How To Conduct A Killer Email Audit (Our Exact Process)

Hey, Tarun here from Milkshake 🥤

Ever feel like your email channel should be doing more?

Here’s the truth: most brands are sitting on unrealized revenue because they don’t know what to look for or how to fix it.

We’ve done over 200+ audits over the past 6 years…

On average, we find 20%-25% of missing revenue in Klaviyo accounts when conducting these audits.

Today, I’ll show you how we run in-depth email audits that consistently uncover 6-figure growth levers inside ecommerce brands.

👉 Let’s dive into the exact process we use.

1. Audit Performance Benchmarks

Start with the big picture:

• % of total revenue from email (aim for 30-40%)

• Deliverability score (target: 90+)

• Campaign vs. flow revenue split

• Open, click, and unsub rates vs benchmarks

This top-level data gives us the pulse of the email channel.

Where it stands, where it’s leaking, and whether the foundation is strong enough to scale.

Once we’ve spotted the red flags here, we dive deeper into what’s actually causing them, starting with how you’re growing (or not growing) your list.

2. Popup & List Growth Audit

Look at popup conversion rates. Our rule of thumb:

• <6% = underperforming

• 6-10% = solid

• 10%+ = elite

Audit for:

• Offer strength

• Mobile responsiveness

• A/B testing variations

• Copy and creative

3. Flow-By-Flow Deep Dive

Here we do a deep dive into every core flow that you should have running:

Welcome Series:

• Are you educating, building trust and selling? Are metrics strong enough to scale? Is email 1 being resent to non-openers?

Abandoned Checkout:

• Are the dynamic blocks above the fold? Do emails address objections with reviews and education? Are flows tailored to product types or cart values?

Browse/Site Abandonment:

• Are they missing? Most brands forget this, leaving top-of-funnel interest cold.

Post Purchase Series:

• Do you have a process for turning one-time purchasers into 2nd, 3rd and 4th time purchases? Are you missing cross-sell/upsells? Are you generating reviews from customers?

Customer Winback:

• Is this flow setup? Do you have a process for constantly re-engaging lapsed customers?

Flows are where predictable, compounding revenue happens.

Once we’ve audited each flow’s presence, logic, and performance, we know exactly which sequences to rebuild, expand, or scale.

4. Advanced Flow Opportunities

Once the basics are reviewed, we look at:

• VIP Flows

• Product-specific browse/checkout abandonment flows

• Low vs High value cart branching

• Back in stock/low inventory/price drop flows

• Zero-party data flows

• Milestone flows

95%+ ecommerce brands are missing majority of these advanced flows that could be driving more revenue on autopilot.

5. Campaign Strategy Review

A strong campaign strategy generates brands consistent revenue daily.

Here’s how we break it down:

Cadence:

• We assess current frequency vs engagement and revenue trends

• Benchmark: 3-4 campaigns per week for most 7 figure brands

• Too few? You’re invisible. Too many? You’re spamming without strategy

Top-Performing Themes & Content Styles:

We audit historical campaign data to identify:

• What content formats drive the most clicks and conversions

• What visuals/layouts perform best

• What subject lines result in better open rates

This gives us a clear idea on what content to double down on.

Recommended Campaign Types:

Based on your product, price point, and audience, we map out a healthy mix of email types to balance value and revenue.

• Product Education: Teach before you sell. Usage guides, how-tos, comparison breakdowns, FAQs, etc.
  

• Promotional (Non-Discount): Bundles, best sellers, new arrivals, product breakdowns, collection highlights, product launches, etc.
  

• Social Proof/Community Building: UGC, testimonials, customer spotlights, behind-the-scenes, etc.

Most brands only send when there’s a sale. The winners send all year round balancing content that educates, sells and connects.

6. Email Tech Stack & Integration Opportunities

A killer email program isn’t just great flows and campaigns, it’s also powered by the right tools.

We review your current tech stack to identify:

• What tools you’re using (and whether you’re using them well)

• Gaps in functionality that can be automated or optimized

• Opportunities to plug in high-leverage integrations that improve performance

Tools We Commonly Recommend:

• Alia Popups - For AI-powered popups that generate 10-15%+ opt-in rates

• Mailability - Turning unengaged email profiles into buyers with AI-powered campaign segments & flows

• ReferralCandy - For easy to implement referral programs

• LoyaltyLion - To integrate and implement loyalty programs

• Zaymo - Interactive gamified emails that convert

The right teck stack can unlock smarter segmentation, better customer journeys and an overall stronger retention system that keeps your customers coming back for more purchases.

7. SMS Channel Deep Dive

Most brands treat SMS as an afterthought.

We audit your SMS channel to evaluate how well it’s integrated into your retention strategy, and where you’re missing opportunities.

Here’s what we look for:

Opt-In Placement & Capture Flow:

• Are you collecting SMS at the right moment?

• Is SMS opt-in tied to popup logic, post-purchase or checkout flow?

• Are you incentivizing it differently to email?

Core SMS Flows:

We check is SMS is working with your email flows, not just duplicating them.

• Welcome SMS

• Abandonment SMS

• Post Purchase SMS

• Winback SMS

SMS Campaigns:

• Are SMS sends too frequent or too rare?

• Is it all discount driven or are you using it to build anticipation and drop exclusives?

Done right, SMS can be a strong part of your retention channel, driving upto 20-30% of total retention revenue.

Final Thoughts:

A real email audit identifies what’s broken, what’s missing and what’s ready to scale.

When we audit an account we’re building a roadmap for:

• Higher-performing flows and smarter campaign strategies

• Faster-growing, healthier email lists

• Tools and tech that actually move the needle

• A system that turns email/SMS into predictable, compounding revenue.

👉 If you'r email channel isn’t hitting 30-40% of total business revenue (or you’re not sure why it’s stalled), lets fix it. Book an email marketing audit with me personally here

See you in the next one,

Tarun