Lifecycle strategy and retention
This automated welcome journey thanks and welcomes new customers, builds trust early and helps people feel genuinely connected from day one. The goal is to create a strong first impression and turn new donors into long-term allies and advocates for our campaigns.
Role
Donor Loyalty & Supporter Journey Specialist
Organisation
Greenpeace Australia Pacific
Launched
May 2022
Channels
Email, SMS, CRM
Tools
HubSpot, Salesforce
Customers were cancelling within the first 90 days due to limited follow-up beyond the receipt email and a lack of structured onboarding.
New customers weren't guided on what would happen after signing up or how they could stay involved.
Customers didn't see early proof of what their support enabled, making it harder to feel confident or motivated.
The emotional peak after signing up wasn't used to build connection or reinforce commitment.
In July 2024, Donor Republic, a leading Australian fundraising and donor engagement consultancy, reviewed the first 90 days of onboarding across 50 Australian charities and ranked Greenpeace Australia Pacific #1 overall for best in class onboarding.
Conducted stakeholder interviews and customer research
Aligned cross-functional teams on shared goals and success metrics
Mapped a 90 day lifecycle journey across email, phone, SMS and Direct Mail
Wrote donor first storytelling positioning customers as part of a movement
Designed and implemented automated journeys in HubSpot and Salesforce
Integrated three lifecycle channels into a cohesive experience
Partnered with Deloitte on technical build and integration
Collaborated on CRM logic, automation triggers, and data flows
Ensured technical decisions supported long term reporting needs
Worked closely with telefundraising, high-value, and data and insights teams
Secured leadership buy in through clear progress reporting
Established feedback loops for continuous optimisation
Metrics reflect real-world performance across journeys and digital experiences, reported conservatively to show long-term impact.
Reduced donor cancellations within first 90 days
Content interaction rate
Engagement rate in the first month
How customers feel in the first few weeks shapes how long they stay.
There is always room for improvement, even in well performing journeys.
Continuous optimisation is more effective than one-off fixes.
There is strong potential to further enhance this journey by introducing AI driven personalisation and optimisation in the future.