At Backstage, the team faced a challenge with new subscribers who continued using the web version of the platform instead of downloading the app, which offered a much more seamless experience. The goal was to encourage more users to adopt the app and improve engagement. Liz sought to understand if there were significant differences between two subscriber cohorts: those who subscribed via the web and downloaded the Backstage app, and those who subscribed via the web but never installed the app. Using Amplitude, she discovered a key insight: although the web app had more users, it also had a higher churn rate (19% vs. 10%), and web users were less likely to apply for jobs compared to app users. To address this, Liz created a split-decision campaign in Braze targeting web app subscribers. The campaign began with an email encouraging users to download the Backstage app. If no action was taken within five days, a banner promoting the app appeared during their next web session, directing them to download it from the App Store. As a result, the churn rate decreased by 12% over just two months.

At John Varvatos, Liz faced a key challenge with low repeat purchases among returning customers. The brand relied heavily on acquiring new customers, but the high customer acquisition cost (CAC) made this approach unsustainable. Many new customers made a single purchase with a discount and didn’t return, impacting long-term loyalty and customer lifetime value (LTV). While Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and seasonal holidays accounted for nearly 50% of annual revenue, the brand primarily targeted male audiences, overlooking the female segment, which made up 20% of the database. Despite being largely ignored in monthly campaigns, the female audience was one of the most active during holiday seasons, making 3x more recurring purchases and exhibiting 5x higher LTV compared to some male audiences. Liz identified an opportunity to drive revenue by targeting this segment differently. She proposed a persona-driven campaign to retarget female customers through email and paid social, encouraging them to buy products for their partners and families. A lookalike audience was also created to prospect new customers via paid social. Working with the merchandising manager, Liz developed a landing page highlighting popular products purchased by women, while upselling new items to boost average order value (AOV). The results were strong: the returning female audience generated a 3x increase in sales three weeks post-campaign and a 4x return on ad spend. The lookalike audience also had a 10% higher repeat purchase rate compared to some male audiences