8 powerful win-back customer email templates and examples

Losing an engaged customer can feel a lot like going through a breakup. After all the time and effort it takes to build a customer relationship, watching a person disengage from your company, perhaps never to return, can create a sense of dissatisfaction in even the best entrepreneurs and marketers.

The good news is that sometimes all it takes to bring this customer back is a slight tweak, a discount code, or a little extra attention. The best part is that you don’t have to track and reach out to disengaged customers manually. Marketing automation platforms can help you build effective win-back email campaigns that identify and contact these customers on autopilot.

This article will share some powerful examples of win-back emails, along with what these brands did right and how you can use these strategies to engage customers and scale your business.

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8 win-back email examples and templates

Before you create your win-back email sequence, you first need to decide how you want to approach your lapsed customers and entice them to reconnect with you. 

In this section, we will look at some of the most effective types of win-back emails to reconnect with customers. We’ve also included some real-life examples of brands that have nailed their campaigns. 

Each example is accompanied by a template to help you get started with each strategy we share below. Whether you want your customers to revisit your digital store, resubscribe to your email list, or give valuable feedback, these templates make it easy to write the perfect email to win your customers back.

1. The “we miss you” win-back email examples

The “we miss you” email tugs at your reader’s heartstrings. While it may come from a generic template, it never fails to feel personal. It tells your reader that their presence matters and that you noticed they have been inactive. 

The sincere “we miss you” email template:

This sincere “we miss you” email example from bareMinerals goes a step further to make its reader feel valued, adding the phrase “can you blame us?” 

To fully leverage the potential of this remarketing campaign, bareMinerals also includes a gift card with the discount code “MISSYOU.” There is no room for ambiguity with this winback email. 

The intimate “we miss you” email template:

Another example of this strategy is Revolve’s win-back email campaign, captured below.

This makeup brand with a predominantly female clientele uses romantic and current language to bring back its customers by reminding them of items that are now back in stock. The same email can also introduce some of the latest product lines that the customer might not be aware of. This approach works well for clients who may have been inactive for a while, but could return if they’re made aware of new, exciting products. 

The handwritten date on the top right corner adds another personal touch. 

Read more:

1. What is email marketing?

2. Ecommerce email marketing guide

3. Best marketing automation apps for Shopify

4. GetResponse and Shopify integration: everything you need to know

5. Inspiring holiday email campaigns that sell and engage

The lonesome “we miss you” email template:

This win-back email from Teespring takes a slightly more dynamic approach, asking its readers to come back while adding a picture of a sad-looking puppy. It’s a clever way to tap into the customer’s emotions. 

The email also takes personalization a step further, as it includes account-specific statistics to remind the reader of the results they have achieved using Teespring’s product. 

Subject Line: It’s not the same without you, [First Name] 

Body: Hey, you’ve been gone, and it’s not the same without you. 

While you were here, this is what we achieved together. [Add data about the customer’s sales through your platform, money saved on product purchases, or exclusive deals they bagged.]

We are stronger together—wouldn’t you agree? 💪  Come back and let’s continue growing! 

Call-to-Action: Take me back [Links to website]

2. The “discount off” win-back email

Discounts are an age-old tactic to increase sales. They still work to this day because people love knowing they get the best deal. In 2024, 60% of survey respondents in the United States reported using coupons for shopping, according to Statista. 

The “discount off” win-back email template:

This email from Chhapai is clear in its offering: we really care about you as our customer, and we want you back. To make that happen, we’ll offer you a special discount, just for you. They’ve also included a clear call to action. There aren’t too many buttons or links to distract the user.

3. The “freebie” win-back email

Free gifts are hard to resist. These make them an excellent asset for any marketer. 

An interesting study found that wine customers who received free wine tasting were 93% likely to spend an extra $10 to buy an additional bottle of wine. They’re also 92% likely to repurchase the win in the future. 

The human aversion to losing something, even something that is offered for free, is a driving factor in our decision-making process. Leverage this psychological loophole in your marketing strategy to remind customers of your brand and bring them back. 

The “freebie” win-back email template: 

This win-back email example from Wisp, a pharmaceutical brand, offers clients a free medical consultation with each order. 

You can offer many different freebies. For example, customers often do not complete a purchase due to shipping costs. Offering free shipping can work very well to bring back customers, especially those with abandoned carts. 

The “free shipping” win-back email template:

FarFetch offers free shipping for a limited period of 24 hours to entice their customers to make a purchase. This works particularly well for FarFetch because their shipping costs can sometimes be sky-high. 

Although this is not specifically a win-back email, their approach works very well to return inactive subscribers who might have strayed for reasons such as shipping costs. 

4. The “FOMO” winback email example

People hate missing out on nice things. Watching an Instagram story of all our friends partying while we are sick in bed, or seeing our best friend wear the sweater we’ve been eyeing for ages, doesn’t sit well with us. 

Take advantage of this feeling when creating your next win-back email sequence. Add a list of best sellers, almost-out-of-stock items, or sample sales to your remarketing email campaign to show lost customers that they need to come back ASAP. 

The “FOMO” win-back email template:

This email from ATG Stores invites readers to check out the new brands and services added to their website. 

Appeal to the fear of missing out by including social proof of your sales, featuring a limited-time deal, and appealing to the sense of exclusivity. Just make sure your reader actively senses the need to be a part of your crowd. 

5. The “just checking in” win-back email example

Sometimes, just a simple nudge is enough to bring back your customer. Asking them how they are and gently reminding them of your presence is a powerful way to re-engage inactive customers.

The “just checking in” win-back email template:

With this “just checking in” win-back email, Saks aims to reconnect with its customers via a simple “long time, no see.” 

6. The “special occasion” win-back email examples

Special occasions, such as birthdays, anniversaries, and festivals, are great times to rekindle your bond with inactive subscribers. People are actively looking for gifts to celebrate the special day. They may also have more time to browse selections, search their inboxes for discount codes, and make purchases. 

Targeting the festive season to launch a win-back email campaign can bring a delightful spike in your open rates.

The “birthday” win-back email template:

This email example from Rent The Runway is one way to approach it. The brand gives its customers $25 off for their birthday. 

For more inspiration, check out these birthday email examples and data-backed tips.

Valentine’s Day win-back email templates:

Valentine’s is another special day you can use to rekindle the spark you used to have with your lost customers before they drifted away. 

Check out our ready-made email templates available for all GetResponse clients!

You don’t have to look far to find some inspiring email examples for February’s most important date! Fortunately, we’ve already covered this subject excessively. Continue reading:

15 Valentine’s Day Email Campaign Ideas
7 Seductive Valentine’s Day Marketing Ideas

7. The “feedback” email template 

Asking people their opinion makes them feel valued and heard. Ask your customers to tell you what they think about your brand and products through a poll, feedback scale, or even a quiz. This is an effective way to engage them and understand what might have gone wrong. 

You may not win the estranged customer back, but at least you will gain valuable insight into what you could do better to retain existing customers.

The “feedback” win-back email template:

This win-back email from MindValley is a perfect example of the “feedback” email that aims to learn the reason for inactivity. It engages the customer and reminds them of the brand.

The same win-back email points out that the survey will only take one minute. This is vital in showing past customers who have lost interest in the brand that they only need to spare a few moments of their time to help your business enhance the experience for them and other customers.

8. The “final check-in” win-back email template

This email is the last-ditch effort to re-engage an inactive user. You can use this as an opportunity to ask your customers why they stopped opening your emails, visiting your website, or buying from your online store. 

The “emotional final check-in” win-back email template:

This email from John Paul Mitchell Systems lets its customers decide one last time whether they want to stay or if they’d instead opt out. Its body text does a great job of inducing emotion in the reader by adding the phrase “sniffle sniffle” to bring the personalized message to life. 

You can also see the shape of the sad face from the way the products are arranged. This gives the email some personality. 

Related: Email list cleaning best practices

Guidelines for an effective win-back email campaign

According to Hugo Mercier, a cognitive scientist and psychology author, there are three ways to change someone’s mind:

• Build on what they believe
• Bring in who they trust
• Build on what they value

These guidelines for an effective win-back strategy will ensure that you target at least one of these three tactics with every single email you send. 

Tip 1: Create a great subject line

A University College Roosevelt study on emails sent to over 1,400,000 customers shows that people are more or less likely to open their emails based solely on the subject line. 

That means it’s really important to nail your email subject lines if you want to win back lapsed customers. 

Using second-person pronouns such as “you” and “your” can give your email subject a personal touch:

• “You’ve been gone, and it’s not the same.”
• “[Customer name], we care about your [customized to the value proposition].”

Building suspense is another good approach to getting your lapsed customer to open your email. 

• “You’ve been busy, and we understand, but…”
• “You’ve been missing out on…”
• “A lot has happened since we last saw you…”

Tip 2: Add attractive illustrations

A study by HubSpot shows that people following directions with both text and illustrations do 323% better than people following directions with text alone. Keep this in mind as you compose your win-back email.

Also, don’t just stick to static illustrations. Experiment with GIFs and videos. Moving components like the GIF below grab the readers’ attention and draw them in. 

Open Store GIF from Tenor

Tip 3: Add social proof to your customer win-back email 

Image credit: Modern Mammals

When customers hear from other people they relate to, it gives them the confidence to act. Adding a happy client testimonial or an image of a real person using your product can add authenticity to your offer. 

This tactic works exceptionally well for bringing back an otherwise loyal customer who might have abandoned their cart or disappeared after hours of browsing. Not only that, but effective use of social proof can encourage customers to spend more. This boosts the average order value and repeat purchases.

Tip 4: Motivate buyers with limited-time offers

People act quickly when they feel they have less time to act. Adding an expiration period to your offer, whether it is free shipping, a gift card, or a discount voucher, can have a noticeable effect on your open rates and revenue.  It creates a sense of urgency that can help you convert more customers.

For instance, Cracku increased sales by 300% when they used countdown timers in their campaigns. 

The email from Rescue Spa adds “12 days” right in its subject line to both build anticipation as well as put a clock on the offer. 

Even though this isn’t technically a win-back email, it creates all the necessary conditions to persuade a user to come back — limited-time offers, illustrative graphics, and an attractive subject line. You’ll need a similar customer winback campaign to prevent customer churn and boost customer loyalty.

Tip 5: Try reaching them more than once

It’s possible that your customers didn’t have a sudden change of heart after seeing your first win-back email. Perhaps they never even saw that email. 

To maximize your chances of re-engaging your subscribers, consider reaching out to them more than once. That means sending a follow-up email or an automated SMS message. These follow-ups can help you turn lapsed customers into repeat customers.

Bonus guide

Want to make more impact with your SMS campaigns? Take a look at these 7 SMS marketing automation campaign ideas and learn how to set them up all by yourself.

Download guide

Set up your new win-back email flow in just a few steps with GetResponse

It really is just that easy! All you’ll need for a successful win-back email flow is a contact list, a creative copy, and a little bit of automation magic. Here’s how you can get started:

• Win-back email flow for unengaged subscribers
• Win-back email flow for customers who abandoned a shopping cart

Win-back email flow for unengaged subscribers

Step 1: Go to your contacts list and create a segment consisting of “unengaged” subscribers. The easiest way to do this is to use our built-in engagement score feature and create the segment using the following criteria: Contact details > Engagement score > is equal to > Unengaged.

Save this segment and head over to Marketing Automation.

Step 2. In Marketing Automation, create a new workflow from scratch that’ll be triggered when a new subscriber joins your list.

The workflow starts when a new subscriber joins your email list

Step 3. Add a wait block, set it to 180 days. Then turn on the run multiple times toggle.

By adding the wait element, you ensure the next step will commence in 180 days.

Properties of the wait element

Step 4. Next, add a dynamic segment filter to check if the subscribers are in your unengaged subscribers.

The positive path (green) should be connected to your win-back email.

The negative path (red) should be looped back to the wait element you’ve previously created. This way, the workflow will check every 180 days if your contact has become unengaged.

Here’s what the workflow should look like now:

Here’s what the re-engagement email workflow should look like

Step 5. Hit save and publish. Your workflow is now good to go!

Win-back email flow for customers who abandoned a shopping cart

Step 1. Connect your store in the Integrations & API.

Step 2. Head over to Automation and select the Abandoned cart reminder template

Select the Abandoned cart reminder automation template.

Step 3. Configure the abandoned cart block properties to choose when you’d like the win-back email to be sent.

You can adjust the abandoned cart block properties to specify when the system should assume the cart’s been abandoned.

Step 4. Attach your win-back email

Here’s your simple abandoned cart workflow

Step 5. Hit save and publish – your workflow is good to go!

Want to explore this topic further? Catch the recording of our webinar explaining three ways you can save abandoned carts using Marketing Automation:

Win-back customer email template FAQs

What’s a win-back campaign?

A win-back campaign is an email or a sequence of emails designed to engage with estranged customers. These customers may have gotten busy, stopped finding the content of your emails relevant, or simply forgotten about you. 

Win-back emails are designed to get your lapsed customers to open emails from you and begin engaging with your content again. 

How do you win back a customer?

You can win a customer back in a variety of ways, such as offering discounts on products they like, providing incentives such as free shipping, or simply asking them what went wrong.

How do you write a win-back email?

There are several ways to write a win-back email, but one effective approach is to be genuine in your email. Tell them how you feel about them leaving your brand without getting overly personal. Show them what’s in store if they come back and let them know you’d love to hear back from them.

25 ways to build your contact list

We’ve compiled a list of 25 tried-and-tested tactics for the success of your future campaigns.

Download guide

Conclusion

It is (arguably) much easier to bring back a disconnected customer than to get new ones. A person who has already engaged (and enjoyed a great experience) with you or your brand is probably more likely to engage again than someone who has only recently heard of you. 

By using the guidelines, tactics, and templates shared in this article, you can bring back wandering customers and rebuild your relationship with people you thought you’d lost. 

By the way, the email marketing company GetResponse offers customer engagement services as well as email marketing services, including design tools and templates you can use right away.