There is an attractive little myth within marketing that states acquiring new clients will solve all issues.
A slower month? Get more leads. An issue with revenue? Increase your ad spend. Your sales goals aren’t quite meeting expectations? Increase the volume at the top of your sales funnel.
However, there’s also something here that nobody ever advertises on billboards: the customers who have already purchased from you are sitting directly in your contact list. These potential customers may be forgotten, but they are typically much warmer than any of the cold leads you will pursue with triple or quadruple the cost.
Why Reactivation Beats Chasing Cold Leads Every Time
Reactivating an old customer can be as simple as inviting an old friend over for dinner. A stranger will need to be convinced to accept the invitation. It’s simply easier to invite an old friend. The history an old customer has developed with your business represents many hard things a buyer would do. Most notably, an old customer has proven they trust you by giving you their money. They’ve learned where to park. They know how to utilize your services and they understand what to expect from your services.
History is worth something. For years, industry research has demonstrated that it is far less expensive to sell to a current customer than it is to gain a new customer. Additionally, the number of times a customer purchases from a vendor increases based on the frequency of visits made by the customer.
When you disregard the list of all former customers (i.e.e customers who are likely to purchase again), you’re leaving money on the ground while you attempt to find another potential customer three blocks away.
How to Spot Customers Who’ve Gone Quiet
Before you are able to bring back a lost customer (or customers) you have to determine which ones are truly gone. A large number of small businesses will fail this first step since “inactive” is dependent upon your product and/or service.
A person that has been inactive for ninety days may be considered as such by a restaurant; someone that has had no work completed by a roofer in three years would most likely fall into the inactive category for their business.
A Simple Way to Sort Your List
Check out your customer data and find these three groups:
The Recently Inactive Customers
These people purchased from you 1 or 2 times over recent months. These types of customers are typically the simplest to win back due to you being top-of-mind with them.
The Lost Customers
Customers that were frequent users of your products or services a year or two ago have since become infrequent customers (possibly by moving away, by switching service providers, etc.). However, these customers can also often be the most profitable when they’re recovered.
The One-and-Done’s
These are customers who purchased from you once and did not purchase again. No apparent explanation was given as to why they chose not to purchase from you again. Different messaging will need to be sent to each of these groups.
The Simple Campaign Framework That Actually Works
Here’s the good news: you don’t need a fancy 12-step funnel or a marketing degree to pull this off.
A good reactivation campaign really only needs four moving parts, and you can run the same structure twice a year, every year, with tweaks.
Step 1: The Friendly Hello
Start with a no-pressure message that simply reminds them you exist. Skip the heavy sales pitch. Think of it as a wave across the parking lot.
Here’s an example: “Hey Sarah, it’s been a while. We were just thinking about our favorite customers and realized we hadn’t said hi in a bit. Hope life’s been treating you well.”
That’s it! No discount. No call to action. Just a warm touch that doesn’t feel like a transaction. This message alone will pull some folks back in just because they appreciate being remembered.
Step 2: The Real Offer
A few days later, you can send a follow-up with an actual reason to come back. This is where you give them something worth showing up for. A discount works, but so does a new service, a seasonal special, or even a sneak peek at something coming up.
Here’s an example: “Wanted to let you know we just launched our fall menu and saved a seat for you. Mention this email and the first round of appetizers is on us.”
Specific, generous, easy to act on. That’s the formula here!
Step 3: The Gentle Nudge
About a week later, send just one more reminder. Some people meant to respond but they got distracted by life. A short and friendly bump gets them moving again.
Another example: “Quick note before our offer wraps up on Friday. Would love to see you back. No pressure either way.”
Step 4: The Final Wave
For folks who still haven’t moved, you can send one last note acknowledging that timing matters. You’re not trying to twist arms. You’re just keeping the door open.
Example: “Totally understand if now isn’t the right time. Whenever you’re ready, we’re here.”
That whole sequence runs across two to three weeks. Four messages. That’s the entire campaign.
Timing and Channel Choices That Matter
Email is often the primary driver for these campaigns because it’s cheap and it can also easily be personalized. However, adding a text message to your most valuable past customers can greatly increase response rates. People generally open text messages right away. Emails, by contrast, sometimes get lost under all of the subject lines.
Determine a time of year that fits into your business model. Restaurants often do best in early fall or post-holiday January. Home services generally have success during spring. Salons can send out their re-activation campaigns every quarter.
In essence, the goal is to tie the campaign to a time of year where coming back will be natural.
The Real Math: Why This Boosts Lifetime Value
Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) is the sum total of all the money that is spent by an individual customer in relation to your business over the course of time.
Every time you win back an inactive customer, you are increasing the customer’s overall CLV.
The second purchase will lead to a third and fourth and so on, and this will (hopefully) create a loyal repeat customer that will recommend you to others.
Running two campaigns a year on reactivation will compound over time as one of the best ROI producing activities you can perform for your business because it has lower churn rate, higher revenue per customer, and a performing database.
When You Don’t Want to Manage All This Yourself
Townsquare Interactive’s Business Management System will enable you to track and manage your contacts by segmenting customers based on activity with the product or service that you offer as well as allowing you to send targeted campaigns.
More importantly, this tool also provides the ability to view performance metrics so you know what has worked for you. We do not have long-term commitments. We also do not provide technical support via a ticketing system.
Our goal is simple: to provide a truly personal touchpoint for each of our clients.