Win-Back Campaigns
Part of Win-back campaign strategy
Choosing a win-back offer from the reason for inactivity
Use order, service and customer evidence to choose a win-back response, resolve owed remedies and check discretionary incentives.
Base a win-back offer on a plausible, evidenced barrier to another purchase. Inactive order history alone cannot identify that barrier. Draw on orders, service records, availability and direct feedback; if they do not support a reason, leave it unknown and avoid a confident-sounding offer.
Match the response to what is known
Read a sample of histories for the intended win-back audience. Put relevant orders, returns, support cases, stock changes and customer explanations on one timeline. A complaint may suggest a barrier; it does not prove why every later order stopped. A past discounted purchase does not prove price is the barrier now.
| Plausible barrier | Evidence to check | Response to consider |
|---|---|---|
| A relevant product may be needed again | Earlier purchases, pack size, substitutes and current availability | Make reordering or choosing an alternative easy |
| A product or delivery problem is unresolved | Case notes, promised action and completion | Resolve the case and confirm the remedy before promotion |
| The wanted item is unavailable | Stock history and suitable alternatives | Explain availability accurately or offer a genuine substitute |
| Price may be the barrier | Direct feedback and comparable regular-price opportunities | Consider a limited incentive whose cost is supportable |
| No reason is supported | No reliable signal beyond inactivity | Use a restrained update, without claiming a diagnosis |
This is a decision aid, not an automatic customer classifier. More than one barrier may apply, and service records may be incomplete. Assign an open case to an owner instead of placing the customer in a discount sequence.
Resolve obligations before promoting
Keep any product or service problem raised by a customer separate from a promotional decision. The ACCC says it does not resolve individual disputes or give legal advice about a consumer's right to a repair, replacement or refund; seek appropriate guidance or advice for the particular case.
If a recurring problem has genuinely been fixed, a message can describe the change. Check that claims about delivery, stock or product improvements match what the business can currently provide.
Check a discretionary offer
For a proposed discount, credit or free delivery, estimate contribution after the benefit, expected returns, product cost and costs that vary with fulfilment and payment. Check whether it stacks with another promotion. Positive contribution on a discounted order is only a first screen: some recipients would have bought anyway.
Write down eligible products, maximum benefit, expiry and exclusions. Make displayed savings and conditions clear.
The ACCC can require businesses to back up claims about their products or services and can investigate misleading claims. If a claim cannot be supported, revise the offer.
Choose a response and review date for each evidenced barrier. Where feasible, compare later purchasing and contribution with a suitable group that did not receive the targeted offer; redemption alone shows use of the offer, not recovery caused by it.
