Elliot Scott

Content, Social Media & Marketing

Founder & CEO at ElliotDigital | Retention marketing for DTC brands | Email & SMS marketing

Hey, I’m Elliot — founder of ElliotDigital, a multi award-winning retention marketing agency helping leading eCommerce brands turn browsers into loyal customers through world-class email & SMS.

Since launching in 2021, we’ve had the pleasure of working with some of the most loved DTC brands on the planet, including:

- CRAFTD London
- Candy Kittens
- Magic Mind
- Untamed
- Cake Box
- Heights
- Free Soul
- SURREAL
- Days brewing

Too many brands treat retention as an afterthought. They pour time and budget into paid ads, but leave money on the table with clunky email design, shallow segmentation, or disconnected customer journeys.

That’s where we come in.

We combine data-driven strategy with beautiful, high-converting creative, to boost LTV, drive repeat orders, and make retention a brand-building channel.

Founder & Owner

Every one of these started as a blank screen.

No templates. No shortcuts.

Our in-house strategy & creative teams really crushed it in January.

We shipped deep, long-term benefit breakdowns…

and simple, scroll-stopping product moments.

A few of my favourites from the month. But which one’s your pick? 👇

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#retention #emailmarketing #ecommerce #klaviyo #emaildesign

Retention marketing for DTC brands | Founder & CEO at ElliotDigital | Email & SMS marketing

It might be Lent…
But we’re not giving up these tasty creatives 🍬 

Sweet drops.
Bold flavours.
And promos that actually earn the click.

Different brands. Different tones. All built from scratch.

Here are a few of my favourite emails we ideated, designed and shipped in February. As usual, the team killed it!!

Which one’s your pick? 👇

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#retention #emailmarketing #ecommerce #klaviyo #emaildesign

POV: Our team Slack channel when we share our favourite monthly emails.

A team with a shared vision.

The reactions say it all.

Not many people know this, but ElliotDigital was my Fiverr name. 

Before building the business to where it is now, I was freelancing. I spent my early days saying yes to everything. 

Shopify builds. Paid ads. Social media. Email. 

If someone on Fiverr was willing to pay for it, I was doing it. 

But here's what I noticed. Every brand I worked with was obsessing over their ad dashboards. The numbers were up, down, always at the mercy of the ever-changing algorithm - one iOS update and everything shifted. 

Meanwhile, email was quietly generating serious revenue. Stable, consistent, and when brands needed to rely on it the numbers were crazy. 

It was an undervalued channel. 

One night, walking home from the pub, my partner Chloe said something I still think about five years later. 

"Why don't you just go all in on email? It's what you enjoy the most" 

It was my lightbulb moment. 

Almost overnight, I tried to convert every freelance client to retention only. 

I lost all of them but one. 

One client. That was my entire business - a client that we still have a great relationship with now. 

But it was enough to prove the model, and enough to start building. 

Today we're a 12-person in-house team in London, working with leading DTC brands. 

I still think about that lightbulb conversation I had with Chloe. 

Probably helped that I'd had a few pints.

DTC Brands Come to Me When They Want to Add an Extra 20-40% to Their MRR Without Spending Money on Ads

Consumer behavior is a very complex subject. Since the beginning of my career in Digital Marketing, I've always been attracted to one aspect of it: E-commerce. And more specifically, how do you get someone to buy your product or service from your online store/funnel?

It turns out that there is a whole range of aspects to consider, unlike in 2016 where, generally speaking, any platform with a website/funnel could convert traffic easily.

In 2018, consumers are more sophisticated. They can now easily differentiate between a Dropshipping store and a legitimate E-commerce established brand.

And then we are now in 2025 and not 2018... Having a beautifully designed Shopify store is not enough. The whole sales process must be of quality in order to convert your traffic.

After understanding the psychology of online buyers, I went deeper into the development of systems to help E-commerce businesses scale to multiple 6, 7 and even 8 figures... and this is where I come across the second piece of the puzzle, retention!

After years of experience (and a lot of testing), I discovered that email & SMS marketing was more my style when it comes to scaling e-commerce brands. All this leads me to introduce myself...

My name is Nicolas and with my agency, we help e-commerce brands to grow by leveraging retention systems. Our specialties:

✔️ Capture Qualified Leads
✔️ Rapidly Grow CLTV
✔️ Create Brand Ambassadors

Thanks to our battle-tested and constantly improved email strategies, we've generated over $30M in email revenue.

If you are interested in working with us, please contact me

Thanks

Nicolas.

Nicolas Olaya

Ok it's official, Claude now writes better email copy than ChatGPT.

And I don't say that lightly.

For months, I was team ChatGPT. Decent writing. Familiar format. Easy to use.

But over the past few weeks? Something changed.

Opus 4.6 just launched, and I've been testing both side by side on dozens of campaigns.

Same prompt.
Same format.
Same brief.

And Claude just… wins.

More persuasive. More conversion-focused. More usable straight out of the box.

Now I write 40/50 emails a day for clients using Claude, and it's never been this fast or this good.

The takeaway? Tools evolve. Fast.

And if you're stuck on what worked 3 months ago, you're already behind.

As marketers, the game is simple: Stay flexible . Test everything . Keep the edge for your clients.

P.S. Want the exact Claude master prompt and SOP we use internally to get Opus 4.6 cranking out hundreds of high-converting emails per week?

Drop a "COPY" below and I'll send it over 👇

Founder @ Laya Consulting | Email, SMS, and WhatsApp marketing for 7/8-figure DTC brands | Clients include: Decathlon, The Period Company, Syncwire

🚨 I just updated my Ultimate Email & SMS Marketing Playbook, and I’m giving the whole thing away for free.

This 100+-page guide is everything your brand needs to scale email & SMS revenue this year.

It covers the exact systems we use across 7, 8 and 9-figure DTC brands to drive consistent growth and collect data.

It's packed with real-world strategies, examples, and frameworks that work right now.

Here’s what’s inside:

• The only pop-up optimization strategy you’ll ever need
• 7+ high-converting flows (built for AOV & LTV)
• Zero-party data tactics that actually move the needle
• Deliverability rules no one tells you about
• Complete campaign strategy & frequency breakdown
• How to use email to support acquisition & CX
• 10+ AI prompts I personally use to save 20+ hours/week
• My full BFCM playbook + 2026 updates
• And a lot more…

It’s the most complete resource I’ve ever put together and the same framework we use at the agency to drive millions in retention revenue.

Perfect for:

 → DTC brands doing $0k–$1M+ per month
 → Teams tired of guesswork & underperforming emails
 → Marketers who want to win with retention in 2026

Want the full doc?

1. Comment “PLAYBOOK” below
2. Connect with me so I can DM you the link

If you're a DTC subscription brand, this is the retention playbook you've been waiting for.

I just released a complete masterclass on how to increase subscription rates and reduce churn using email marketing strategies that actually work.

This isn’t theory.

It’s the exact playbook we use at the agency to help DTC brands scale high-LTV, high-retention subscription growth month after month.

What’s inside the training:

- How to optimize the Welcome Flow for subscribers
- How to convert one-time buyers into subscribers post-purchase
- Smart pre-charge email tactics to reduce churn before it happens
- How to track & act on churn signals
- Campaign angles that promote the subscription experience
- How to celebrate subscriber milestones and increase retention
- Real-world examples & flow structures you can use today

This masterclass is your complete guide to turning casual buyers into loyal subscribers and keeping them around for the long haul.

Want access?
1. Connect with me
2. Comment "SUBSCRIPTION" below

I created a 100+ page guide on Email & SMS Marketing for 2026 covering everything a brand needs to succeed.

And I’m giving it away for free.

I’ve been building and updating this guide for months, adding the exact frameworks, strategies, and systems we use for the brands we work with.

Inside the guide you’ll learn:

→ The flows every ecommerce brand must have
→ How to design campaigns that actually convert
→ Pop-up strategies that maximize list growth
→ Deliverability fundamentals most brands ignore
→ How to use AI to speed up execution
→ The metrics that actually matter (and the ones that don’t)
→ How email supports acquisition, CX, and retention
→ A full breakdown of what high-performing brands are doing right now
And a lot more…

It’s a complete playbook. If you implement even a fraction of what’s inside, your email revenue will improve.

Want the full doc?

1. Comment “PLAYBOOK” below
2. Connect with me so I can DM you the link

If I had to start email marketing from scratch in 2026…

This is exactly what I’d do (and NOT do).

After working with 150+ ecom brands and generating millions, I put together a detailed breakdown of how I’d build a high-performing retention system from day 1.

No outdated tactics. Just what works right now (and will still work in 2026), broken down in a way that’s easy to consume and immediately actionable.

Inside the doc, I cover:

✅ The only offer strategy I’d focus on
✅ The pop-up approach that leads to actual purchases
✅ The 10+ flows I’d build in the first 30 days
✅ How I’d protect deliverability from day one
✅ The campaign schedule I’d use to build momentum
✅ Design rules that convert (not just “look pretty”)
✅ The 5 metrics that matter (and the ones to ignore)
✅ How to sync email with ads for max profit

Perfect for:
→ New brands building email from the ground up
→ Founders relaunching retention with better systems
→ Marketers who want a proven roadmap for 2026

Want the full doc?

1. Connect with me so I can DM you the link
2. Comment “2026” below

Very often, email marketing doesn’t fail because of strategy. It fails because of execution.

Everyone loves to talk about frameworks, flows, and best practices.

Very few brands can actually ship emails consistently.

That’s the underrated advantage of a strong email program
(and honestly, of a great agency with real systems).

Because staying top of mind isn’t about one perfect campaign. It’s about showing up… over and over again.

Here’s what most brands underestimate:

Strategy is useless if emails don’t go out on time

“We’ll send next week” quietly kills momentum

Inconsistent sends = invisible brand

Speed matters more than perfection (in most cases)

If you can execute this in-house, amazing.

Most brands can’t.

They don’t lack ideas.

They lack process, bandwidth, and turnaround speed.

And when execution stalls, so does revenue.

The brands that win don’t necessarily have better ideas. They just publish more consistently and move faster.

Email works when it’s a "habit", not a project.

I don't believe in work-life balance.

Everything is everything.

I see founders talk about "balance" all the time. Drawing hard lines between work and life like they're two separate things fighting for attention.

But here's what I've realized after years of running retention for 100+ ecom brands:

The best work doesn't come from separating yourself from what you do. It comes from being fully in it.

When I'm deep in a Klaviyo audit, I'm not watching the clock. I'm problem solving. Where's the opening. What's the weak point. What's the highest leverage move right now.

I don't compartmentalize because I genuinely don't know how to. And I think that's the cheat code most people overlook.

The founders I work with who are scaling fastest? They're obsessed too. Not "burned out" obsessed. Energized obsessed. Their work is part of who they are, not something they escape from.

Balance is a myth sold to people who haven't found the thing that makes them feel alive at 11pm on a Saturday.

Find the thing. Then go all in.

I was literally scrolling through my YouTube feed last night and it tells the whole story: email marketing, jiu jitsu, MMA That's it. That's the algorithm. That's my life lol (that and my family).

Agree or disagree? I know this one's spicy.

Most brands treat post-purchase emails like an afterthought. A "thank you" email, maybe a review request, and that's it.

That's leaving so much money on the table.

We just built out a full post purchase sequence for Babysense, a baby monitor brand, and this is one of those cases where the post purchase flow matters more than almost anything else in the retention stack.

Here's why.

When a parent buys a baby monitor, they're not casually shopping. They're anxious. They want to know it works. They want to set it up correctly. They want to feel like they made the right call.

If you don't show up in their inbox during that window, someone else will. Or worse, they'll second guess the purchase entirely.

So here's what we built:

1. Product adoption emails that walk them through setup, tips, and getting the most out of the monitor
2. Education content that positions the brand as a trusted resource for new parents
3. Social proof from real customers to reinforce the buying decision
4. Timed cross sells for complementary products once trust and product satisfaction are established
5. Strategic upsell sequences based on the specific monitor they purchased

The whole sequence is designed around one idea: help first, sell second.

When you help a customer get real value from what they already bought, the cross sell doesn't feel like a pitch. It feels like a recommendation from someone who gets their situation.

This applies to any brand selling a product that requires adoption, setup, or education. Think tech, wellness, baby, fitness, skincare routines. If your customer needs to "learn" the product to love it, your post purchase flow is your highest leverage retention asset.

Most brands skip straight to "buy more." The best brands earn the right to ask.

If your post purchase flow is just a thank you and a review request, you're probably leaving a good portion f your repeat revenue untouched.1

The best marketing advantage in ecom isn't a better funnel, it's a better product.

I came across BLD BRO LTD (Tariq K.) recently, a skincare brand made specifically for bald men. Designed a campaign for them (attached) and it got me thinking about something I keep seeing across the brands that scale the fastest.

They don't overcomplicate their marketing, they just solve a problem nobody else is solving.

Most sunscreens weren't designed for a bald scalp. They're greasy, they shine, they slide off. BLD BRO looked at that and said "we'll fix it." One product. SPF 30 matte gel. Moisturizer, sunscreen, and shine control in one tube. 75,000+ customers already trust it daily.

When the product is that dialed in, everything downstream gets easier:

1. Paid ads convert because the hook is the product itself
2. Email campaigns practically write themselves because the USPs are crystal clear
3. Retention flows actually work because customers love what they bought
4. Word of mouth compounds because people genuinely tell their friends

The pattern is always the same. Brands growing fastest aren't running the most complex Klaviyo setups or spending the most on ads. They found a gap in the market and built something genuinely better.

Too many brands try to market their way out of a product problem. More emails, more ads, more discounts. It doesn't work long term.

When your product solves a real, specific problem for a clearly defined audience, marketing becomes amplification instead of persuasion. Completely different game.

Founders, before you audit your flows or scale your ad spend, ask yourself: does my product solve a problem nobody else is solving well? If yes, double down on that message everywhere. If not, that might be your real bottleneck.

Just onboarded CatLadyBox and I already know this is going to be a fun one.

If you know anything about pet brands, you know this: the customers are obsessed. Not "loyal." Obsessed.

Cat Lady Box has built something most eCommerce brands dream about. A community that doesn't just buy, they evangelize. They post unboxings. They tag the brand. They gift subscriptions to friends.

That kind of emotional connection is rare. And when you pair it with a proper retention engine, the ceiling goes way up.

We've already started building out the infrastructure. New flows, campaign calendar, segmentation strategy, the works.

Excited to share results down the line.

If you're running a subscription/DTC brand doing $50k+/mo and feel like your retention channel is underperforming, DM me. Happy to take a look.

We recently launched a new round of email designs for BloomsyBox.com.

And it reinforced something I keep seeing with lifestyle brands: sometimes visuals outperform copy.

Not because copy doesn't matter. But because for certain categories, the product is the story.

Flowers. Home decor. Fashion. Beauty.

You're not selling specs. You're selling emotion.

Across the lifestyle brands we work with, one of the biggest missed opportunities looks like this:

- Overwritten campaigns
- Dense blocks of text
- Too many selling angles
- Not enough visual hierarchy

And the product is sitting right there, inherently beautiful, doing nothing.

For BloomsyBox, the strategic shift wasn't "write better." It was design better.

Here's what that looks like in practice:

1. Let the product breathe.
Large, immersive imagery. Intentional white space. Clear focal points. If the asset is strong, don't suffocate it.

2. Reduce cognitive friction.
Shorter copy blocks. Cleaner structure. One dominant CTA. Elegance converts.

3. Build for mood, not just information.
Color palette, typography, flow that mirrors the on-site experience. Email becomes an extension of the brand, not a separate channel.

4. Sell the lifestyle, not the logistics.
You don't need 12 bullet points when the image already communicates the value.

Retention is emotional before it's rational. And for lifestyle brands, design is retention.

Being a founder is just getting punched in the face for many years straight.

And somehow… choosing to wake up and do it again.

Not because you have to, but because you want to.

What everyone sees:

- Revenue screenshots
- Team photos
- “We just hit our biggest month ever” posts

What they don’t see:

- The client that churned overnight
- The cash flow month that made your stomach drop
- The nights you questioned if you’re actually good at this

Being a founder isn’t glamorous.

It’s:

- Taking responsibility when things break
- Making decisions with incomplete information
- Losing sleep over payroll before you ever enjoy profit

At the beginning, it feels like survival.

Every punch hurts.

Every setback feels personal.

You wonder if you’re built for it.

Then something shifts. You realize:

- You’re calmer under pressure
- You solve problems faster
- You don’t panic like you used to

The punches are still coming lol. But now?

They’re reps. You realize that’s where the growth happens.

You don’t want comfort, you want challenge. And the difference is: Now you choose it.

You choose:

- Which clients to work with
- Which risks to take
- Which battles are worth fighting

That freedom is addictive.

Here’s the uncomfortable truth:

If you’re trying to avoid getting punched… you probably shouldn’t be building something.

I say founding is voluntary adversity. And over time, you stop asking:

“Why is this happening to me?”

And start asking:

“How can I handle this better than last time?”

That’s when it pays off.

Not just financially. Internally.

Acquisition keeps getting more expensive, and margins keep getting thinner.

Yet almost no one asks the obvious question: “What if we just made more money from the customers we already have?”

That’s exactly what I break down in this video.

How email actually works when it’s treated as a retention system, not a broadcast channel.

If you’re building a brand and don’t want to live and die by paid ads forever, this one’s worth your time.

Video attached.

I was at a coffee shop last week and overheard two guys talking about how "everything is going downhill." AI is replacing everyone. The economy is done. No point in starting anything new.

I just sat there thinking... man, what a waste of energy.

Because here's the thing. I'm sitting in a country I chose to live in. Building something I chose to build. Working with people I genuinely enjoy working with. From a laptop. On a random Wednesday.

My grandfather didn't have that option. Neither did yours.

I've been seeing this wave of negativity online too. Every other post is about how the sky is falling. And I get it. Uncertainty is uncomfortable. Change is scary. The world is moving fast.

But fast doesn't mean bad.

I started my agency with nothing but a laptop and a conviction that I could figure it out. No playbook. No safety net. No guarantees. Just the belief that betting on myself was the safest bet I could make.

Some seasons were brutal. I won't romanticize it. There were months where I didn't know if this was going to work.

But I kept building. And slowly, things started compounding. The skills. The relationships. The confidence. The gratitude.

That's the part nobody talks about. Gratitude compounds too.

These days, most mornings I wake up feeling genuinely excited. Not because everything is perfect. But because I get to play a game I love with people I respect in a place that makes me feel alive.

If you're reading this, you probably have more going for you than you realize.

Don't let someone else's fear become your reality.

Call your people. Hug your close ones. Help someone today who can't return the favor. And then get back to building.

The world needs more people who refuse to stop creating... not more pessimism.

P.S. Yes that's a black eye in the photo. Took an accidental knee while grappling last week. Life is electric, even when it leaves a mark lol

Jumped on a call last month with a $4.5M ecom founder who was blaming email for all his churn.

"Flows are fine. We just need better win-backs."

We dug into it though, and the problem had nothing to do with his Klaviyo account.

It was the box.

Churn doesn't start 30 days after purchase. It starts the second the product lands on the customer's doorstep. That's the moment value perception either cements or falls apart.

Working with 7/8-figure brands every day, I see the same thing over and over. Founders pour energy into:

- Welcome flows
- Discount strategy
- Segmentation tweaks

And completely ignore the single most important retention moment: delivery day.

Ask yourself honestly. Does the unboxing feel premium? Does the customer get a quick win? Do they feel smart for spending that money? Or do they feel underwhelmed?

If the product experience doesn't justify the price right away, no email flow is saving you. Full stop.

So what actually moves the needle?

1. Engineer a fast win
Show them exactly how to use it, what to expect in week 1, and what the first noticeable result looks like. Momentum kills churn.

2. Reinforce the buying decision.
Post-purchase emails should basically say "you made the right call." Hit them with education, proof, testimonials, clear next steps. Kill the buyer's remorse before it even shows up.

3. Elevate the physical experience.
• Packaging
• Instructions
• Small thoughtful touches

Doesn't have to be expensive. Has to feel intentional.

4. Align your marketing with reality.
If your ads promise transformation in 24 hours but results take 3 weeks, month 1 churn is basically guaranteed.

Retention isn't just digital. It's emotional. It's the gap between what you promised and what they actually felt when they opened that box.

And here's the real question. If you secretly unboxed your own product today, would you feel excited, or disappointed?

I have a French Bulldog who's anxious about everything. Thunder, doorbells, other dogs breathing near him. So when I came across PAWD DRINKS, a calming drink made for dogs, the product immediately caught my eye.

Had to design an email for them (attached). Couldn't help myself.

But beyond the personal connection, this is also a good excuse to talk about something most brands underutilize in their emails: infographics.

Specifically, comparison tables.

For this design I used an "us vs them" format. Why? Because PAWD is competing in a space where alternatives already exist. Calming treats, supplements, drops, you name it. The customer already knows solutions are out there. What they don't know is why this one is different.

And that's where a simple comparison table does the heavy lifting.

Instead of writing 3 paragraphs explaining your USPs, you put them side by side against what's already on the market. The reader gets it in seconds. No friction, no mental gymnastics.

This works especially well for:

1. Brands entering a category where established alternatives exist
2. Products with a clear functional advantage that's hard to convey in copy alone
3. Supplements, skincare, wellness, pet, basically anything where ingredients or formulation matter
4. Emails targeting prospects who are comparing options before buying

When you're trying to educate and differentiate at the same time, an infographic or comparison table can do in one module what three paragraphs of copy can't.

If your product genuinely does something better than what's already out there, show it visually. Don't make people read their way to that conclusion.

Quick win: try adding a comparison table to your welcome flow or a product education campaign and see how it performs against your current version. Easiest A/B test you'll run this month.

What do you think of the design Archie Wilson?

Spending $80k+/month on paid ads.
Healthy CAC.
Strong first-time conversions.

But churn quietly killing margin...

This wasn't some pattern I "noticed in the market." This was an actual CPG brand I started working with earlier this year.

On paper, everything looked fine.

The product wasn't bad. Acquisition wasn't broken. The email strategy just wasn't built for subscriptions.

Most subscription brands are still running email like it's one-time purchase marketing. That's why churn eats them alive.

Their subscriptions don't always fail because the product is bad (though that's obv a BIG factor too). They fail because the retention side was never really built out.

Here's how email actually needs to work when recurring revenue is the goal👇

1) “Subscriber” is a lifecycle, not a segment
Subscribers ≠ one-time buyers.

You need separate logic for:
• Active subscribers
• Paused subscribers
• At-risk subscribers (skips, swaps, low engagement)

Blasting them all the same is how you burn trust.

2) Welcome flow = subscription indoctrination

Email #1–3 should make subscribing feel normal.

Frame:
• Savings per shipment
• Flexibility (skip, pause, swap)
• “Never run out” positioning

3) Post-purchase split is mandatory

Subscriber?
→ Education, usage, expectation setting.

One-time buyer?
→ Mini sequence selling the subscription, not the reorder.

4) Pre-charge emails are non-negotiable

3–5 days before billing: “Your next order is coming. Want to change anything?”

This reduces silent churn more than any discount ever will.

5) IMPORTANT: Churn prevention beats churn recovery!!

Trigger flows when:
• Multiple skips
• Engagement drops
• Delivery issues

Educate first and reassure first. Discounts come last.

6) Yes, you need a cancellation flow

Most brands don’t have one. Huge miss.

A calm, respectful off-ramp wins more reactivations than offers.

7) Campaigns should sell the subscription experience, not just the product.

Think:
• Shipment reminders
• Swap campaigns
• Subscriber milestones
• “Here’s what you’ve saved so far”

8) Metrics that actually matter

• Subscriber churn by cohort
• Skip rate
• Reactivation rate
• One-time → subscriber conversion

One golden rule: If an email doesn’t reference next shipment, flexibility, savings, or long-term value …it probably shouldn’t go to subscribers.

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