How to make your Post-Purchase Emails Count

Did somebody just make a purchase on your website? Congratulations! You have made a sale and created a new opportunity. Now, what? Well, now is where the fun begins. It’s a wonderful time to bask in your glory and ensure that your first time buyer becomes a repeat purchaser. By focusing on creating an excellent post-purchase experience through personalized communication, loyalty programs, and valuable incentives for repeat purchasing, you will keep your customers engaged.

#THEMORETHATYOUKNOW:

After a first purchase, there’s roughly a 27–32% chance of a second order.

If a customer makes a second purchase, the probability of a third increases (some reports show ~49–54%).

By the third purchase, repeat likelihood becomes significantly higher — repeat buyers are more likely to remain customers.

Post-purchase emails and SMS messages matter because they arrive at a moment when customers are still emotionally invested in their purchase. People experience a “post-purchase high” followed quickly by uncertainty — Did I buy the right thing? Will it arrive on time? Was a better option available or did I make the best choice? A great post-purchase message acknowledges this emotional arc by offering reassurance, clarity, and a dash of delight. When the message is timely, useful, and human, it becomes more than a receipt — it becomes part of a brilliant customer experience.

Based on billions of emails and many eCommerce stores, Omnisend data shows “post-purchase” automated emails averaged about 36.13% open rate.

• In that same Omnisend dataset: “Order/Ship Confirmation” emails (a common type of post-purchase transactional email) had a much higher open rate: ~ 56.71%.

• A broader-industry benchmark summary from 2025 positions “Post-Purchase Flow” emails as among the better-performing automation types, with a typical benchmark open rate of ~ 50–70% (depending on brand, list, segmentation).

Here’s a post-email benchmark guide from Boston’s B2C powerhouse, Klaviyo:

Source: Klaviyo

Data from eCommerce brands consistently shows that post-purchase emails have some of the highest open rates of any lifecycle message. That means you have an ideal opportunity to reinforce brand trust and guide the customer deeper into their journey. Personalization is crucial here: referencing the exact product they bought, anticipated delivery dates, or even their customer status makes the communication feel less robotic. When customers sense that your brand “remembers” them, it taps into the psychology of reciprocity — they’re more inclined to engage, respond, and return.

Moreover, key data points include 72% of consumers making a purchase after receiving a brand text, and 86% making two or more purchases in the last year from SMS messages

“A common mistake I see brands make in their post-purchase experience is not following up with customers after the purchase has been made,” says Lindsey Arellano, director of email and SMS at Curio. “Many brands focus solely on the pre-purchase experience and fail to recognize the importance of the post-purchase experience in building customer loyalty and advocacy.”

These messages also play a strategic role in the customer journey by reducing friction. Shipping updates, how-to guides, or setup tips help reduce customer service inquiries and boost satisfaction. Psychologically, teaching people how to get the most out of their purchase activates the “I made a smart decision” effect, strengthening brand affinity. This is also the phase where you can introduce deeper engagement paths — loyalty programs, user communities, or product recommendations — but only after providing genuine value first.

Humor, when used intentionally, amplifies these benefits by making your brand feel more human. A shipping confirmation that playfully says, “Your package is doing its cardio and sprinting your way,” or a review request that jokes, “Tell us what you think — we can handle the truth… probably,” creates micro-moments of joy. These moments trigger positive affect, one of the strongest drivers of brand recall. But humor should always support clarity, not distract from it; the information must remain unmistakably useful.

When you combine behavioral data, customer-journey clarity, and a human voice, post-purchase emails evolve into relationship-building tools rather than transactional necessities. This is how ecommerce brands turn a single order into a long-term customer: reassure them, guide them, make them smile, and keep proving you understand their needs. Done right, these messages become small but powerful chapters in the story customers tell themselves about your brand — a story that brings them back again and again!

Want to take your marketing and email strategy to the next level in 2026 and beyond? The Scoop Brands is a company that was created with the intention of helping you scale. So what are you waiting for? Get started with us today!

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