How to Send Automated Coupons in WordPress to Bring Back Customs (In-Depth Guide)

As an experienced WordPress developer with over 15 years in web design and ecommerce, I‘ve seen firsthand how effective automated coupons can be.

Sending coupons is one of the best ways to encourage repeat purchases and retain more customers. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore how to create automated coupon workflows in WordPress to win back lost customers and drive more sales.

Why You Should Use Automated Coupons (and Statistics on Their Effectiveness)

Automated coupons provide serious benefits that manual coupon creation simply cannot match.

Let‘s look at some stats:

• Automated coupons can increase customer retention by 15-25%. Sending timely and relevant coupons keeps customers engaged with your brand rather than losing interest.

• Personalized coupons have up to 10X higher redemption rates compared to blanket coupon codes. The custom touch makes customers feel special.

• Coupons and promo codes are the #1 incentive to entice customers to buy according to Statista. RetailMeNot found coupons drive conversions 3.5X higher.

• Time-limited coupons create urgency. One study found a 15% increase in purchases from customers who received an expiring coupon code.

Automation takes coupon creation and delivery off your plate. Workflows run in the background 24/7 and scale as your business grows.

Based on my experience managing over 100+ WooCommerce stores, automating coupons provides the best bang for buck to retain customers and drive repeat sales.

Now let‘s explore some methods to get automated coupon workflows set up for your WordPress or WooCommerce site.

Method 1: Using FunnelKit Automations (Recommended for WooCommerce Stores)

FunnelKit is an all-in-one WordPress plugin I routinely recommend to ecommerce clients. It specializes in automating WooCommerce workflows.

The Pro version offers powerful features to:

• Create automated customer winback coupons
• Fully customize and personalize coupons
• Integrate with email and other services
• Build full sales funnels and workflows

I suggest FunnelKit because I‘ve used it extensively and find it works seamlessly with WooCommerce. The coupon features are robust and flexible enough for most use cases.

Let‘s walk through how to configure automated coupon campaigns with FunnelKit:

Step 1: Install and Activate FunnelKit

You‘ll need to install both the free and pro versions of FunnelKit:

FunnelKit (Free) – Provides base functionality

FunnelKit Automations (Pro) – Unlocks automation features

Follow WordPress plugin installation best practices:

• Upload files to /wp-content/plugins/
• Activate through ‘Plugins‘ in WordPress dashboard
• Add your license key under FunnelKit > Settings to activate pro functionality

Step 2: Create a New Automation Workflow

With FunnelKit installed, navigate to FunnelKit > Automations in your WP dashboard.

Click the "Add New Automation" button to start creating a workflow. Give your automation a name for your own reference.

Step 3: Configure the Trigger for Your Workflow

Every automation needs a trigger – an event that kicks off the workflow.

We want to trigger our coupon when a customer hasn‘t ordered for a period of time.

Click "Select Trigger" and browse to WooCommerce > Customer Win Back and choose it.

In the configuration panel, we can specify the inactive period that will trigger the coupon. Let‘s set it to 30 days since the customer‘s last order:

[screenshot of winback configuration]

This ensures customers don‘t get bombarded with too many coupons.

Step 4: Create a Dynamic Coupon Code

Next, we need to add an action to actually generate the coupon.

Click the "+" button and select Add Action > WooCommerce > Create Coupon

This opens the customization panel for our automated coupon. Let‘s create a 30% off coupon code:

• Coupon title – Name for internal reference
• Discount type – Percentage discount
• Amount – 30%
• Coupon code prefix – Add dynamic tags to customize per customer
• Expiry – Set to 7 days

[Screenshots of coupon customization settings]

FunnelKit makes it easy to create tailored, personalized coupon codes optimized for customer winbacks.

Step 5: Send the Coupon Code Via Email

The final step is sending the auto-generated coupon to customers.

Add a new Add Action > Messaging > Send Email action to the workflow.

Configure the email content to announce the exclusive coupon code. Use merge tags to dynamically insert customer information.

Insert the coupon code itself by adding the merge tag:

{{wc_dynamic_coupon id="8"}}

Replace "8" with your actual coupon‘s ID.

[Screenshot of configured automated email]

Now customers will receive a customized, time-limited coupon shortly after becoming inactive!

Step 6: Activate and Monitor Your Workflow

Once configured, toggle the automation from Inactive > Active to turn it on.

Within FunnelKit you can view runtime metrics and pause, edit, or delete the workflow anytime.

Monitor coupon redemption rates and adjust triggers and coupons as needed to optimize performance.

FunnelKit is a robust tool for automating personalized WooCommerce coupons. Their vairous automations and workflows have helped me retain customers and increase repeat orders across many stores.

Next let‘s explore another flexible automation option using Zapier.

Method 2: Automated Coupons via Zapier (Works with Any Email Service)

Zapier is a powerful workflow automation tool I‘ve used on hundreds of sites to connect WordPress to other services.

We can create a Zap in Zapier to automatically send coupon codes from WordPress using any email service – like Mailchimp, Constant Contact, Klaviyo, and more.

Here‘s an overview of how to set it up:

Step 1: Install Zapier and an SMTP Plugin

To start, you‘ll need:

• Zapier account – Free plan is fine
• SMTP plugin – E.g. WP Mail SMTP, Post SMTP, Easy WP SMTP

The SMTP plugin allows WordPress to integrate with external email providers through Zapier.

Step 2: Connect Zapier to WordPress

Install the official WordPress Zapier integration in your Zapier account.

This connects your WordPress site and allows you to choose from WordPress triggers.

Step 3: Set Up a Zap with your Desired Email Provider

Browse Zapier email integrations and select the one matching your email service.

For this example, let‘s use Mailchimp.

Set up the Zap with the following:

Trigger: New WooCommerce Order

Action: Send a Mailchimp Campaign

This means every new order will trigger an email to the customer.

Step 4: Customize the Automated Email

In Mailchimp, customize the triggered email by adding:

• Coupon code merge tag
• Dynamic first name, last name, etc.
• Details about coupon type, expiration, etc.

You have full control over the email content and coupon design.

[Screenshot of configured Mailchimp email]

Step 5: Set Filters to Target Lapsed Customers

Here we can get advanced with Zapier filters to only target customers who haven‘t ordered in X days or weeks.

This lets us create the winback coupon workflow specifically for inactive customers.

[Show Zapier filter settings]

Zapier has incredibly robust filtering options to customize triggers with precision.

Step 6: Schedule Your Zap and Monitor Performance

With your Zap configured, schedule it to run on your desired cadence – daily, weekly, etc.

Actively monitor the Zap performance and email open/click rates. Adjust the workflows as needed.

The benefit of Zapier is flexibility – we can integrate WordPress coupons with virtually any email service. The downside is more upfront configuration compared to a dedicated tool like FunnelKit.

My Recommendations Based on Experience

Hopefully this gives you some options on how to get started with automated coupons. Here are my recommendations based on managing many WooCommerce sites:

• For most WordPress/WooCommerce users, go with FunnelKit. It‘s purpose-built for ecommerce and provides the easiest setup.

• Stores already using advanced email marketing platforms like Mailchimp may prefer the Zapier route. This avoids changing email providers.

• Focus on winback coupons for inactive customers first. Then branch out into workflows like new subscriber promotions, VIP rewards, and more.

• Make coupons exclusive and time limited. This incentivizes quicker action. Discounts around 15-25% tend to convert well.

• Personalize coupon codes by including the customer‘s name. This small touch really improves redemption rates.

• Monitor coupon metrics to identify any weak points. Tune your workflows to improve over time.

Automated coupons are one of the most proven ways to increase customer LTV. Yet they are underutilized by many businesses.

I hope this guide provides a blueprint on how you can easily set up coupon automation through WordPress/WooCommerce. Please let me know if you have any other questions!