- Morning Commerce
- Posts
- The best email opt-in strategies from 101 Shopify Plus stores
The best email opt-in strategies from 101 Shopify Plus stores
We spent 19 hours researching how successful brands capture email addresses
Kyle Tully
March 29, 2023
HUGE issue this week.
Make sure you’ve got images turned on because there are lots of examples to learn from.
Here’s what’s in store:
The best email opt-in strategies from 101 Shopify Plus stores
A case study of how Smash + Tess used Shopify Metaobjects to double their product publishing speed
A beautiful inspo store in the “smart gum” niche
ChatGPT is now connected to the Internet and has a plugin for Shopify
SEO split test results
And more!
Today’s issue is brought to you by Nerdify, the Shopify optimisation consultants that smart Shopify brands rely on.
Hot Links
Acquisition
Conversion
Email Marketing
Study: Email marketing is the most-used ecommerce marketing channel (link)
Shopify News
Big news for Shopify devs & merchants! Dynamic sources are now supported on blog and article pages! http
— Liam Griffin (@liam_at_shopify)
11:37 AM • Mar 27, 2023
Inspo of the Week
Big bold colours that work perfectly with their product packaging are just the start of what we love about Neuro. They’ve got strong copy with a focus on story, science, and social proof. The site is well structured to help you shop by the outcome you’re looking for. And little touches like animations, only revealing ingredient info for those who care, and changing the background colour when you select a different flavour take it to a higher level than most.
The best email opt-in strategies from 101 Shopify Plus stores
This week we spent 19 hours researching how 101 different Shopify brands capture email addresses.
We gathered data on the strategy used, the offer, the info collected, and any interesting notes.
Frankly, I was a little surprised at the results.
Here’s what I found:
Popups, popups everywhere
Of the 101 stores we analysed, 64 had a standard run-of-the-mill popup.
You know exactly what I’m talking about because it’s the same thing almost everyone does. A small model pops up in the middle of the screen after a 1-5 second delay and asks for an email in exchange for a discount.
Gfuel is a typical example:
Gfuel standard popup with discount offer.
This obviously works which is why everyone does it. But it’s worth testing different offers and different approaches because even with a simple popup like this, small changes in copy, offer, or design can lead to BIG differences in conversions.
Abode living requires $100 spend on non-sale items.
Who else wants to unlock this discount from Blenders?
Nine stores used a variation of the standard popup with the opt-in form appearing either from the side, top, or bottom. This was usually done in response to scrolling the page.
Huel had a particularly nice example of this, using a slide-up banner with a unique offer of a free bag of Cinnamon Roll with your order.
Huel uses a sticky footer slide-up banner and a unique offer.
Twelve stores used an exit-intent popup as a last-ditch attempt to capture a lead before hitting the back button. There was a lot of variety in how these were used. Sometimes on the homepage. Sometimes on product pages. Sometimes a discount, sometimes not. A few were spin-to-win offers.
One’s product page exit popup with a 10% discount offer.
Vahdam offers 20% off before you leave.
While I generally wouldn’t recommend this approach as your primary lead collection method, an exit intent popup can be a great way to convert those who were leaving anyway, while allowing motivated buyers to purchase without sacrificing margin.
Quiz funnels were all the rage just a few years ago so I was a little surprised that only 3 brands used one. And in each case, the entry to the funnel was a banner on the site, not a popup.
L’Amarue’s home page banner for their skin wellness quiz.
Soylent’s quiz funnel entry point, a banner on the home page.
Rather than assuming quiz funnels no longer work, I’d be zigging when others are zagging and experimenting with these while few other brands seem to be using them.
Gymshark was the only brand with a simple “email sign up“ link in the header leading to a dedicated page to create an account.
They probably have the brand recognition and traffic to get away with this but it’s not something most smaller brands will have success with.
Give me your email and I’ll give you…
Not surprisingly, discounts are far and away the most popular incentive used with 64% of stores offering a discount for an email address.
Discounts ranged from 5-50% and $5-50. Generally without any minimum spend. Occasionally only for full-priced items. Although the higher-end offers usually paired with more expensive products in general.
Juiced Bikes offers $50 off a large purchase.
Hiya Health gives 50% off a vitamin subscription and uses a 2-step to collect phone.
Bulletproof lets you “unlock” 15% off which sounds enticing.
10% off + free shipping at Cupshe.
Six brands use a spin-to-win offer that gamifies the discount, such as this slide-out example from Princess Polly:
Princess Polly uses a spin-to-win offer with anywhere from 5 to 25% off.
It would be interesting to see the conversion breakdown of cohorts that received each offer tier. Are people that get 25% off more likely to purchase than those spurned with a mere 5% off? Something to test.
William Painter uses a similar spin-to-win strategy as an exit popup which makes it more engaging than the regular fare.
William Painter’s spin-to-win exit intent popup.
Six brands offered some kind of free gift with purchase.
Is Dr Squatch trying to tell me something?
I like The Home Security Store’s micro-commitment step of allowing you to choose your own gift as you become more involved in the process.
The Home Security Superstore choose your own adventure.
Where should we send your offer code? They also ask for phone on the next screen.
Eleven brands such as Kith opted to forgo any discount at all, offering some variation of news, updates, or exclusive access.
Updates and early access are all Kith has on offer.
It goes against natural instinct, but this strategy is definitely one worth testing. You may just find you get a similar percentage of people signing up and with an optimised welcome series may not need to give up margin to make a sale.
Only Natural Pet uses one of the most unique and on-brand offers that I saw. A chance to take 20% off by choosing a paw. These types of micro-commitments usually bump conversion rates for the 2nd step where you ask for an email because the prospect is already invested in the process.
Only Natural Pet has a delightful “choose a paw” offer that’s impossible to resist.
Winner winner chicken dinner.
Gunner was one of 6 brands using a prize as an opt-in incentive. Another strategy worth running the maths on. If you can combine a strategy like this with paid ads and a social share incentive you may just go viral in your niche.
Gunner offers the chance to win a food crate.
Win a $500 gift card every week with 100% Pure.
BPI Sports limited preworkout offer.
Snocks lets you choose your own discount, from 10% off an order of 45€ up to 30% off an order of 155€. I like this because it lets the shopper choose their spending level.
Snocks lets you choose your discount.
Name, rank, serial number
The general rule of conversion rate optimisation is to make things as simple as possible and ask for as little information as you need. No shock then that 69/101 brands ask only for an email address as a 1st step.
Swan asks for minimal info and uses a quirky 12% off your first order.
Brands that sell to multiple markets would often add an interest selection to the 1st step. For example, fashion brands in particular would often ask if you’re interested in shopping for men, women, or children.
Mavi asks about your shopping preferences so they can tailor emails.
Duradry getting up close and personal.
One thing that did surprise me is 4 brands asked for a phone number and not email as a first step. (This was while we were on a desktop.) Perhaps a strategy worth testing? But might make more sense for people browsing on mobile. And knowing the power of email I’d be hesitant to completely shy away from it, no matter how shiny SMS marketing might seem right now.
L’Amarue asked for a phone number rather than an email.
Teddy Fresh is doubling down on SMS marketing.
How to get 99% open rates
By far the biggest change in email opt-in strategy since the last time I did a deep dive like this is the addition of SMS marketing.
32 of the brands we researched asked for a phone number as a 2nd step after the initial email signup.
One look at the stats will tell you why:
According to Klaviyo, 99% of text messages get read and almost 30% of people click on links in SMS.
A really well-done example of this is Brooklinen:
Brooklinen - Step 1 initial full-page popup with a reason why and micro commitment.
Brooklinen - Step 2 email opt-in with Facebook & Google sign-in options.
Brooklinen - Step 3 phone opt-in for SMS marketing.
Dozens of other brands used a similar strategy with slight variations in copy, offers, and the number of steps involved.
Native offers 20% off for signing up with email and SMS.
Native 2nd step asks for a phone number.
Interesting to note that in virtually every case completing the 2nd step of providing a phone number is not actually needed to get the discount. Even if the copy makes it sound like it is required.
Aloha collects your shopping interest before asking for your details.
Email sign-up gives you 15% off.
You’re only a VIP if you sign up for SMS.
Stio uses an extra 5% off incentive if you also cough up your phone number:
Stio offers 20% off when you sign up with email.
Stio is willing to give a full 25% off if you also sign up for SMS.
Hopefully, this gives you some fresh ideas to test!
If you found this newsletter helpful I’d be forever in your debt it if you shared it with someone you know in the Shopify ecosystem. Thanks in advance 😀
Important to note that this data is just a snapshot in time. One user, one device, one session. There may be many more email opt-in strategies being used on each site. Triggered by any number of combinations of things such as time on site, number of visits, IP address/location, customer status, or specific pages. So you may see something totally different.
How we can help…
🔥 Looking for an experienced Shopify Partner to work with?
Smart ecommerce brands rely on us for innovative design, development, optimisation, and growth strategies to create highly profitable Shopify websites. Work with our consultancy.
🎯 Want to reach our audience? Hit reply to discuss advertising.