We approached Upperdeckys with a clear mandate: email could no longer sit in the background. The brand had strong traction through Meta ads and a loyal base of early adopters, but retention was lagging and the email channel was being treated as an afterthought. Our work began by laying down a proper foundation inside Klaviyo so the channel could mature into a reliable revenue driver.
The first step was cleaning up and organizing their audience. Their database had grown to more than thirty thousand profiles but was unstructured, which hurt deliverability and engagement. We ran a full hygiene process, suppressing inactive profiles, removing dead weight, and introducing segmentation that finally gave the list definition. From that point forward, new customers, repeat buyers, and churned or lapsed users were treated as distinct audiences. This structure became the backbone of the lifecycle strategy, ensuring messages landed in front of the right people with the right intent.
Next came automation. We built a complete lifecycle map that carried customers from first purchase through to long-term retention and, if needed, reactivation. For new customers, we rolled out a welcome journey spread across a month and a half, balancing education with conversion pushes. This included a tiered discount system that moved from ten to fifteen to twenty percent, a laddered approach designed to maximize trial without giving away margin. For active buyers, we created retention journeys that blended community proof and review highlights with smart offers to keep momentum going. For those at risk of dropping off, we rebuilt the abandoned cart flow with urgency-driven copy and added a dedicated win-back sequence that triggered at the forty-five day mark. Each journey was crafted not as a single touch but as a sequence of reminders and nudges that worked together to keep customers in the loop.
On the campaign side, we turned sporadic sends into a predictable marketing rhythm. Each month featured a mix of product launches, seasonal campaigns, educational content, and community-driven storytelling. Product drops, like the Candy Cane flavor, were teased in advance with “coming soon” campaigns and then pushed with high-energy release announcements. Seasonal promos tied the brand into cultural moments and holidays, reinforcing that Upperdeckys was more than a product, it was a lifestyle choice. Educational emails tackled objections head-on, explaining the science of caffeine pouches, breaking down why two hundred milligrams mattered, and comparing the product directly to drinks that most customers were trying to replace. Finally, proof-driven campaigns highlighted five-star reviews, social buzz, and community testimonials that built trust among skeptics.
Design was a central part of the overhaul. We introduced mobile-first templates with clean layouts, sharp visuals, and bold calls to action. Every element was optimized for quick consumption by younger audiences scrolling on their phones. Testing cycles were built into the process. We experimented with subject lines, call-to-action placement, and creative angles like value-math comparisons (“nine dollars equals the energy of over a hundred dollars worth of drinks”), which consistently drove strong clickthrough rates.
Equally important was how we worked with the Upperdeckys team day to day. Weekly alignment calls and Discord check-ins ensured that messaging stayed tightly aligned with sales trends and product developments. This close feedback loop meant we could pivot in real time: refining messaging after a new flavor launch, adjusting incentives based on redemption patterns, or doubling down on social proof when customer skepticism spiked.
In the end, email was no longer an ignored channel. It became a core engine of retention, education, and conversion. Upperdeckys moved from relying almost exclusively on Meta ads to having a second reliable growth lever, one designed to nurture customers over the long term and make their caffeine product a true habit.
979,222 — Emails delivered across campaigns
43% — Average open rate across all sends
83 — Campaigns launched with structured flows
“Nothing but a good experience with the Valiant team and Ben. Their graphic design and email marketing are top notch, some of the best in the industry.”