The Email Customer Journey: A Complete Guide for Email Marketing Strategy

I always liked Jeff Bezos’s empty chair method. You know, the one where he places an extra seat at every meeting to represent the customer. The idea? A constant reminder that the most important person in the room isn’t the CEO or the CMO—it’s the customer. Always.

This principle should become a habit for anyone working with people, offering services, or selling anything. And in email marketing, it’s especially critical. Why? Because if you’re not building your strategy around your customer’s journey, you’re not building a strategy at all.

In this complete guide, we’ll explore everything you need to know to craft a powerful email marketing strategy by leveraging the customer journey. We’ll examine key concepts, real-world techniques, and actionable insights, all rooted in years of hands-on experience working with Klaviyo and eCommerce businesses. So let’s dive in from the ground up.

What Is a Customer Journey?

To begin, we must define what a customer journey truly entails. The customer journey refers to the complete experience a customer has with your brand—from the very first touchpoint to becoming a loyal advocate. In email marketing, the customer journey helps map out how your subscribers interact with your brand via email at each stage of their decision-making process.

Touchpoints are everywhere: a welcome email after signup, an abandoned cart reminder, a thank-you note post-purchase, or a re-engagement campaign six months later. Each email should reflect where the customer is in their journey and aim to guide them forward.

Understanding this flow is crucial for eCommerce businesses using platforms like Shopify and Klaviyo. These tools make it easier to orchestrate timely, personalized emails that feel like part of a larger, intentional conversation—not just random messages sent into the void.

What Is Customer Journey Mapping?

Now that we’ve defined the journey, how do we map it? Customer journey mapping is the process of visually laying out every interaction a customer might have with your business. In email marketing, journey mapping means identifying when, how, and why you should be emailing a person based on their current experience.

Using Klaviyo, you can create advanced customer journeys with conditional splits, dynamic content, and real-time triggers. This level of granularity allows you to respond to customer actions in real-time, ensuring your message is always relevant.

A journey map helps you:

• Discover gaps in communication
• Identify opportunities for automation
• Understand emotional and behavioral stages

Key tools to use:

• Klaviyo Flow Builders and analytics
• Heatmaps and engagement tracking cohorts
• Shopify analytics
• Survey tools (e.g., Typeform, Google Forms)

Important considerations:

• Think beyond linear funnels. Customer journeys are dynamic and non-linear.
• Use historical data to inform future interactions.
• Segment by behavior, not just demographics.

By implementing these techniques, you’re no longer guessing what your customer wants. You’re anticipating it.

Discover how to create an email marketing strategy that converts here.

Jobs to Be Done and Buyer Personas

Let’s be clear: people don’t buy products; they buy solutions to their problems. This is the essence of the Jobs to Be Done (JTBD) framework. Every email should address a specific need or pain point.

Understanding your customer’s “job” helps tailor your messaging. This is where buyer personas come in. These are semi-fictional representations of your ideal customers, created from research and data.

Use quizzes, pop-ups, and surveys to collect information. Klaviyo’s built-in profile enrichment tools and integrations with platforms like Octane AI make this process seamless for any eCommerce business.

Targeting based on JTBD and personas allows your email marketing strategy to resonate on a personal level, increasing open rates, engagement, and conversions. The more specific you are, the more effective your message will be.

Check out how to boost your sales in eCommerce here.

Where to Start: Building the Customer Journey for Email Marketing

You may be asking, “Where do I begin?” Start with your lifecycle stages:

1. Awareness: Welcome flows, educational content, brand storytelling.
2. Consideration: Product highlights, testimonials, how-to guides.
3. Conversion: Abandoned cart emails, discount offers, urgency campaigns.
4. Retention: Post-purchase flows, feedback requests, loyalty updates.
5. Advocacy: Referral programs, exclusive VIP content, review requests.

Each of these stages requires specific emails, carefully crafted to move the customer to the next phase. Klaviyo makes it possible to build automated flows that cater to each point in this journey.

Pro Tip:

• Use clear and action-oriented CTAs.
• Personalise based on behavior and profile data.
• Keep subject lines relevant to the stage.
• Don’t over-email. Respect frequency preferences.

Remember: consistency and clarity are key. Your email marketing should be a seamless extension of your brand experience.

Case Study: Beauty Brand Customer Journey Strategy

Let’s bring theory into practice.

One of our recent projects involved building the customer journey for a growing beauty brand focused on clean skincare. The brand was hosted on Shopify and powered by Klaviyo, but lacked structure in their email marketing efforts.

Step 1: Research and Segmentation We started by analyzing customer data and running a quick email preference quiz to understand who was purchasing—age, skin type, and main skincare concerns. This enriched Klaviyo profiles and allowed us to create buyer personas.

Discover the full power of email marketing segmentation here.

Step 2: Journey Mapping Next, we mapped their customer journey. Welcome series for new leads, educational sequences about ingredient benefits, and personalized cross-sells after purchase.

Step 3: Flow Implementation in Klaviyo We built lifecycle flows for:

• First-time buyers
• Repeat customers
• VIPs
• Inactive subscribers

Result?

• Open rate increased by 28%
• Click-through rate improved by 43%
• Revenue from email marketing saw a 1.5x increase in 180 days

This case proves that when email marketing meets the customer journey with precision, the outcome is always growth.

Data Analysis and Optimization

Data is the lifeblood of successful email marketing. Without it, you’re guessing, not strategizing.

Use Klaviyo’s analytics tools to:

• Track email performance (open rate, click rate, conversion rate)
• Monitor flow performance across journey stages
• Identify drop-off points

Use A/B testing to refine:

• Subject lines
• Send times
• Email content and CTAs

For more tips on A/B testing, read our related article.

You should regularly revisit your flows, especially after major campaigns, product launches, or seasonal changes. Email marketing is never “set and forget” — it’s iterative.

Final Thoughts

At the end of the day, email marketing is not just about sending emails. It’s about guiding your customer through their journey—step by step, message by message.

Your emails should meet your customer exactly where they are and help them get where they want to go. If you’re using Klaviyo and running your eCommerce business on Shopify, you’re already equipped with the right tools. Now, it’s up to you to use them wisely.

Remember the empty chair. Keep your customer at the centre of every decision. Let that guide every subject line, every flow, every message.

Because in the world of email marketing, the journey is everything.