Klaviyo Flows Every Ecommerce Store Should Have

Getting people onto your ecommerce store is one thing. Getting them to come back, complete their purchase and buy again is another.

That is where Klaviyo flows can make a real difference. According to Klaviyo's 2026 email marketing benchmarks, automated email flows account for just 5.3% of email sends but generate nearly 41% of total email revenue.

Klaviyo flows are automated email and SMS sequences triggered by customer behaviour. They give ecommerce brands a way to follow up when someone joins a mailing list, browses a product, adds something to their basket, leaves checkout or stops buying.

The important part is choosing the right automation. You do not need dozens of flows running at once. A smaller set of well-planned Klaviyo flows can cover the main stages of the customer journey and make sure customers receive messages that match what they are doing.

In this guide, we’ll look at six Klaviyo flows every ecommerce store should consider, from welcoming new subscribers to bringing previous customers back.

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What Are Klaviyo Flows?

Klaviyo flows are automated sequences triggered when someone takes a particular action or meets certain conditions.

A new subscriber might trigger a welcome flow. Someone viewing a product could trigger browse abandonment. A previous customer who has not ordered for several months could trigger a winback flow.

Once the trigger happens, Klaviyo can automatically send the relevant email or SMS based on the rules you have set.

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How Klaviyo Flows Work

Every flow starts with a trigger. From there, you can use time delays, filters and conditional splits to control what happens next.

For example, a customer could add an item to their basket and receive an email a few hours later. If they purchase before that email is due to send, a filter can remove them from the flow.

This is one of the biggest benefits of ecommerce email automation. Messages can respond to what customers are actually doing rather than treating everyone on your mailing list in the same way.

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Klaviyo Flows vs Email Campaigns

A Klaviyo campaign is normally a one-off message sent to a chosen audience at a set time. Think new product announcements, sales, seasonal promotions and newsletters.

Klaviyo flows work differently because they run automatically.

You build the automation once, then customers move through it when they meet the relevant conditions.

A good email marketing strategy will usually use both. Campaigns handle planned communications, while flows respond to individual customer behaviour.

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1. Welcome Flow

The welcome flow is one of the first Klaviyo flows we would set up for an ecommerce store.

Someone joining your mailing list has actively chosen to hear from you. They might not be ready to buy immediately, but you have an opportunity to introduce the brand and give them reasons to come back.

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What Should a Welcome Flow Include?

Your first email should usually arrive shortly after signup. Welcome the subscriber, briefly introduce the brand and deliver any offer promised when they joined.

From there, use the rest of the sequence to answer the questions a new customer is likely to have.

What do you sell? Why should they choose your products? Which products are most popular? What do existing customers think?

A later email could introduce bestsellers and customer reviews, while another could answer common questions about delivery, returns, sizing or how the product works.

If your signup offer has an expiry date, you can finish the sequence with a reminder.

The aim is not to cram everything into the first email. Spread the information across the flow and give people a reason to keep reading.

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How to Personalise a Welcome Flow

Not every subscriber needs to follow exactly the same route.

If someone joined through a signup form on a particular product category, your emails could feature products from that category. Quiz answers, stated preferences and browsing behaviour can also help shape the content they receive.

Most importantly, customers who make a purchase should stop receiving emails trying to convince them to place their first order.

That is when your thank you flow takes over.

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2. Thank You Flow

Your customer has placed an order. Great. Now is not the time for your email marketing to disappear.

A thank you flow, sometimes called a post-purchase flow, starts building the relationship after someone buys.

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Why the Post-Purchase Period Matters

Before purchasing, someone is deciding whether they trust you enough to spend money. After purchasing, they want reassurance that they made the right choice.

A useful thank you flow can give them that reassurance.

Start by thanking them for the purchase. Then think about what information will help while they wait for their order and after it arrives.

Depending on the product, this might include advice on using it, care instructions, FAQs or tips that help customers get more from what they bought.

Later, once they have had enough time to use the product, you can ask for a review or feedback.

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How to Encourage a Second Purchase

A thank you flow can also start the journey towards order number two.

The mistake is trying to force another sale immediately.

Give customers time to receive and enjoy their first purchase before recommending something else. When you do introduce another product, make sure there is a clear connection.

If somebody buys a particular item, what are they most likely to need next?

Using purchase data to answer that question makes your email feel more helpful and less like another sales message.

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3. Cart Abandonment Flow

A customer adds a product to their basket but leaves before starting checkout.

That is where a cart abandonment flow comes in.

They have shown more interest than someone who simply viewed the product, but they have not yet reached the final stages of purchasing.

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Cart Abandonment vs Abandoned Checkout

It is worth separating these two Klaviyo flows.

Cart abandonment happens when someone adds a product to their basket but does not begin checkout.

Abandoned checkout happens later. The customer has started the checkout process but left before completing their order.

The difference might sound small, but it tells you something about buying intent.

Someone who reaches checkout is generally further towards making a decision, so the messages they receive should reflect that.

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What Should a Cart Abandonment Flow Include?

Start with a simple reminder of what the shopper left in their basket.

You can then use another email to give them reasons to reconsider the product. Customer reviews, product benefits or answers to common questions can work well here.

Avoid jumping straight to a discount. The shopper may simply have become distracted or wanted more time to think.

If every abandoned basket leads to a discount code, regular customers may start to notice the pattern.

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4. Abandoned Checkout Flow

An abandoned checkout flow targets shoppers who moved beyond their basket and started checking out without finishing their order.

These customers have shown strong buying intent, which makes this a valuable Klaviyo automation for ecommerce stores.

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What Should an Abandoned Checkout Flow Include?

Your first email can be straightforward.

Remind the shopper that their checkout was not completed and give them an easy route back.

The next message can focus on possible reasons they stopped. Delivery costs, returns, payment options, product quality and trust can all affect the final buying decision.

This is where reviews, delivery information and clear answers to common concerns can help.

A later message can add urgency where it is genuine. If you decide to use an incentive, this is also where it may make more sense.

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When Should You Offer a Discount?

A discount should not automatically be the first response to an abandoned checkout.

Try the reminder and reassurance first.

If the customer still does not purchase, you can test an offer later in the flow and compare the extra orders against the margin you are giving away.

Remember that recovering a sale at any cost is not necessarily good marketing. The order still needs to make commercial sense.

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5. Browse Abandonment Flow

Not every interested shopper adds something to their basket.

Some will look at a product, read the details and leave.

Browse abandonment flows give you a way to follow up with these visitors when Klaviyo can identify them.

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Browse Abandonment vs Cart Abandonment

Browse abandonment represents an earlier stage of the buying journey.

Someone viewing a product has shown interest, but that does not mean they were ready to buy. Your email should match that lower level of intent.

Instead of telling them they have forgotten something, remind them of what they viewed and give them useful reasons to take another look.

You might include customer reviews, more product information or related products.

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How to Avoid Sending Too Many Browse Emails

Browse abandonment can quickly become annoying if the rules are too loose.

Someone who regularly visits your website should not receive an email every time they look at a product.

Use Klaviyo filters to control frequency and remove people who have moved further down the buying journey. If someone has added the product to their basket, started checkout or purchased, your browse automation should no longer be the priority.

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6. Winback Flow

Customers do not stay active forever.

Some buy regularly, some purchase occasionally and others disappear after their first order.

A winback flow is designed to bring previous customers back after they have stopped purchasing.

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When Should a Customer Enter a Winback Flow?

This should be based on your normal repurchase cycle rather than choosing an arbitrary number of days.

If customers normally reorder after 30 days, waiting six months to contact them is probably too late.

On the other hand, if your products naturally have a much longer buying cycle, contacting someone after 30 days may make little sense.

Look at your own customer data and work out when repeat customers normally place their next order.

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What Should a Winback Flow Include?

Start by giving customers a reason to come back without immediately offering money off.

Show them new products, remind them what they liked previously or recommend something based on their purchase history.

If they still do not return, you can test a stronger reason to purchase, which may include a discount.

The important part is recognising when to stop. Repeatedly emailing people who show no interest can hurt engagement and make your marketing feel intrusive.

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How These Klaviyo Flows Work Together

The six flows should not be treated as separate pieces of email automation. They should follow the same customer journey.

A new subscriber starts with your welcome flow. If they look at products, browse abandonment can bring them back. Adding something to their basket moves them into cart abandonment. Starting checkout moves them into your abandoned checkout sequence.

Once they purchase, those sales-focused messages should stop and the thank you flow begins.

Later, if that customer stops purchasing beyond their usual buying cycle, the winback flow gives you another opportunity to bring them back.

Thinking about Klaviyo flows this way makes it much easier to decide which message should take priority.

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How to Improve Your Klaviyo Flows

Do not build your flows and forget about them.

Check individual emails to see what people click, where they purchase and where engagement drops. Revenue per recipient, conversion rate, click rate and unsubscribe rate can all help you understand what is working.

Timing is worth testing too. The right delay for an abandoned checkout email will be very different from a winback email.

You should also check your filters regularly. As you add more Klaviyo flows, there is a greater chance that customers qualify for several automations at once.

The aim is not to send as many automated emails as possible. It is to send the message that makes the most sense for what that customer has just done.

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Common Klaviyo Flow Mistakes

One of the most common mistakes is relying too heavily on discounts. If every welcome, cart and checkout sequence ends with money off, customers can learn that waiting gets them a better price.

Another is allowing flows to overlap. A customer should not receive a browse abandonment email after they have already started checkout.

Personalisation matters too. The more you know about what somebody viewed or purchased, the easier it becomes to make the content relevant.

Finally, review the actual content. Products change, delivery information changes and branding changes. An email automation that looked good 18 months ago may now contain outdated information.

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Make Your Klaviyo Flows Work Together

You do not need dozens of Klaviyo flows to build a good ecommerce email strategy.

Start with the moments that matter most.

Welcome new subscribers properly. Follow up when people browse, add products to their basket or leave checkout. Keep talking to customers after their first order. And have a plan for previous customers who stop buying.

Most importantly, make sure those automations talk to each other.

The best Klaviyo setup is not the one sending the most emails. It is the one that understands where somebody is in their buying journey and sends a useful message at the right time.

If you want help planning, writing or setting up your ecommerce email automation, BAW Creative can help you build Klaviyo flows around the way your customers actually shop. Get in touch today. 

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