Most Shopify stores I look at have one of two email problems: no automation at all, or forty flows nobody has touched since the agency that built them left. Neither one makes money reliably. This guide is for founders and ecommerce managers who want a short list of flows that earn their keep, a clear view of which tool to run them in, and the sender rules that now decide whether your messages arrive at all.
Key takeaways
- Build four flows first: welcome, abandoned cart/checkout, post-purchase, and winback. Klaviyo's own help center puts them in that priority order.
- Shopify Messaging (formerly Shopify Email) now covers email, SMS and automations from inside the admin. Klaviyo is still the deeper tool for segmentation and testing.
- Gmail and Yahoo require SPF, DKIM, DMARC, one-click unsubscribe and low spam rates for bulk senders. Gmail started stricter enforcement in November 2025.
- SMS consent is a legal question, not a design question. Know the TCPA basics, and have counsel review your opt-in language.
The four flows to build before anything else
Klaviyo's Getting started with flows article ranks its suggested flows in priority order: welcome series, abandoned cart, post-purchase, and winback. I agree with that order, and I'd add one rule: don't build flow number five until the first four are live, tested and reporting.
1. Welcome series
This fires when someone joins your list, usually from a signup form or popup. Its job is to turn a subscriber into a first-time buyer.
What I put in it:
- Message 1 (immediately): deliver whatever you promised at signup (a code, a guide, early access), plus one line on what makes the brand different.
- Message 2 (a day or more later): your best sellers or the category the person signed up from.
- Message 3: proof, such as reviews, how the product is made, or the guarantee and return policy.
- Message 4: a reminder that the incentive expires, if you used one.
Klaviyo recommends at least 24 hours between welcome emails, and separate email and SMS welcome flows, because subscribers often opt in to each channel at different times.
2. Abandoned cart and abandoned checkout
These are two different triggers. An abandoned checkout means the shopper entered checkout and left. Shopify can capture their email there. An abandoned cart means they added to cart without starting checkout, and you can only reach them if you already know who they are.
Keep the first message plain: what they left, a photo, a link back to their cart. Save discounts for the second or third message, and only for shoppers who aren't already customers. If every abandoned cart gets 15% off, regulars learn to abandon on purpose.
3. Post-purchase
This flow is part of the product experience. Confirm the order, set delivery expectations, explain how to use or care for the product, and only then ask for a review or suggest a related product. Shopify's order and shipping notifications already handle the transactional basics. The post-purchase flow covers what those notifications don't. I cover the retention side in more depth in the retention and LTV guide.
4. Winback
Winback goes to customers who haven't ordered in longer than your normal repurchase cycle. Don't guess that cycle. Look it up in Shopify's customer cohort report, then set the delay to match. A coffee brand's lapsed window is weeks, while a mattress brand's is years.
Worth adding later
- Browse abandonment: for identified visitors who viewed products but didn't add to cart.
- Back-in-stock: when demand outruns inventory.
- Sunset/list cleaning: suppresses people who haven't opened or clicked in months. This protects deliverability more than any subject line will.
Klaviyo vs Shopify Messaging: which one to run
Shopify renamed Shopify Email to Shopify Messaging. It now sends email, SMS and WhatsApp campaigns and runs automations for email and SMS from the admin. SMS marketing was added on December 10, 2025, with pay-per-message pricing and availability "in select regions." Order and shipping texts are configured separately from Messaging.
| Question | Shopify Messaging | Klaviyo |
|---|---|---|
| Setup effort | Low. Native data and templates in the admin | Moderate. Separate platform and integration |
| Pricing model | Per message sent (see Shopify's pricing pages) | Contact-based tiers (check Klaviyo's current pricing) |
| Segmentation depth | Shopify customer segments | Deeper: events, predictive fields, custom properties |
| Testing and reporting | Basic | A/B tests, flow-level reporting, attribution settings |
| Best fit | Newer or simpler stores, lean teams | Stores where email/SMS is a major revenue channel |
My rule of thumb: if you can't name someone who will own email every week, start with Shopify Messaging. You'll actually use it. Move to Klaviyo once you need the segmentation, testing and reporting it adds and someone has time to use them. Don't run both for marketing sends to the same list. Double-sending is the fastest way to raise spam complaints.
Watch out: Shopify's help page says Shopify Messaging requires Shopify Network Intelligence to be turned on in your privacy settings. Check that before you plan a migration.
Deliverability: the sender rules you can't skip
Since 2024, inbox providers have published specific requirements, and they enforce them.
Gmail. Google's sender guidelines say anyone sending more than 5,000 messages a day to Gmail accounts must:
- Set up SPF, DKIM and DMARC for the sending domain (a DMARC policy of
p=noneis acceptable). - Align the From: domain with the SPF or DKIM domain.
- Support one-click unsubscribe and show a visible unsubscribe link in the body.
- Keep the spam rate reported in Postmaster Tools below 0.30%, and ideally below 0.10%.
Google's sender guidelines FAQ says that "starting November 2025, Gmail is ramping up its enforcement on non-compliant traffic," including temporary and permanent rejections.
Yahoo. Yahoo's sender best practices cover the same ground. They require SPF, DKIM, a passing DMARC policy and a one-click List-Unsubscribe header, ask you to honor unsubscribes within 2 days, and set a spam rate threshold below 0.3%.
Deliverability checklist
- Send from your own domain, never a free mailbox address.
- Authenticate it. Klaviyo and Shopify both walk you through the DNS records.
- Publish a DMARC record, starting at
p=nonewith reporting turned on. - Register with Google Postmaster Tools and check it weekly.
- Use double opt-in or a confirmation step for popup signups if bots or fake addresses show up.
- Suppress unengaged contacts instead of mailing everyone you've ever collected.
- Never buy or import lists of people who didn't opt in to you.
Even if you're below 5,000 a day today, set this up now. BFCM volume can push you over the line in one week. If peak season is close, see the BFCM preparation checklist.
SMS compliance basics (not legal advice)
SMS has the highest legal risk of any channel you'll run. I'm not a lawyer, and this isn't legal advice. Have counsel review your consent language, flows and state exposure. Here is the landscape as I understand it:
- The TCPA governs marketing texts in the US. Marketing texts sent with an autodialer require prior express written consent, so your opt-in must be clear, specific and recorded.
- The FCC's "one-to-one consent" rule was vacated. The Eleventh Circuit struck it down on January 24, 2025, one business day before it took effect.
- Revocation rules partly apply now. Consumers can revoke consent by any reasonable means. The separate "revoke-all" provision, under which one opt-out could cut off all unrelated messages, has been delayed to January 31, 2027, and the FCC is reconsidering it. Needs Verification before you rely on that date.
- States have their own "mini-TCPA" laws. Florida's Telephone Solicitation Act is one example. It was amended in 2023, and its requirements differ from the federal rules.
In practice: use a dedicated SMS opt-in checkbox or keyword that isn't pre-checked, disclose message frequency and that rates may apply, honor STOP and other opt-out replies right away, respect quiet hours in the recipient's time zone, and keep consent records. Shopify says messages sent from Messaging include "built-in safeguards to meet regional compliance," but collecting consent properly is still your job.
FAQ
How many email flows does a Shopify store need?
Start with four: welcome, abandoned cart/checkout, post-purchase and winback. Add browse abandonment, back-in-stock and a sunset flow once those are performing. More flows mean more maintenance, not automatically more revenue.
Is Shopify Messaging good enough, or do I need Klaviyo?
For many newer or simpler stores, Shopify Messaging is enough and easier to keep running. Klaviyo earns its cost when you need deeper segmentation, testing and reporting, and someone on the team has time to use them.
Do the Gmail rules apply if I send fewer than 5,000 emails a day?
The strictest bulk-sender rules start at 5,000 messages a day to Gmail, but Google lists authentication and other basics for all senders. Set up SPF, DKIM and DMARC no matter your size.
Can I text customers who gave me their number at checkout?
Only if they gave explicit consent to marketing texts. A phone number collected for shipping updates is not marketing consent. Confirm your consent capture with counsel.
Should every abandoned cart email include a discount?
No. Lead with a reminder, and use incentives sparingly, mainly for first-time shoppers. Automatic discounts teach repeat customers to wait.
Next steps
Audit what's live today: which flows exist, when each was last edited, and what each earned over the last 90 days. Fix authentication and unsubscribe handling first, then rebuild the four core flows before adding anything new. If you'd like a second set of eyes on your setup, book a Shopify consultation.
Sources
- Klaviyo Help Center, "Getting started with flows": https://help.klaviyo.com/hc/en-us/articles/115002774932
- Shopify Help Center, "Shopify Messaging": https://help.shopify.com/en/manual/promoting-marketing/create-marketing/shopify-messaging
- Shopify Help Center, "SMS marketing": https://help.shopify.com/en/manual/promoting-marketing/create-marketing/shopify-messaging/sms
- Shopify Changelog, "Shopify Messaging now supports SMS marketing": https://changelog.shopify.com/posts/shopify-messaging-now-supports-sms-marketing
- Google Workspace Admin Help, "Email sender guidelines": https://support.google.com/a/answer/81126
- Google Workspace Admin Help, "Email sender guidelines FAQ": https://support.google.com/a/answer/14229414
- Yahoo Sender Hub, "Sender Best Practices": https://senders.yahooinc.com/best-practices/
- Kelley Drye, "Eleventh Circuit Vacates TCPA 1:1 Consent Rule": https://www.kelleydrye.com/viewpoints/blogs/ad-law-access/eleventh-circuit-vacates-tcpa-11-consent-rule
- Burr & Forman, "The FCC Delays Effective Date of TCPA Revoke-All Rule Until January 31, 2027": https://www.burr.com/telephone-consumer-protection-act/the-fcc-delays-effective-date-of-tcpa-revoke-all-rule-until-january-31-2027
- McGuireWoods, "Pro-Business Amendments to Florida's 'Mini-TCPA' Now in Effect": https://www.mcguirewoods.com/client-resources/alerts/2023/5/pro-business-amendments-to-floridas-mini-tcpa-now-in-effect