The strength of engagement sequences

Sequences are the magic that drives user engagement for your app and devices.

Let's look at what they are, how they boost conversion rates, and how you know when to stop.

What is an engagement sequence?

An engagement sequence is a series of communications designed to achieve a particular goal. This could be anything from using a new feature to rating your product.

Instead of just sending one email or in-app, the idea is to string together several messages in a row. And by adjusting the number of days or weeks between each communication – as well as the messages themselves – you can optimize your sequences to maximize conversions.

How engagement sequences boost conversion rates

Let's look at some typical clickthrough rates (CTR) for one-off emails and in-app messages:

• Email: 1-2% (When not targeted specifically)
• In-app: 10-15%

Now, you can already see that in-apps convert around 10x more effectively than emails. But what happens when you start creating sequences that include both?

We've tested this approach with numerous clients and find that, when an email follows an in-app, it converts 2x better than just sending the email alone.

By testing your own combinations, you can find new ways to connect the dots for your users and nudge them in the right direction.

How to decide how long your sequence should be

As with all emails and in-apps, there's always a risk of overcommunication. So you need to work out the perfect length for each engagement sequence. This is usually dictated by the goal you're trying to achieve.

Here are a few examples:

• Getting loyal users to try a new feature – A series of 2-3 in-app messages is usually enough here. This could include one message to announce the feature, then another one or two messages to highlight different benefits and remind users to give it a try.
• Asking users to rate your app – An in-app notification followed by an email is probably the maximum you want to send, otherwise you could risk frustrating your users. If they don't act, you could always trigger the sequence again in a few months' time.
• Stopping subscribers from churning – A series of in-app and email messages that runs for the last 30 days of their subscription. The first message could offer 10% but by the end you could be offering 50% or even 90% – trying everything you can to win them back.