2 New Year Marketing Campaigns That Drive Repeat Purchases

TLDR

• January is the ideal month to fix retention because of the fresh-start effect, Q4 buyers entering their second-purchase window, and dormant customers being more open to re-engagement.
• Campaign 1: Second Purchase Nudge targets recent first-time buyers (around days 10–21 post-purchase) with a four-step sequence: tease, small incentive, personalized recommendation, and final urgency-based reminder.
• Campaign 2: Win-Back Nudges targets dormant customers (90+ days inactive) with a four-step emotional and value-driven sequence: “We miss you,” a welcome-back gift, rediscover favorites, and a last invitation framed as exclusive.
• Together, these automations create a retention safety net—nudging Q4 first-time buyers into repeat customers and reactivating older segments—so every new customer acquired in 2026 becomes more valuable.

It is an unfortunate reality for many D2C brands: a significant portion of customers acquired last year made only a single purchase before fading away. If your strategy remains solely focused on acquisition, it is highly likely that this pattern will repeat.

As January arrives, the marketing landscape becomes saturated with "New Year, New You" campaigns centered on aggressive acquisition. While everyone else is focused on filling the top of the funnel, a critical cohort is often overlooked: the hundreds or thousands of customers currently in your database who bought from you once and never returned.

You’ve already invested a substantial budget to acquire these individuals. They didn't return the product, which shows a positive experience, yet they simply forgot your brand existed. 

Starting the new year by chasing strangers while ignoring hard-won customers is a costly mistake.

The good news is that January offers a fresh start for your customers, too. People who went dormant in 2025 are now psychologically more receptive to re-engagement. Furthermore, your first-time buyers from the Q4 holiday rush are currently in the critical window for their second purchase.

Instead of only burning cash on new customer acquisition, you can establish two simple marketing automations this month that will consistently drive repeat purchases throughout the year. Let’s look at what they are:

Why January Is the Perfect Time to Fix Retention

We often treat January as a month solely for capturing new demand, but seasoned lifecycle marketers view it as the ideal time to build a retention foundation. The timing works in your favor for several key reasons.

• The Fresh Start Effect: This is a documented psychological phenomenon where people are more open to new habits and re-engaging with brands that align with their goals for the year.
• Q4 Buyers Are Ready: Your holiday and Black Friday customers are hitting the sweet spot for a second purchase. If you do not engage them now, they are likely to churn permanently.
• Dormant Customers Are Recoverable: Reaching out to a customer who has not bought in six months can feel awkward in November, but the New Year gives you a natural and non-intrusive reason to reconnect.

If you fix your retention structure now, every single customer you acquire in 2026 becomes more valuable because you are building a compounding asset rather than just running a temporary campaign.

Campaign 1: The Second Purchase Nudge

The Goal: Convert One-Time Buyers Into Repeat Customers

The drop-off between the first and second purchases is often where D2C brands lose the most value. Many customers buy once and enjoy the product, but simply lack the trigger to return. Data consistently shows that customers who make a second purchase are up to five times more likely to become loyal advocates. The main challenge is not the third or fourth buy, but rather the second one.

Second purchase nudge works well in January because your November and December buyers are currently 10 to 45 days post-purchase. Satisfaction is still high, but the initial excitement is fading. This is the critical window to nudge them before they forget you exist.

The Workflow: A 4-Part Automation Sequence

This sequence is designed to trigger based on the customer's purchase date.

1. Day 10 (The Tease): Send a message with the subject "Your next fave is waiting." The goal here is to provide value without a hard sell. You can say that you have something perfect lined up based on their recent order to keep the momentum going.
2. Day 14 (The Sweetener): Follow up with a message titled "Hey [Name], back for more?" You can introduce a modest incentive such as 10% off to sweeten their second pick. It is important to note that you do not need a massive discount here as a small gesture feels like appreciation rather than desperation.
3. Day 18 (The Recommendation): Send a personalized email with the subject "Still thinking?" Use your data to suggest complementary products based on their first purchase rather than generic bestsellers.
4. Day 21 (The Final Nudge): Close the sequence with a message about a bonus expiring soon. Creating genuine urgency helps close the loop for those who have been hesitating.

This campaign works effectively because it respects the customer's timeline. It reaches them when satisfaction is high rather than waiting for them to churn. When you personalize the recommendations, you prove that you understand their needs and turn a transaction into a relationship.

Campaign 2: Win-Back Nudges

The Goal: Recover Your Dormant Customers

A customer who has not engaged for more than 90 days is often considered churned. Most brands leave these customers in their database, where they pay for email storage while generating zero revenue. However, your dormant customers are not necessarily gone forever, as they are often just distracted. The New Year provides the perfect psychological reset button to win them back.

You likely have a database full of people who have not bought a product since early 2025. They are waiting for a reason to come back, and you can frame this campaign as an exclusive comeback offer for the new year.

The Workflow: Reactivating the Dormant

Trigger this flow when a customer hits the "Churn Threshold," which is usually 90 days since their last activity.

1. Day 0 (Emotional Reconnection): Send an email with the subject "We miss you." The message should acknowledge the time apart and offer a substantive discount, such as 25% off, to help them restart their journey with you in 2026. This is the time for a strong offer because you are competing against apathy.
2. Day 3 (The Welcome Back): Follow up with a "Welcome Back" gift. Remind them of the quality they experienced the first time to reinforce the value of your brand.
3. Day 7 (The Rediscover Prompt): Use a subject line like "Your favorites are still here." Reference past positive experiences to trigger nostalgia and invite them to rediscover what they missed.
4. Day 14 (The Final Invitation): Send a final invitation stating that you would love to have them back. Frame it as an exclusive invitation that is expiring to create a fear of missing out.

Win-back campaigns often fail because they are dry and transactional. This framework works because it combines emotional appeal with substantive value. It acknowledges the time gap and bridges it with a compelling reason to return.

How These Two Campaigns Work Together

Implementing just one of these campaigns is helpful, but implementing both creates a retention safety net. You can think of your customer lifecycle as a bucket where the Second Purchase Nudge patches the holes near the top, while the Win-Back Campaign catches the ones who managed to slip through the cracks.

When you set these up in January, you capture two massive groups immediately. You catch your Q4 buyers who are hitting the second purchase window right now, and you re-engage your 2025 dormant users who are excited for a New Year message. Once these automations are live, they run in the background for the next 12 months. Every new customer acquired in March, July, or October will automatically enter this retention engine.

Setting This Up in January

You do not need months of planning to build this retention engine. You can execute this in two weeks.

Week 1: Build the Second Purchase Nudge

Start by defining your segment of first-time buyers who have not purchased again in the last 10 days. Build the four-touch sequence and activate it so it immediately starts picking up your late-December buyers.

Week 2: Build the Win-Back Campaign

Before you set up the automation, run a one-time manual campaign to your entire database of customers who haven't bought in four months. You can use a subject line like "New Year, new us" and invite them to see what has changed. Once the manual blast is done, set up the evergreen flow for anyone who hits the 90-day inactivity mark going forward.

Wrapping Up

Most brands start the new year chasing new customers, but smart brands start by turning existing customers into repeat buyers and bringing back the ones who drifted away. These two campaigns are the difference between a leaking bucket and a sustainable growth engine.

January is uniquely perfect for both strategies. Your Q4 buyers are in the second purchase window, and your dormant customers are psychologically open to fresh starts. If you set these up now, they will work for you automatically for the next 12 months.

2026 does not have to be another year of one-time buyers. You have the list and the data, so now you just need to send the nudge.

Are you ready to amp up your sales in the new year? Book a demo with ZEPIC!

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