How to get Started?
“What should I do when I start a new job as a Braze Campaign Manager?”
Having launched a big campaigns for global brands, I’ve learned that the first three months in a new Braze Campaign Manager role are a high-wire act: you’re expected to learn, deliver, and prove impact—often simultaneously.
The onboarding period is short, the expectations are high, and the clock starts ticking the moment you log in to Braze.
But there’s another layer: customer loyalty. Loyal customers buy more, buy more often, and stay longer. The advocate for your brand! Embedding loyalty thinking into your first 90 days can multiply your impact and set the stage for sustainable growth.
Learning, Delivering, and Fostering Loyalty
You’re hired to drive results, not just to observe. If you focus only on learning, stakeholders grow anxious. If you jump straight into action, you risk missing context and breaking what already works. The trick? Learn at full speed, prioritize deliberate action, and always ask: How does this make our best customers feel even more valued?
1. Protect What’s Already Working
Day 1: Your first priority is to safeguard the campaigns, automations, and customer journeys that are already delivering value—especially those that nurture loyalty.
- Audit active campaigns: Identify which journeys drive repeat purchases, upsells, or long-term engagement.
- Talk to the team: Ask, “Who are our most loyal customers, and what keeps them coming back?”
- Don’t break it: Resist the urge to optimize before you understand the emotional triggers behind loyalty.
Example:
At a previous company, our onboarding flow had a 60% completion rate. I shadowed support calls, learned what was resonating for repeat users, and made sure not to disrupt this journey while exploring improvements elsewhere.
2. Find the Easy Wins
Days 2–30: Now, look for optimizations—those quick wins that have a high probability of positive impact, especially on loyal segments.
- Leverage past experience: Which Braze tactics have increased customer retention or repeat purchases before? Can you replicate them here?
- Fresh eyes: Move through the user experience as a loyal customer. Where is the friction in earning rewards or accessing exclusive content?
- Prioritize: Focus on tweaks with measurable upside—personalized loyalty offers, anniversary messages, or early access to sales.
Example:
I noticed our re-engagement push notifications had generic copy. By A/B testing personalized messages that referenced loyalty milestones (“You’ve been with us for 2 years!”), we saw a 15% lift in open rates within two weeks.
3. Identify a Big Bet
By Day 30: Start thinking about a bold move—a campaign or strategy that could drive step-change results, especially for loyalty.
- Assess the landscape: Where are the biggest opportunities to reward and recognize your best customers? Is there an untapped loyalty tier or referral mechanic?
- Socialize your idea: Float it with colleagues and stakeholders. Ask, “How would this make our loyal customers feel?”
- Don’t overcommit: Gather feedback, iterate, and validate the emotional impact.
Example:
At one company, I proposed launching a cross-channel loyalty journey that combined email, push, and in-app. The campaign celebrated customer anniversaries and offered exclusive perks. After pitching and iterating, it became a core driver of repeat purchase rates.
4. Start Shaping the Strategy
Days 30–90: With context and some early wins, begin sketching your longer-term strategy, making customer loyalty a foundational element.
- Document your observations: Use a Miro board or similar tool to map out loyalty program gaps, lifecycle opportunities, and audience insights.
- Draft strategic bets: What could move the needle in the next 6–12 months? A new VIP tier? Gamified rewards? Deeper personalization for loyalists?
- Stay open: Your outsider’s perspective fades quickly. Capture ideas now, refine them as you learn more.
Example:
I identified that our onboarding series lacked a loyalty hook. My early bet: build dynamic content blocks that highlight loyalty benefits and progress. Over time, this became a core pillar of our lifecycle strategy.
5. Drive Operational Excellence
In parallel, look for ways to make the team more effective—especially in delivering consistent loyalty experiences.
- Rituals: Set up weekly campaign reviews focused on loyalty metrics (repeat rate, churn, CLV).
- Documentation: Create a “source of truth” for loyalty campaign naming conventions, segment definitions, and testing protocols.
- Roles & responsibilities: Clarify who owns loyalty journeys and metrics.
Leading Braze Teams
High-Impact Through Accountability by Thierry Sequeira, CEO @ Massive Rocket.
In this video, the CEO of Massive Rocket, shares a crucial lesson on fostering peer accountability within teams—a concept that, while not “sexy,” is vital for achieving outstanding results. I learned this the hard way, through lost time and good team members, and now I’m sharing how you can avoid those pitfalls.
Pitfalls to Avoid
- Overpromising early wins: Don’t set unrealistic expectations before you know the loyalty landscape.
- Shipping without alignment: Sync with stakeholders before launching anything major, especially loyalty initiatives.
- Fixing what isn’t broken: Sometimes what looks suboptimal is working for a reason, particularly for loyal customers. Ask before you act.
Final Thoughts
The first 90 days as a Braze Campaign Manager are about learning, delivering, and laying the groundwork for long-term impact. Protect what’s working for loyal customers, score some quick wins that make them feel valued, dream up a big loyalty bet, and start shaping your strategy—while always keeping the team aligned and the customer at the center.
Loyal customers are your growth engine. Make them feel seen, and they’ll buy more, more often, and stay longer.
Welcome to your new chapter.
