Build a Shopify Welcome Email Flow

A first order is the start of a relationship, not the end of a sale. A Shopify welcome flow greets brand-new customers, tells them what makes you different, and points them toward their second purchase while your brand is still fresh in their mind.

Here's how to build one in Audienceful.

What you'll need

A Shopify integration connected to your workspace.
Two short emails.

How the welcome flow works

When Shopify creates a new customer, they enter your automation:

A warm welcome and quick brand intro, sent right away.
A short wait.
A follow-up highlighting your best-loved products, with a small first-timer incentive.

The template ships with a conversion goal ("placed first order" within 30 days) so you can measure how many new customers this flow turns into repeat buyers.

Step 1: Connect Shopify

Connect your store from the Integrations tab. The New customer created trigger then appears in the automation builder.

Step 2: Write your two emails

Email 1: welcome + brand intro. Thank them for their first order, share what makes you different, and point to your bestsellers. Example subject: "Welcome to [Brand] 🛍️"
Email 2: bestsellers + incentive. Recommend your most-loved products and include a small discount for their next order. Example subject: "Our most-loved products, just for you"

Use the {{first_name}} merge tag to personalize.

Step 3: Build the automation

In the Automations tab, click New Automation:

Trigger: Shopify event → New customer created.
Send Email 1 immediately.
Wait 3 days.
Send Email 2 with your bestsellers and incentive.
Optionally add a tag like shopify-customer.

Pick your theme and click Run.

Best practices

Set expectations. Tell new customers what to expect from you going forward. It lowers unsubscribes and spam complaints later.
Sell the second purchase, not just the brand. Your bestsellers are the easiest next buy; feature them.
Keep the incentive modest. A small "welcome" discount is enough to prompt the next order without eroding margin.

Start from a template

→ Pick the New Shopify customer welcome template when you create a new automation in Audienceful.

Browse the full automation template gallery for more ecommerce flows.

Frequently asked questions

Does this fire for every order or just new customers? It triggers when Shopify creates a new customer, so it welcomes first-time buyers. For follow-ups after every purchase, use the post-purchase flow instead.

Can I welcome newsletter signups too? Yes. That's a separate welcome email sequence triggered when someone subscribes via a form, rather than when they buy.