AI & Automation
Personas
Ecommerce
Time to ROI
Short-term (< 3 months)
OK, so let me tell you about a discovery that completely changed how I think about email marketing. I was working on a complete website revamp for a Shopify e-commerce client, and honestly, I thought I was just updating their abandoned cart emails to match the new brand guidelines. You know, new colors, new fonts, done.
But as I opened their old template—with its product grid, discount codes, and "COMPLETE YOUR ORDER NOW" buttons—something felt off. This was exactly what every other e-commerce store was sending. Generic, corporate, forgettable.
Instead of just updating colors, I completely reimagined their approach. And here's what happened: we didn't just recover more abandoned carts, we started actual conversations with customers. People began replying to emails asking questions, sharing feedback, and some even completed purchases after getting personalized help.
Here's what you'll learn from this experiment:
Why treating emails like personal notes beats corporate templates every time
The simple psychology shift that turns transactions into relationships
How addressing real customer pain points in emails drives engagement
A 3-step troubleshooting approach that customers actually appreciate
Why being human in automated emails creates competitive advantage
Most businesses are so focused on automation that they forget the "human" part of email marketing. Let me show you how to fix that.
Industry Reality
What every email marketer thinks they know
Walk into any email marketing workshop and you'll hear the same advice repeated like gospel. The industry has convinced itself that successful email campaigns follow a strict formula, and honestly, most of it makes logical sense on paper.
Here's what every email marketing expert will tell you:
Segment ruthlessly - Divide your list by purchase history, demographics, behavior patterns, and engagement levels
Personalize at scale - Use dynamic content, merge tags, and behavioral triggers to make every email feel custom
Focus on lifetime value - Create elaborate nurture sequences that gradually increase purchase frequency and order value
Test everything - Subject lines, send times, email length, CTA placement, imagery, offer types
Automate for efficiency - Set up complex workflows that respond to customer actions without human intervention
The theory is solid. Segment customers based on their purchase history, send them targeted offers, track open rates and click-through rates, optimize for conversions. It's scientific, data-driven, and scalable.
But here's where this approach falls short in practice: it treats customers like data points instead of human beings. You end up with perfectly optimized emails that feel completely soulless. Your repeat buyers get the same treatment as everyone else—just with different product recommendations.
The problem isn't the segmentation or the automation. The problem is that everyone's doing the exact same thing, so your emails blend into the noise of every other brand fighting for attention in someone's inbox.
Consider me as your business complice.
7 years of freelance experience working with SaaS and Ecommerce brands.
So here's the context: I was working on a Shopify e-commerce store revamp, and the original brief was straightforward—update their abandoned checkout emails to match the new brand guidelines. Simple project, right?
But when I opened their existing email template, I saw exactly what I expected: the standard e-commerce format. Product images in a grid, "You forgot something!" subject line, generic discount code, corporate "Complete your order" button. It worked, but barely. Their recovery rate was stuck around 8%, which isn't terrible but wasn't great either.
What bothered me was how identical it looked to every other abandoned cart email I'd ever received. We were basically training customers to ignore our emails because they looked like everyone else's.
During conversations with the client, I discovered something crucial: customers were struggling with payment validation, especially with double authentication requirements. They were abandoning carts not because they changed their minds, but because the checkout process was frustrating them.
Most businesses would have solved this by improving the checkout flow. But I realized we had an opportunity to address this friction directly in our recovery emails—and in a way that felt helpful rather than pushy.
That's when I decided to completely scrap the traditional template and try something different: what if we wrote these emails like they were coming from a real person who actually cared about solving the customer's problem?
Instead of another corporate template, I created something that felt like a personal note from the business owner. No product grids, no aggressive CTAs, just someone reaching out to help.
Here's my playbook
What I ended up doing and the results.
OK, so here's exactly what I did instead of following the standard playbook.
Step 1: Ditched the corporate template completely
Instead of the traditional e-commerce email layout, I designed something that looked like a newsletter or personal note. Clean, simple, conversational. The kind of email you'd actually want to read rather than immediately delete.
Step 2: Changed the entire messaging approach
Rather than "You forgot something!" I changed the subject line to "You had started your order..." Much softer, less aggressive, more understanding.
The email copy was written in first person, as if the business owner was personally reaching out. No corporate speak, no marketing jargon, just: "Hey, I noticed you started an order but didn't complete it. I wanted to reach out in case you ran into any issues."
Step 3: Addressed the real problem head-on
Here's the game-changer: instead of ignoring the checkout friction, I addressed it directly. I added a simple 3-point troubleshooting section:
Payment authentication timing out? Try again with your bank app already open
Card declined? Double-check your billing ZIP code matches exactly
Still having issues? Just reply to this email—I'll help you personally
Step 4: Made it genuinely helpful
The most important part wasn't the troubleshooting tips—it was the invitation to reply for personal help. This transformed our abandoned cart email from a sales push into a customer service touchpoint.
Step 5: Measured engagement, not just conversions
While we tracked cart recovery rates, I also started tracking something more interesting: email replies. How many people were actually engaging with us versus just clicking through?
The results showed that when people feel like they're talking to a human rather than receiving an automated blast, they respond differently. They ask questions, share feedback, and yes—they complete purchases.
Personal Touch
Write emails like you're talking to a friend, not broadcasting to a segment
Practical Help
Address real customer problems instead of just pushing products
Conversation Starter
Invite replies and engagement rather than just clicks
Relationship Building
Focus on long-term connection over immediate conversion
The impact went beyond just recovered carts. We saw a significant increase in email replies and customer engagement. People started treating our emails like actual communication rather than marketing noise.
More importantly, customers began completing purchases after getting personalized help through email replies. Some shared specific checkout issues we could fix site-wide. Others asked product questions that led to upsells. A few even became repeat customers specifically because of how we handled their initial problem.
The abandoned cart email became a customer service touchpoint that actually strengthened our relationship with potential buyers. Instead of feeling like they were being chased by a sales bot, customers felt like they had someone genuinely trying to help them.
This approach worked because it addressed the real reason people abandon carts—friction and uncertainty—rather than assuming they just needed another discount code or more product photos.
What I've learned and the mistakes I've made.
Sharing so you don't make them.
Here's what this experiment taught me about email marketing that no course ever mentioned:
Authenticity beats optimization - A helpful, human email outperforms a perfectly A/B tested template
Address real problems - Don't just offer solutions, acknowledge the specific friction your customers face
Invite conversation - The best emails start discussions rather than end them
Personal tone scales - You can automate emails while maintaining a human voice
Different is better than better - Standing out matters more than incremental improvements
Solve before selling - Help first, convert second
Measure engagement, not just clicks - Email replies indicate real connection
The biggest lesson? Most businesses are so focused on automation efficiency that they forget emails are a communication medium, not just a sales channel. When you treat them as conversations rather than broadcasts, everything changes.
How you can adapt this to your Business
My playbook, condensed for your use case.
For your SaaS / Startup
For SaaS companies targeting repeat buyers:
Address common onboarding frustrations in welcome sequences
Write upgrade prompts like personal recommendations
Include actual troubleshooting help in renewal emails
Invite feature requests and feedback through email replies
For your Ecommerce store
For e-commerce stores focusing on repeat customers:
Address shipping and return concerns proactively
Write reorder emails like personal shopping assistance
Include sizing or compatibility help in product recommendations
Offer genuine customer service through email replies