Hey there,

What if we told you... that you could outperform your biggest Black Friday campaign by 120%—WITHOUT offering a single discount?

Sounds too good to be true, right? Well, that's exactly what we did for HD Muscle using hyper-personalized email content.

This campaign didn’t just hold its own against BFCM—it completely crushed it. And the best part? All the orders came from existing customers, improving customer retention.

You must have read how personalised content is the only way forward for email marketing - today we’re here to show you PROOF!

Upgrade your emails TODAY!

How We Did It: The Personalization Playbook

Here’s how we turned this simple campaign email into a sales machine:

Looks pretty standard, right? Not quite!

Each subscriber doesn’t see the exact same email. The images dynamically change based on their order history, making every email feel personal and tailored just for them.

1. Personalised Hero Image: Instant Attention Grab

Instead of a hero-ing a generic product, the hero image dynamically changed to feature the product the user ordered. If they previously bought pre-workout, they saw an image featuring their exact product, making the email feel custom-made just for them.

Why it works: When users see something familiar, they pay attention. More attention = higher engagement, meaning a higher chance they scroll through and read.

2. Personalized Product Recommendations (NOT your usual dynamic Klaviyo Block)

We classified the audience into four groups:

• Users who bought pre-workout but nothing else

• Users who bought post-workout but nothing else

• Users who bought intra-workout but nothing else

• The fallback group (everyone else)

Then, using historical cross-sell data, we recommended the right products to each group and best-sellers to the fallback group.

Why it works: These weren’t random recommendations—they were strategic product pairings designed to increase order value.

3. RetainIQ Widgets = More Creative Flexibility, More Conversions

Unlike cookie-cutter Klaviyo recommendation blocks, RetainIQ’s widgets let us make the email look and feel on-brand while dynamically adjusting to each customer. The result? A high-converting product recommendation section that felt like a 1:1 personal shopping experience.

Want these in your emails?

The Results? This will BLOW your mind

120% increase in email revenue (compared to their best BFCM campaign sent last year)
535% increase in AOV—simply by recommending the right products

We were shocked too, so here are screenshots directly from their Klaviyo account

Oh, and let’s not forget—this all happened during a non-peak season for the brand.

Want These Results for Your Brand?

If you’re still sending one-size-fits-all emails, you’re leaving serious money on the table. Let’s fix that.

We’re offering a FREE audit to show you how to hyper-personalize your email content and maximize revenue.

Let’s talk. Book your free audit today!

Book a free audit with RetainIQ!

Hey there,

I’ve been keeping an eye on how brands are running catalog ads on Meta, and one thing is clear—most brands are leaving serious money on the table.

Catalog ads are meant to show the right product to the right person at the right time. But if you’re using Meta’s default format, you’re only tapping into a fraction of their potential.

What if I told you that a simple tweak could boost your RoAS by up to 300%?

Let me show you how brands like H&M, Kate Spade, and Adidas are running stylized catalog ads to stand out, prevent creative fatigue, and drive more revenue.

Looking at the image, it kind of makes sense right?

1. Looks like a proper ad (not like a product image)

2. Stand out from competitors’ boring ads

3. Crucial info is communicated directly to customers

4. Prevents creative fatigue

5. Brand value is preserved

I could keep going, but I’m sure you get the idea. Stylized catalog ads just look better; premium, polished, more engaging.

Some of the world’s most well known eCommerce brands; H&M, Kate Spade, Adidas and so on – are using such stylized catalog ads.

You might be wondering, how did these ads perform for H&M?

By using a tool like RetainIQ, H&M is able to convert their boring catalog ads into engaging ads which stand out from the crowd.

These ads were able to generate +157% RoAS compared to their plain catalog ads.

Do you want the same results?

Check out RetainIQ

In general, it’s very hard to customize catalog ads because Meta doesn’t provide any options. The most you could do is use frames, but they’re very basic. If you use standard Meta catalog ads, you’re stuck with those.

But with an Enhanced Catalog Ads platform like RetainIQ, you have pretty much infinite customizability. Here are some of the things you can do;

Update live discounts in the image

Include Multiple Images in the same ad

Run Branded Catalog Ads

If you want your catalog ads to look better and generate more revenue, RetainIQ enables you to do it.

Book a free demo with RetainIQ

Hey there,

If you’re managing email marketing for a DTC brand, you’ve possibly asked yourself this:

“Should we build our in-house team, or bring in an agency?”

It’s a good question—and the stakes are high. Budgets, brand voice, and customer experience all hang in the balance. But here’s the truth: It’s no longer an either/or decision.

There’s a spectrum of options—and this newsletter will help you figure out where your brand fits best.

When You Don’t Need an Email Marketing Agency

This probably sounds strange coming from an agency, but at RetainIQ, we believe in fit over force. Here are three valid reasons you might not need an agency (yet):

• You’re Tight on Budget: If you can’t tap into the full range of agency services, you won’t get the ROI you’re hoping for.

• Short Term Requirements: Agency contracts often involve commitments. If you need short-term help, it’s not a good fit.

• Your In-House Team Is Crushing It: Sometimes, internal teams are already driving strong results. A good audit can confirm that—and if that’s the case, you’re better off doubling down internally.

Not sure if your in-house team is crushing it? Get a free email audit done - our team will analyze your current performance, offer strategic advice and let you know where you stand. Everything is free and we expect no commitments—you can take the audit and walk away!

Book a free audit with RetainIQ today!

When an Agency Is the Right Move

Some DTC brands are primed to benefit from agency support, especially in these three situations:

1. The Scale-Up Sprinter

You’ve nailed your product and built a strong operational foundation. Now it’s time to scale—and fast. A full-service agency can inject the speed, tools, and expertise you need to grow efficiently.

2. The Growth Reviver

Your brand’s established, but growth has stalled. Agencies offer new perspectives, creative ideas, and advanced strategies to revitalize your email program.

3. The Niche Expert

Operating in a complex space like luxury, CBD, or SaaS? Partnering with an agency experienced in your vertical helps navigate unique challenges—like compliance and customer expectations.

The Cost Factor

One thing you need to consider if you’re building an in-house team—how much will it cost? Here’s a typical cost comparison of an in-house team, an agency and RetainIQ.

Want to understand how RetainIQ gives above-average performance with such a low price tag? It’s because we heavily leverage AI to reduce operational costs, while maintaining quality and results.

Learn more about RetainIQ

When Freelancers or In-House Might Be Better

Not every need calls for an agency. Consider in-house or freelance support when:

• You’re Tackling Short-Term Projects: Launching a new flow? Running a one-off campaign? Freelancers or your internal team can cover this without long-term contracts.

• You Want Full Control: Need direct oversight of branding, timing, and execution? In-house teams offer seamless integration across departments—and faster decision-making. Agencies, while valuable, naturally involve shared ownership.

Why Not Both?

There’s a third option that’s increasingly popular: the hybrid model.

Hiring an agency doesn’t mean replacing your in-house team. A flexible agency partner can fill key skill gaps, handle overflow work, and support big-picture growth—while your team stays focused on the day-to-day and brand vision.

Looking for an agency that gets hybrid teams? You’ve found us.

Let’s scale smarter—together.

Book a free consultation today!

Hey there,

The subject line sounds preposterous, right? Losing something you spent good money to build – how can that be good?

Turns out, unsubscribes are actually a really nuanced topic. It’s not so much as how many people have left, it’s more about who is leaving.

Today, we’re talking about the benefits of having a smaller email list – again, sounds counterintuitive, but stay with me. If done correctly, culling your subscribers is actually good for your business.

What are the benefits of a smaller email list?

Here’s a hard truth – only a small fraction of subscribers are actually interested in your emails. The large majority of your list is made up of deal hunters and unengaged folk. These people add very little value – they’re mostly dragging your email deliverability down.

If you were to start removing these users from your list, you’ll see several tangible benefits.

• Your Klaviyo cost goes down. Most ESPs charge by active profiles. Which means you’re paying for the unengaged users, who give you no benefits whatsoever. Getting rid of them will reduce your costs by as much as 50%.

• Your deliverability will thank you. Removing unengaged users (which will be at least 30% of your list) means that your open rates shoot up instantly, and your domain stays healthy.

You know when your strategies are working. Imagine this: you try a new, fresh strategy which you’re sure will work – and a bunch of people unsubscribe. What will you think? That the strategy sucks, right?

But if you scrutinize further, you might realize that the active segment is engaging well with this new email, while a bunch of deal hunters jumped ship. This tells you that your strategy is actually working great for the people who actually matter.

Basically, what I’m saying is you should remove unengaged subscribers from your list, and it’ll be good for you. Quality >>>> quantity. A 10,000 strong actively engaged list is much better than a 100k list, where only 10k are engaged.

Let’s see how to actually go about doing it.

Culling your subscriber list

This is not easy to do – you need to be sure that you’re only removing the customers who are actually unengaged. That will require a large amount of analysis, guesswork, and conjecture, which has risks.

But there’s a method which will give you an accurate answer every single time – unsubscribes.

Most marketers will panic if they see subscribers leaving. But is it really a bad thing? Think about it. It saves you the trouble of figuring out if a subscriber doesn’t want your emails. They’re doing it for you!

That being said, you need to make sure that these subscribers are a lost cause – if it’s something you can fix, you want to put in 100% effort for those customers. There’s a difference between:

• Customers leaving because they’re not interested in emails – they only signed up for discounts.

• Customers actually want emails but you’re not doing a good job.

You want to keep tabs on the 2nd category, while not worrying about the first one. Here are a couple ways to do it.

Configure your unsubscribe page

First off, if you haven’t done it, you need to do it ASAP. So many brands don’t even know this exists, and keep using the default unsubscribe page.

You can ask subscribers why they’re leaving – from the responses, you can judge if it’s a harmless reason, or you need to do something about it.

This also gives you crucial info about your active subscribers. One simple example:

Let’s say you send 3 emails a week. However, you find out that subscribers leave because 3 is too much – they want only 1-2 emails a week. You can adjust your frequency to match what customers want.

If you didn’t have the unsubscribe survey, you wouldn’t know and would keep sending thrice a week, resulting in losing out on perfectly good active subscribers.

Actively sunset unengaged audience

Most sunset flows are configured to trigger after 12 months of inactivity. We feel that’s way too long – 3 months is more than enough time to judge if a customer is willing to engage with you (it’s also enough time to severely damage your domain reputation).

We recommend actively removing non-engaged subscribers after 2-3 months of inactivity. This will keep your list clean, tidy and manageable, while still allowing these subscribers the chance to opt back in.

Sounds paradoxical, but sending less emails will often result in more conversions.

With all that said, what if you actually are losing active subscribers? That’s beyond the scope of this article, but I’ll be writing another one soon! We’ll go over the best methods, tips and tricks to make sure your active audience doesn’t even think of hitting ‘unsubscribe’.

Figuring out unengaged segments isn’t hard, but you’ll certainly have second thoughts – am I pulling out a weed, or a perfectly healthy tomato plant? If you’d like some professional help, consider getting a quick Subscriber Audit!

• We’ll take a look at your unsubscribes

• You’ll know if you’re losing valuable customers

We’ll provide a stable, safe strategy of removing unengaged audience

We’ve done it countless times, for hundreds of eCommerce brands. It’s completely free of cost – we have no further expectations beyond helping you out! If you’d like to proceed with the Subscriber Audit, please click the link below.

Book your FREE subscriber audit today!

To conclude…

Most people are set on the idea that bigger -> better. All I’m trying to convince you is that you should be more concerned with the quality of your subscribers, and not beat yourself up over the ones who don’t matter. I’ve seen many brands have positive short and long term benefits from culling their subscriber list.

It’s hard, I know. But one of the greatest qualities of a good owner is their ability to make the right decision, not the easy one. I ask you to be true to your brand, and make those hard decisions which will make your brand soar even higher.

Hey there,

AI has made email marketing extremely efficient. And it’s not just about efficiency – brands who use AI are getting vastly better results. So much that there might not be any room left for “traditional” email marketing.

If you embrace AI, you stand to double your email revenue, and stay in the race.

However, if you continue using the traditional approach, you risk falling behind – because your competitors are surely putting AI to use.

Don’t believe us? Here are 6 ways top brands from every industry are using AI to make email better, faster and stronger.

1:1 personalized emails

Using AI, you can send incredibly relevant emails to every single subscriber, based on their interaction with your brand. Here’s a simple example of how it works:

• You browse bags on the website

• You add it to cart

• You do not purchase

• Side note – you have $50 worth of loyalty points left

With a smart AI like RetainIQ, you can track all these events, and create personalized emails like this one:

Another customer gets a completely different email, based on their actions.

1:1 personalized emails are real, and very much achievable in today’s day and age. I don’t think I need to explain why this is good – I’m sure you can see the benefits yourself.

Integrate loyalty and reviews into emails

Every customer loves a freebie. But most brands use loyalty freebies very inefficiently. You’re already giving the discount – why not use it properly??

Enter The Body Shop. They figured out that customers only see loyalty discounts in their cart – which is wayyy too late. They decided that loyalty point discounts should show up while making a decision – when browsing the products in the email!

They simply integrated their loyalty and review system into their email system – using some clever AI. And this is the result:

The Body Shop enjoys higher loyalty uptake, increased order confirmations and more conversions.

Predictive insights

It’s honestly a bit disturbing how good AI has become – it knows when you’ll order that next box of cereal! But we’re all for it – here’s how it works for The Magic Spoon:

The AI system observes thousands of your customers’ behavior, and understands precisely when they are ripe for picking. Based on the study, it can predict:

• When will you order cereal next

• How long will you keep ordering cereal

• How likely you are to switch to another cereal brand

• How much will you spend on cereal

When are you in a cereal-buying mood

And finally, to put these insights to use – a personally crafted email for every subscriber!

This is such a cool and easily available piece of tech – I simply cannot believe most brands aren’t using it!

PS – In case it wasn’t obvious, I love cereal.

More predictive analytics

That was just the tip of the iceberg – using AI, you can predict a lot more metrics like;

• Custom reports tailored to your brand and email marketing goals

• Benchmarking with real competitors and peers

• Identify early VIPs so you can nurture them from the start

Need help with AI?

With how the internet has blown up with AI tools, it can get incredibly overwhelming to figure out a place to start.

However, RetainIQ has been using AI since the past year to consistently improve eCommerce brands’ email revenue for the past 1 year. We’ve tried countless tools to figure out the ones that are really useful - resulting in stellar results.

If you want a progressive, reliable and knowledgeable partner to handle your email marketing, RetainIQ is a good choice. Feel free to schedule some time on our calendar to talk about AI!

Let's talk!

AI Helps in the Optimization of Email Subject Lines

We all know how important subject lines are. Did you know that AI can do it better than you?

Yes. With how advanced AI has become, it can replicate your brand tone and voice very accurately. So much that we’ve seen brands getting consistently better open rates with AI-generated subject lines.

It’s basically a perpetual motion machine. Once the AI has enough tried-and-tested material from your campaigns, it can basically sustain itself for eternity, generating better and better subject lines until the internet eventually explodes (or they take over humanity – you never know).

AI Helps automate email copywriting

Building on the previous point, AI copywriting isn’t limited to just subject lines. With enough study material, AI can draft whole emails, which end up looking exactly like yours. This does take a bit of trial-and-error, but once you’re past the initial hurdle, you have a lot more free time on your hands.

This leaves your team free to focus on more important decisions – like what to cook for dinner.

To conclude…

All I’m trying to say is that AI has made email marketing vastly efficient. It has opened up new opportunities and strategies that are simply better. Strategies which were not possible before the entrance of AI.

In the end, it all boils down to a very simple fact – brands who are using AI get to use better strategies, and hence see more revenue. Brands who stick to traditional methods consistently lose out.

I get that it’s hard to bring such a fundamental change, but there’s no way around it. AI is changing the world. All you have to decide is whether you’ll change with it.

To help you decide, here are some encouraging words from a man who regularly visits the remotest places in the world to taste the local produce (probably hasn’t heard of Amazon).

Words to live by.

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