with new users, and feels like a personalised and “warm” approach to show gratitude.
It also helps ‘humanise’ the brand a bit, and breaks-through the ‘noise’ of other email automation sequences that you may be running - plus, all the other similar sign-up emails that users are getting from other products.
Please note - you still need to run automated signup emails as part of onboarding and/or other sequences to help nurture and increase adoption. However, a personalised founder email can help set the tone and kick-off the relationship in a positive way.
In terms of what you can include in founder emails like this great example from Grammarly, you can:
Show appreciation and a ‘thank you’ to new users who’ve become a paid subscriber/customers - and why not include a potential incentive as part of an upsell strategy.
Typically with these emails, trigger these at least a few days after they upgrade.
Here are a couple of reference examples to get some inspiration from:
Highlighting appreciation can be done with special announcements you want to make as a brand - for instance, it could be a special initiative to help out the community (or some sort of social good project), or even the likes of a commercial focus (like a sales promo).
Celebratory key date milestones and anniversaries is another great opportunity to message users/customers wide.
They’re great reminders to users and customers about the value that you’ve provided for that period, which shows your commitment to serve your users/customers.
Plus, it helps acknowledge the fact that the customers/users have contributed to the success of the product and community, which helps them feel valued too (and in turn can lead to greater loyalty/retention).
In terms of a great example, really love Fitbit’s example:
In conjunction with the above checklist point on milestones/anniversaries, make sure to set these up for freemium/free-tier segments - for both active and inactive audiences.
Plus, it’s a great nudge to provide some sort of incentive/offer related to the milestone - and you can customise offerings based on attributes/behaviours (e.g. active vs inactive).
For inactive cohorts, you can use ‘anniversary’ milestone reminders to nudge them - it’s a good ‘excuse’ to help stay top of mind and encourage them to come back.
Another customer appreciation opportunity are through product update emails - especially for highlighting new feature releases and user/customer feedback you may have received.
