Modsy Customer Email Series Redesign
UX Research // UX Design
In this project, I helped to lead the development of an email series aimed at increasing customer engagement and driving revenue during the critical three-week window after customers received their designs. Working closely with the lead copywriter, we audited all existing communications and used customer behavior data and email performance metrics to identify key pain points and opportunities.
The resulting series achieved an average 63% open rate, a 5.6% click-through rate, and exceeded its revenue goals by 300%.
Audit of the Experience
The first step in the process was conducting a comprehensive audit of all emails being sent to customers at the time. These included a mix of marketing emails, triggered messages, and designer communications—each coming from different teams and sent at various points in the customer journey. By mapping out every touchpoint, we were able to identify which emails were performing well and where the greatest opportunities for improvement existed.
Key Insights & Solutions
Through our audit and customer behavior analysis, we uncovered several critical insights that guided the redesign of Modsy’s email strategy:
40% of customers who made a purchase did so within the first 3 weeks after receiving their initial design.
Customers who engaged in the revision process were significantly more likely to convert.
Time-sensitive promotions were strong motivators, particularly when aligned with the customer’s individual shopping window.
Customers who rated their designs highly were more likely to purchase.
Many customers avoided requesting revisions, citing that they “felt bad” about asking their designer for changes—leading to post-design dropoff.
Simple, text-only emails outperformed traditional marketing emails, generating 10x higher open and click-through rates thanks to their personalized tone.
Based on these findings, we implemented several targeted solutions:
Personalized, time-based promotions:
While Modsy offered sales during peak retail periods (e.g., Black Friday), these didn’t always align with when individual customers were ready to shop. We introduced a tiered discount offer triggered two days after design delivery, valid for 19 days—the window when customers were most likely to convert.Revision encouragement and education:
We created content that normalized and encouraged revisions, framing them as an expected and valuable part of the design journey. This helped remove the psychological barrier that caused some customers to disengage.Clear brand-designer communication boundaries:
Since customers were communicating directly with their designers via in-app chat, we kept brand messaging separate to preserve the personal nature of that relationship. However, brand emails reinforced revision-friendly messaging, supporting the designer without interfering.Channel-specific messaging strategies:
We used text-only emails for highly personalized communication and traditional designed emails for educational content—tailoring format to function for maximum engagement.
