Olipop and Malomo Create A New Kind of Post-Purchase Experience
We had the honor of welcoming Michelle Paulhus, Senior Growth Marketing and Retention Manager of Olipop, to the Retention Chronicles. Olipop, a healthy soda brand, has a unique way of capturing customers' hearts with their fun, nostalgic branding and soda flavors. But they also set themselves apart from the competition with a strategic post-purchase experience focused on retention.
Let’s recap what we discussed in the episode.
A greater focus on personalization
Since focusing on personalized shopping carts with Repeat, Olipop has increased their purchase rate from email flow by 245%! It didn’t just happen by luck, this type of success is through a perfect mix of timing, segmentation, and content.
With that high of a purchase rate, it’s safe to say that Olipop heavily prioritizes personalized shopping carts.
Olipop also lets customers’ first purchase drive their personalization strategy. The team knows that most customers purchase best sellers or the variety sampler pack for their first purchase. So, Olipop's post-purchase communication focuses on the flavor profile the customer purchased and suggests other flavors to continue the buying cycle.
The beauty of the post-purchase survey
There’s nothing better than getting real feedback from real customers. And since Olipop’s priority is retention, implementing a post-purchase survey is a no-brainer.
The Olipop team has seen a shift in how their new customers have heard about them. In the past, customers were introduced to the brand mainly through paid ads and social media but today, their number one driver is retail.
But what about D2C sales? Michelle isn’t concerned. “With Olipops omnichannel approach to acquisition, I think that's a great thing for our D2C business because it allows people to have easy access to try a can and find the flavor that they like. Then once they find their favorite flavor, they can easily order it on our website. We’re treating retail as a billboard for our D2C business.”
For customers who actively repurchase Olipop’s sodas, they were asked how they made their purchases whether it be through retail or the website. Surprisingly, 58% of people say they’re buying retail and online.
The bottom line is that customers are purchasing in whatever way is convenient for them at the time. “Our goal is really just to reach as many people as possible and be where people are shopping, however they want to shop, versus trying to force people kind of down certain funnels.”
Unique ways to drive retention in a competitive industry
Olipop has several tools in their arsenal when it comes to retention, but there are two that stand out: Bounty (no, not the paper towel) and education.
Bounty, while it can clean up your messes, is an eCommerce tool for TikTok that rewards your customers for making a video about your brand or product. For Olipop, the process for Bounty starts immediately after a purchase on the customer’s confirmation page.
Here’s a simple breakdown of how it works:
The Bounty widget on the confirmation page asks the customer if they want to get paid to talk about how amazing Olipop is.
The customer signs up to make a Tiktok video once their product(s) arrive.
Once the customer makes the video, Bounty tracks the content based on views and pays out accordingly.
Olipop’s long-term retention game also prioritizes education—Olipop is, after all, a healthy version of soda. But they don’t just throw out facts and figures at their customers, it’s a bit more digestible (see what we did there?):
“We focus on trickling tidbits of education in our post-purchase communication, without shoving it in their face right at the beginning. That type of communication can be a turnoff for a lot of people. We want to educate people on how Olipop can make a difference in your daily life without necessarily starting with that. That’s why we’re shifting [our branding] to ‘a new kind of soda’, rather than ‘a sparkling health tonic’.”
Olipop: A new kind of soda
Focusing on retention and post-purchase communication has transformed Olipop into the incredible company they are today. Want to learn more about Olipop, post-purchase transactional flows, and repeat purchases? Listen to the episode.
If you’ve tried Olipop before, let us know your favorite flavor! Mariah is a fan of Orange Squeeze and Brian’s top flavor is Vintage Cola.
