A Shopify visitor may like a product without buying during the first visit. Klaviyo helps a store respond to useful customer moments through permission-based campaigns and automated flows.
The goal is to send relevant information to suitable people, not simply more email.
This is Step 09 of the Shopify Growth Roadmap. Build clear destination pages first so each email continues a reliable message.
Understand campaigns and flows
A campaign is a scheduled message sent to a selected audience. Product launches, seasonal updates and useful announcements often fit this format.
A flow is an automated sequence triggered by an event, list, segment or date, such as joining a list or placing an order.
Campaigns respond to planned moments. Flows respond to customer information or behaviour. Both require review.
Connect Shopify and verify the data
After connecting Shopify and Klaviyo, confirm that important events appear correctly:
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Viewed Product
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Added to Cart
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Started Checkout
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Placed Order
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Ordered Product
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Fulfilled Order
Event availability depends on the setup. Complete a test journey and inspect its profile rather than trusting installation alone.
Check catalogue items, links, prices, profiles and consent. Investigate duplicate integrations before activation.
Collect permission clearly
Send promotional email only to people who agreed under the rules applying to your business and customers.
Explain what someone is joining, keep privacy information available and honour unsubscribe requests.
Do not buy lists or treat every past customer as a marketing subscriber. Transactional and promotional messages serve different purposes.
The merchant remains responsible for appropriate data collection and use. Review the requirements for every market served and seek qualified legal guidance when needed.
Plan the customer moments first
Map the situations where email can genuinely help:
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What does a new subscriber need to understand?
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What information may help a product viewer?
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Why do suitable shoppers leave carts or checkout?
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What does a buyer need after ordering?
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Which messages already come from Shopify or other applications?
Start with important flows, prevent duplicated messages and expand only when another need becomes clear.
Build a useful welcome flow
A welcome flow begins when an eligible person joins the chosen list. First deliver the promised benefit, then explain what the subscriber can expect.
A simple welcome sequence might cover:
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Confirm the subscription and promised benefit.
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Explain the brand, products and customer fit.
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Help the subscriber choose or use a product.
Explain what the store sells before its complete history. State discount conditions honestly and adapt later messages when someone purchases.
Use browse abandonment carefully
A browse-abandonment flow may follow an identifiable product view. This signal is weaker than adding to cart or starting checkout.
Keep the message light: show the viewed product, add one useful detail and provide a route back.
Use filters and timing to exclude purchasers and people in stronger recovery flows. Limit frequency.
Separate cart and checkout recovery
Cart and checkout abandonment represent different stages and depend on the setup.
A recovery sequence should help the customer continue before offering a discount. It may include:
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The selected product
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A working return link
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Delivery or return information
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A common product answer
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Contact or support access
Stop later messages after purchase. Test dynamic product details, prices and links across carts and devices.
Coordinate Klaviyo with recovery messages already active elsewhere.
Support the customer after purchase
A post-purchase flow should complement transactional confirmations rather than repeat them.
Depending on the product, useful messages may include:
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A thank-you and expectation summary
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Instructions, sizing or care information
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Product setup or usage guidance
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A request for feedback at a suitable time
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Replenishment guidance
Time messages around fulfilment and actual use. Different products may require different branches.
Add back-in-stock and replenishment flows
Back-in-stock email alerts interested subscribers when an item returns. Confirm inventory data and avoid promising availability when quantities are limited.
Base replenishment timing on typical usage or purchase patterns.
Use these flows only when they match real product behaviour.
Use triggers, filters and splits properly
The trigger controls entry. Trigger filters narrow the event, profile filters check continuing eligibility and splits create different paths.
For every flow, document:
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Entry trigger
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Trigger filters
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Profile filters
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Re-entry rules
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Time delays
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Conditional splits
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Exit or suppression conditions
Read each rule in plain English. Keep logic simple enough to test and maintain.
Set timing around the customer
A template delay is only a starting point. Choose timing based on the customer action, product and information the message contains.
An immediate welcome email can deliver a promised guide or code. A product-care message should wait until the order is likely to arrive. A replenishment reminder needs enough time for normal use. Recovery messages should allow the customer to continue naturally without creating an unnecessary flood of reminders.
Consider business hours when a message asks the customer to contact support. Account for dispatch times, weekends and delivery ranges before requesting feedback.
Review the complete calendar, not each flow separately. A technically correct delay can still create a poor experience when it places several messages on the same day.
Use actual customer behaviour and feedback to refine timing. Do not copy another store’s sequence without understanding its products and fulfilment process.
Write email that helps the reader
Give every message one purpose and action. Use an honest subject line, short paragraphs and specific buttons.
Balance benefits with accurate details. Include offer conditions, avoid fake urgency and personalize only with reliable data.
Keep the email understandable when images do not load.
Build a dependable email template
Create a reusable structure for text, buttons, product blocks, support details, business information and unsubscribe link.
Keep it consistent with the store. Use readable type, strong contrast and enough space around buttons.
Limit large images and complicated columns. Test sender details, links, codes, dynamic content and footer information on different devices.
Protect email deliverability
Email authentication helps verify the sender. Configure the branded sending domain and review SPF, DKIM and DMARC across systems using it.
Use a recognizable sender, respect permission and make unsubscribing easy.
Monitor deliveries, bounces, complaints and unsubscribes. List size has little value when recipients do not want the messages.
Do not send sudden volume to an old, inactive list. Improve list quality instead.
Prevent flows from competing
A customer may qualify for a welcome flow, cart reminder, campaign and post-purchase message close together.
Map overlaps and prioritize messages with understood filters, delays and sending controls.
Pause recovery after purchase. Coordinate email with WhatsApp, SMS and transactional notifications.
Use discounts with a clear reason
Discounts can support a defined offer, but they should not replace useful communication. Before adding one, decide which customer behaviour it addresses, how long it remains valid and what it costs the business.
Keep codes, exclusions, minimum orders and expiry dates clear. Test whether the code works with the intended products, markets and existing automatic discounts.
Do not automatically increase the discount when someone ignores an earlier message. This can train regular customers to delay purchases and may reduce margin without solving the real objection.
Compare discounted orders with full-price behaviour, returns and repeat purchases. A flow can report attributed revenue while still attracting orders that contribute little profit.
When delivery, sizing, trust or product clarity causes abandonment, answer that problem directly instead of assuming price is responsible.
Measure more than attributed revenue
Review deliveries, clicks, conversions, unsubscribes, complaints and revenue. Do not base every decision on open rates.
Compare flows by purpose because welcome, post-purchase and recovery messages solve different problems.
Check destinations, discount costs and margin. Document changes to timing, filters, content and offers.
Maintain the system
Review live flows after catalogue, offer, policy or integration changes. Track each flow’s purpose, trigger, audience and last review date. Test core journeys routinely.
What to do after Klaviyo email setup
Continue with Step 10 — WhatsApp Flows and Automations for suitable moments that should not duplicate every email.
For help building agreed flows, explore the Klaviyo Email Marketing + Flows service.
Frequently asked questions
Which Klaviyo flow should a Shopify store build first?
Start with the clearest customer need. Welcome, checkout recovery and post-purchase often deserve early review.
Should every abandoned-cart email offer a discount?
No. First help customers continue and answer questions. Frequent discounts can affect margin.
How many emails should a flow contain?
Use enough messages to serve the moment without repetition.
Can Klaviyo replace Shopify transactional emails?
Map active messages before deciding what Klaviyo should handle.
Does email marketing guarantee repeat purchases?
No. Product satisfaction, demand, timing, service and price also affect repeat buying.
A strong Klaviyo setup does not automate every possible message. It connects accurate Shopify data with consent, useful customer moments, clear content and regular review.