Identification & Customer
Movement Playbook
Shopping Signals to Engage Customers Throughout the Lifecycle
Most retailers know the modern customer journey is no longer linear — but they still approach communications that way.
While shoppers bounce between devices, channels, and moments of engagement, brands continue to rely on rigid, one-size-fits-all communication strategies. This approach overshadows valuable opportunities to connect and engage.
How can you meet shoppers where they’re at?
Pay attention to the signals they’re sending. Simply put, every shopping action — from visiting your website and clicking on an email to browsing products and abandoning carts — can be used to create highly relevant 1:1 campaigns. But the average retailer misses 80-90% of shopping signals, leaving them with a short supply of marketing options.
To unlock the next phase of growth, you need shopper identification. By capturing and responding to shopping signals, you can transform unknown visitors into known shoppers and shift the marketing focus from channels to customer-first experiences. You can gather the knowledge required to anticipate needs and influence actions.
That’s where the Bluecore Globe comes in.
The Bluecore Globe is a strategic tool retailers can use to influence customer movement and impact customer metrics, such as identification rate or purchase frequency. Based on your priorities, the Globe helps you identify which tactics and campaigns to turn on in order to improve those metrics by tapping into all the signals shoppers and customers send. The result is a more active, profitable customer base.
We call it the “Globe” because it’s a visual representation of the universe of shopping signals you can react to. These signals may look the same but mean something different based on customer preferences and where they are in the lifecycle. You wouldn’t send the same product recommendations to a frequent buyer who purchases mostly basics as you would to a frequent buyer who stays on-trend.
The Globe is designed to help you map out key opportunities to engage shoppers, taking into account even the most paradoxical buying patterns. In other words, buyers’ conflicting wants, needs, and expectations.
Engagement axis
To better understand how to tailor your messaging, it’s important to recognize that customers move fluidly between purchase stages, as shown on the globe’s axis:
- In-market: During this stage, shoppers visit your website, interact with an email, or click a social ad. They signal their interest and willingness to purchase. The faster you deliver the right message to an in-market shopper, the higher the probability they will convert.
- Purchased: This stage comes after a customer has made a purchase. To maintain momentum, they need to be retained with relevant messaging. Here, real-time triggers combined with personalized product recommendations can be used to great effect.
Signal types
Match your messaging with the different categories of shopping signals. The Bluecore Globe contains five of them:
- Identification Signals: To capture customer information, such as email addresses or social media profiles, you use identification signals. Identification signals are crucial for turning anonymous visitors into known shoppers, enabling more targeted and relevant communications.
- Behavioral Signals: Shopping actions, such as browsing products, clicking links, or abandoning carts, are behavioral signals. These help you understand what shoppers are interested in, how to engage them effectively, and which channels they prefer to be engaged on.
- Product Signals: Signals related to specific products, such as changes in price, stock levels, or new arrivals, help you tailor messaging around product availability and promotions. They even go down to SKU-variant level, including color, size, and category.
- Lifecycle Signals: Depending on where the shopper is in the purchase process — a new visitor, long-time loyal customer, or a lapsed buyer who needs to be re-engaged — you can use lifecycle signals to inform your messaging and match the shopper’s current stage.
- Transactional Signals: When customers make a purchase and interact with order confirmations and shipping updates, transactional signals are generated. These signals help you maintain engagement post-purchase and encourage future transactions.
Lifecycle stages
Along with the engagement axis and types of shopping signals, it’s important to recognize the four stages of the lifecycle:
- Acquisition: The first stage is when an unidentified shopper visits your site. The goal is to capture essential information and turn them into a known shopper. Identification signals, such as email capture or social media interactions, trigger this phase.
- Conversion: Once you’ve identified a shopper, you can guide them toward their first purchase. Your goal is to move them beyond browsing — from a non-buyer to a new buyer or customer. Timely, personalized messaging can unlock action and pull them into your brand ecosystem.
- Retention: After a shopper becomes a customer, you must take steps to keep them active. The focus shifts to driving repeat purchases and building frequency with messaging around product recommendations, loyalty programs, or post-purchase care.
- Reactivation: The last, sometimes recurring, stage is when you target lapsed buyers who have not engaged with your brand for at least a year. Reactivation tactics, such as winback emails or new product announcements, offer the opportunity to reignite interest and bring customers back into the buying cycle.

Every unknown visitor could be a potential customer. This is why it’s important to start building a customer profile as soon as possible. Turn curiosity into connection by capturing key information and starting a relationship that nurtures them from anonymous browsers to identified shoppers.
Boost acquisition with value-driven messaging
To turn first-time visitors into known shoppers, try offering something valuable in exchange for their information. Start with a compelling welcome offer, such as free shipping or a discount on their first purchase, in exchange for identification details. Along with the perk, highlight the benefits of staying connected, like exclusive offers and brand updates.
Also, tailor your personalized messaging based on the shopper’s actions, such as items they’ve browsed or categories they’ve shown interest in. For example, if someone visits multiple product pages without making a purchase, show them new arrivals in the specific categories they browsed.
Lastly, be mindful of frequency — send messages that feel timely and relevant without flooding their inbox. This measured approach builds trust while keeping your brand top of mind for future purchases.
Essential tactics based on shopping signals
- Entry and Exit Capture: Use site capture tactics such as email capture or SMS capture to gather information when visitors enter or exit your site. This helps you grow your customer base without relying on paid media.
- Site Browse Abandon: When a shopper views a product but doesn’t take further action, use a personalized pop-up or exit intent capture form to gather their email or contact information. This lets you follow up with relevant product suggestions or reminders, keeping the shopper engaged.
- Cart Abandon: If a customer adds items to their cart but leaves without purchasing, prompt them with an exit intent offer to provide an email address or phone number. This allows you to send personalized reminders or exclusive offers, encouraging them to return and complete their purchase.
- Notify Me Back in Stock: Notify customers when an item they showed interest in is back in stock. This captures their intent at a key moment and has a 3.5x higher email capture rate compared to other methods.
- Network Match: Boost identification rates by using an identification network that tracks shoppers across multiple related websites and platforms. This approach helps re-identify customers across devices, even if cookies have been cleared, ensuring consistent communication.
Capturing shopper information at key moments allows you to grow your database and deploy campaigns at the right moment of intent. Implement these acquisition tactics to build a robust foundation for long-term customer relationships.
When a shopper is ready to buy, timing is everything. Direct shoppers toward checkout with personalized offers, product recommendations, and seamless experiences that turn interest into action. With AI features, you can determine optimal messaging cadences to avoid spamming them.
Convert with magnetic messaging
To convert shoppers who may not be familiar with your brand, start with education. Explain why they should choose you. Focus on your brand’s unique values, such as sustainability practices, ethical sourcing, or exclusive design collaborations.
Product specifications are another key piece of conversion messaging. Provide detailed information about product pricing, size, stock status and other SKU variants to help customers make informed decisions. The more relevant and specific this information, the more likely they are to purchase.
Emphasize the different ways customers can buy from you. Offer flexible options like Afterpay, BOPIS (Buy Online, Pick Up In-Store), or curbside pickup to make the purchase process more convenient and appealing. And make sure your purchase details — including shipping policies, store locations, and return options — are easily available. Clear communication about how shoppers can receive their purchase or return items reduces hesitation.
Essential tactics based on shopping signals
- Subscribed – Non-Buyer: For shoppers who subscribe to emails but haven’t purchased, send a welcome series introducing your brand’s values and unique offers. Use product badging — like “best sellers” to instill confidence and provide social proof — and loyalty incentives to entice them to make their first purchase.
- Added to Cart: When a shopper adds items to their cart but doesn’t purchase, send abandoned cart emails with reminders and personalized product recommendations. Highlight complementary items or other items within the same category. You can also offer limited-time discounts to create urgency and encourage them to complete the purchase.
- Viewed Product: If a shopper views a product but doesn’t buy, re-engage them with messages featuring best sellers, trending items, or personalized recommendations based on their browsing. This keeps your products top of mind.
- Search: When a shopper searches for a category or term, but doesn’t view a product or add to cart, they still signal interest. Send an abandoned search message tailored to their browsing patterns, offering related categories or featured products.
- Price Drop: If a product a shopper viewed drops in price, send a timely alert to create urgency. Highlight the price reduction and stock status to motivate them to return and take advantage of the discount.
- Low Inventory: When a product is running low in stock, notify interested shoppers. Let them know it may sell out soon and encourage them to complete the purchase before it’s too late.
Conversion tactics keep your brand top of mind, enhance the shopping experience, and move customers smoothly from consideration to purchase. Target customers with tailored messaging based on their browsing and shopping behavior to significantly boost conversion rates.
Repeat purchases are the lifeblood of retail, which makes retention the most important stage of the lifecycle. Keep customers coming back by offering tailored experiences, helpful product suggestions, and loyalty rewards that make them feel valued every time they engage with your brand.
Retain with highly curated messaging
To retain customers and encourage repeat purchases, focus on upselling and cross-selling products based on previous purchases. Now that you have an array of signals to work with, put together highly curated lists. Offer your customers complementary items, cross-category suggestions, or highlight the “Next Best” product for them.
Loyalty programs also play a key role in retention. Highlight your customer’s current loyalty status and spotlight additional ways to unlock exclusive benefits. By reinforcing the value of your loyalty program, you build long-term relationships with customers.
Offering personalized care tips, styling advice, or suggestions on how to use products can enhance the customer experience and strengthen their connection with your brand. Lastly, you can incorporate social proof by sharing reviews, customer testimonials, and user-generated content. Highlight community stories showing how buyers benefited from your products and tie these success stories to the needs of your customers.
Essential tactics based on shopping signals
- Purchased – Post Purchase: After a purchase, send a “thank you” message along with order and shipping updates. Include information on what customers can expect next, such as upcoming products or exclusive offers, to keep them engaged after the transaction.
- Replenishment: Send replenishment alerts to customers who have purchased consumables, such as beauty or cleaning supplies. This is an effective repeat purchase driver that’s typically based on the average lifespan of a product, though Bluecore times these reminders around an individual customer’s typical usage.
- Mid Predicted Customer Lifetime Value (PCLV): Mid PCLV, or the “movable middle,” represents a tremendous opportunity. Focus on increasing messaging for this group to nudge them toward loyal customer status through personalized content and tailored offers.
- Co-View/Co-Purchase: Co-View and Co-Purchase signals use behavioral and product signals together to recommend products that tend to be viewed and/or purchased during the same shopping session. The Co-View approach is effective because it can recommend a variety of products that are still relevant to the shopper. Similarly, Co-Purchase signals suggest items commonly bought with the input products. These are usually used post-purchase emails.

- At-Risk One-Time Buyer: For customers who have made a single purchase, but haven’t returned within a specific timeframe, offer new arrivals based on their category affinity to bring them back for additional purchases.
- At-Risk Repeat Buyer: Customers who deviate from their typical buying cycle are at risk of disengaging — this is more impactful to your bottom line if they are repeat buyers. Identify customers based on their unique buying cycles, and offer tailored discounts to re-engage them. This keeps repeat buyers from going inactive, while also protecting your profit margins.
Consistent, personalized engagement keeps customers coming back month after month, year after year. Boost repeat purchases and build lasting loyalty with well-timed retention tactics.
Lapsed buyers aren’t lost buyers. Even your most loyal shoppers might need reactivation at times. Win them back by nurturing their interests and letting them know what’s new, what’s on sale, what’s available, and more.
Reactivate with irresistible messaging
Not all lapsed buyers are the same. Before you begin reactivation efforts, make sure you know which category your buyers fall into.
To reactivate lapsed customers, start by sharing updates on your brand or product lines since their last purchase. Highlight any improvements, new features, or changes that may pique their interest. Remind them why they enjoyed shopping with you in the first place.
For high-value customers, consider offering exclusive winback promotions tailored to their shopping history. Special discounts or incentives show appreciation for their past business and give them a reason to return.
Next, introduce new arrivals to re-engage customers. Showcase fresh products that align with a customer’s previous interests, encouraging them to explore what’s new and make another purchase. If your brand has expanded into new categories, this can be an appealing way to attract lapsed customers. Offer products that weren’t available before top provide an opportunity for inactive customers to rediscover your brand and its new offerings.
Lastly, if you know a customer is price-sensitive, send tiered offers based on LTV or loyalty status to draw them back. Provide a special promotion that aligns with their preferences to spark renewed interest and encourage them to make a purchase.
Essential tactics based on shopping signals
- Seasonal Winback: Seasonal events offer a great opportunity to re-engage customers who only shop during specific times, like Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Launch campaigns that remind customers why they loved shopping with you, highlighting your brand’s values.
- Loyalty: Leverage loyalty signals to engage highly committed customers. Promote exclusive events or offers based on their loyalty status, and include their points or rewards balance in email headers to encourage further shopping.
- High PCLV Winback: High PCLV customers sit within the top 33% of predicted spenders over the next two years. Don’t miss out on their business. Use Bluecore’s Smart Campaigns™ — autonomously recurring campaigns with dynamic content catered to your customers — featuring next-best purchases, co-recommendations, or new arrivals. A targeted winback offer can effectively bring high-value customers back into the fold.
- High PCLV Nurture: You can also nurture high PCLV customers. Create targeted campaigns offering early access to sales and benefits like free shipping or samples to attract them back in.
- Discount Affinity: Customers with a strong preference for discounts respond best to special incentives. Offer tailored promotions or discounts to draw them back for another purchase (and keep your full-price buyers buying at full price).

- Category Affinity: Use category affinity signals to cross-sell or upsell. Suggest “complete the look” ideas or new product recommendations based on their previous interactions, providing a personalized shopping experience.
Win back lapsed customers with timely offers and personalized incentives. Once back, the average reactivated customer will spend 12.7% more than new ones.
Capitalize on shopping signals to create a
more active, profitable customer base.
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