121 CRM playbook · Customer reactivation

Reconnect with suitable past customers using a relevant service reason and current communication preferences.

A fictional bicycle workshop contacts opted-in customers when an annual service may be due. This playbook turns that kind of situation into an owned sequence with explicit stop points, exceptions and measures. Use only channels, data and capabilities approved for your setup.

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Customer Thread

Customer reactivation: the working sequence

Illustrative example

Build the candidate segment
Explain the relevance
Stop promptly
Human review

Build the candidate segment
Use service interval, last activity and current status rather than list age alone.
Explain the relevance
State the prior relationship and why the message may be useful now.
Stop promptly
End on response, opt-out or the agreed attempt limit.
Human review
A person checks the outcome and any exception.
Human decision

Illustrative playbook — names, organisations and activity are fictional.

Fictional workflow demonstration

Follow customer reactivation from start to next action.

The coded interface shows an example sequence using fictional data and does not expose a live CRM account.

121

Northstar Joinery

Fictional

Follow up consistently, with people in control

OverviewContactsInboxPipelineAutomation

Follow up consistently, with people in control

Build the sequence, review each decision and test an exception before activation.

Draft v0.4

This example stays on this page and does not send messages or change CRM data.

Illustrative 121 interfaceAll people, organisations, dates and activity are fictional. Any figures are illustrative. Controls demonstrate interaction patterns, not enabled account features.

What supports the playbook

See what the CRM can coordinate — and where your team steps in.

The CRM can organise the sequence, but the business still sets the rules, checks consent and handles the moments that need human judgement.

Capability 01

Smart lists

Builds reusable contact views from saved filters and relevant record conditions.

How it works: Stores or organises supported business data under configured fields, permissions and record rules.
Why use it: Lets teams focus on a working group without maintaining separate copies of the same contacts.
Plan for: The platform does not make imported, duplicated or incomplete data accurate without review.
Your team owns: A data owner must define the record model and resolve quality, ownership and access exceptions.

Capability 02

Email campaigns

Creates and sends configured email campaigns to eligible audiences using connected sending infrastructure.

How it works: Runs an approved campaign, publishing or reputation process through connected channels and profiles.
Why use it: Lets a business communicate with a defined customer group and measure supported engagement.
Plan for: Platform policies, connection expiry, delivery, public responses, usage and add-on charges can vary.
Your team owns: A person must approve content and handle negative feedback, policy issues and publishing failures.

Capability 03

SMS campaigns

Sends compliant campaign messages through an eligible configured phone setup.

How it works: Runs an approved campaign, publishing or reputation process through connected channels and profiles.
Why use it: Provides a direct channel for appropriate short updates and calls to action.
Plan for: Platform policies, connection expiry, delivery, public responses, usage and add-on charges can vary.
Your team owns: A person must approve content and handle negative feedback, policy issues and publishing failures.

Capability 04

Goals and exits

Moves or removes records when the configured outcome or stop condition has been met.

How it works: Runs an ordered sequence only after its configured trigger and conditions are met.
Why use it: Helps avoid continuing follow-up after the customer has already acted.
Plan for: Automation follows its configuration; it cannot repair poor data, unclear rules or an unavailable external service.
Your team owns: A process owner must approve, test, monitor and pause or correct faulty automation.

Entry criteria

Begin with a valid trigger, enough context and one owner

A reviewed segment identifies past customers for whom contact may be useful and appropriate. Before any automated action, confirm that the event, customer record and communication basis are suitable for this playbook.

Trigger

A reviewed segment identifies past customers for whom contact may be useful and appropriate.

Practical scenario

A fictional bicycle workshop contacts opted-in customers when an annual service may be due.

Human decision retained

Accountable owner

Name the person or queue that accepts the work, monitors exceptions and can stop the sequence.

The sequence

Run the customer reactivation playbook step by step

Each step should leave evidence a colleague can understand. Timing and channels should follow the customer context rather than a generic high-pressure cadence.

1. Build the candidate segment

Use service interval, last activity and current status rather than list age alone.

2. Apply exclusions

Remove opt-outs, complaints, active jobs, bad data and people recently contacted.

3. Explain the relevance

State the prior relationship and why the message may be useful now.

4. Offer a simple next step

Provide booking, reply or decline routes.

Close the loop

5. Stop promptly

End on response, opt-out or the agreed attempt limit.

Owner, timing and exception

Make the operational state easy to review

The supporting view keeps the next action and human checkpoint visible around the automated steps.

121 CRM · Connected operations

Book discovery

October · illustrative availability

MTWTFSS1234567891011121314

11:3014:00

Appointment sequence

Booked

Calendar entry created

1 day before

Reminder scheduled

Exception

Owner reviews a reply

Journey summary

New

Illustrative

Owned

Illustrative

Due

Illustrative

Website

Referral

Direct

Illustrative exampleAll dates, counts and workflow states are fictional. Availability and behaviour depend on the agreed setup.

Exception paths

Stop the normal route when the facts change

Exceptions are part of the process, not failures to be hidden. Route them to a person with the authority and context to decide what happens next.

Human review

Unclear permission

Exclude the record until a lawful and documented basis is established.

Human review

Customer disputes the history

Apologise, correct the data where appropriate and stop the sequence.

Human review

Service no longer suitable

Record the outcome without forcing another offer.

Operational review

Measure whether the work became safer and clearer

Use measures that reveal ownership, service quality and control. Counts of messages, tasks or workflow runs are supporting signals, not proof of customer value.

Audience passing every exclusion

Quality matters more than raw list size.

Useful responses by service reason

Review context rather than attributing every sale to the campaign.

Opt-outs and complaints

Use increases as a prompt to reassess relevance and cadence.

Questions about this page

Useful answers, without the sales fog.

1. When should the customer reactivation playbook start?

A reviewed segment identifies past customers for whom contact may be useful and appropriate. Confirm the record is eligible and that a named owner or monitored queue is available before allowing customer-facing action.

2. Which channels should the customer reactivation playbook use?

Use only configured channels that suit the purpose, customer preference and consent position. Give each channel a distinct role and check provider availability and usage charges before launch.

3. When should customer reactivation automation stop?

Stop when the purpose is complete, the customer responds or opts out, the data conflicts, or an exception needs judgement. In this playbook, pay particular attention to unclear permission, customer disputes the history, service no longer suitable.

4. How should we judge whether customer reactivation works?

Review audience passing every exclusion, useful responses by service reason, opt-outs and complaints. Combine the numbers with sampled records and customer context; do not treat activity volume as a business outcome.

Read all CRM questions

Continue the journey

Customer reactivation Contact segmentation Campaign management Customer onboarding

Delegate the work. Keep the human.

Ready to organise the customer journey?

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