Use Act-On’s pre-built Customer Maturity Milestones automated program to recognize and reward your most loyal customers. Celebrate milestones like anniversaries, feature adoption, or achievements - and keep engagement high with meaningful perks and opportunities.
Quick Reference (Advanced Users) – Click to Expand
- Location: Content > Catalog > Programs
- Template Name: Customer Maturity Milestones
- Primary Trigger: Customer milestone such as anniversary, feature adoption, or certification
- Optional Uses: Appointment reminders, birthdays, or VIP tier rewards
- Assets Needed: 3 email messages, milestone-based segment
What This Program Does
You’ve worked hard to build loyal customer relationships - now it’s time to celebrate them. Whether they’ve reached a one-year mark, completed a certification, or adopted a new feature, milestone moments are a great time to say thank you and strengthen engagement.
This automated journey helps you recognize achievements, unlock VIP experiences, and invite your best customers to advocate for your brand. You can also repurpose this framework for birthdays, appointment reminders, or other meaningful events.
Step 1: Start with the Template
To make setup easier, a ready-made template is available in your account.
- Go to Content > Catalog > Programs.
- Select Customer Maturity Milestones.
- Choose the folder where you want to save it.
- Click Download.
Step 2: Set Up Your Trigger(s)
This journey begins when a customer hits a major milestone. Build a segment using criteria such as:
- Profile Field (e.g., Anniversary Date) > Equals > Relative Date > Current Day
- Tag or Custom Field > Equals/Contains > Adopted Advanced Feature, Completed Certification, or Power User
- Custom Field (e.g., Customer Since) > Equals > 1+ Year or Subscription Tier > Equals > Enterprise
- Birthday > Equals > Relative Date > Current Day
- Appointment Date > Equals > 1 Day Ahead
Step 3: Create Your Emails
Prepare and approve all emails before adding them to the Automated Program. Once added, edits to the original templates won’t automatically update inside the program.
Recommended email flow:
| Timing | Content Ideas | |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Celebrate Milestone + Perks | Immediately | Celebrate their achievement (anniversary, milestone, birthday). Include personalized stats or badges and share a reward like a guide, discount, or loyalty badge. CTA: “Unlock Your Perk” or “See What You’ve Earned.” |
| 2. Invite to VIP Webinar or Beta Program | 1–3 days later | Invite customers to an exclusive webinar, early-access beta, or insider session. Emphasize it as recognition for loyalty. CTA: “Reserve Your Spot” or “Get Early Access.” |
| 3. Encourage Referral or Review | 5–7 days later | Ask them to share their story or refer a friend, offering a thank-you gift. You can also use this to check in for feedback and strengthen retention. CTA: “Refer a Friend” or “Write a Review.” |
To access matching email wireframes:
- Go to Content > Catalog > Messages.
- Select the templates matching the titles above.
- Choose the folder where you’d like to save them.
- Click Download.
These templates are unbranded so you can easily apply your own design and layout.
Step 4: Build the Automated Program
Once your content is ready, open the saved template and configure your workflow.
- Go to Automation > Automated Programs.
- Click the Templates tab and find your saved “Customer Maturity Milestones.”
- Hover over the program name and click the paper icon (+ Create Program from Template).
- Click Create Program.
Program Setup
- In Settings, update the program name and description if needed.
- Click Select Sources and choose your milestone-based segment.
- Allow contacts to enter immediately or per your schedule.
- Enable Suppress entrants on suppression lists (recommended).
- Optional: Enable Allow Re-entry so contacts can rejoin on future anniversaries or milestones.
- Caution: If you enable re-entry, include a Wait Step before exit to prevent looping contacts.
- Click Save.
Program Flow
- In Build > Program Messages, add your prepared emails.
- Open Program Flow and assign each message to its step.
- Review and adjust Wait Steps between messages based on your ideal cadence.
- Optional: Add a step to Alert Customer Success for follow-up if you collect feedback or responses in the final email.
- Click Save.
Step 5: Run & Monitor
When everything looks good, go to Actions > Start Program.
After launch, track engagement rates, referral actions, and participation in VIP programs. Use these insights to refine your recognition strategy and identify your most active advocates.