Milestone Emails: Benefits, Types & Examples [2025]

Celebrating milestones is a cornerstone of strong relationships. Just as we cherish anniversaries and birthdays with loved ones, recognizing key moments in customer journeys can create long-lasting bonds and drive engagement. After all, who doesn’t love a good celebration?

In the world of email marketing, milestone emails are the unsung heroes. They might not be sales-oriented, but they can drive engagement and conversions in multiple ways.

These emails feel more personal, leading to higher open and click-through rates. Plus, you can enhance them with offers, making them perfect opportunities for cross-selling and upselling.

What Is a Milestone Email?

Milestone emails are automated messages that celebrate significant customer and company milestones. Common triggers for these emails include birthdays and customer anniversaries, such as the one year since a customer’s first purchase.

Businesses often combine these celebratory emails with incentives to boost sales and foster customer loyalty. For instance, they might offer discount codes at key moments in the customer journey to express gratitude while also driving sales.

Most marketers use email automation software like Moosend to set up and schedule these emails based on specific triggers. These platforms usually offer ready-made workflows and email templates, making it easy to tailor milestone emails to your needs.

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Why Should Businesses Send Milestone Emails

Personalized emails have a greater impact on email recipients, especially when they’re timely and relevant. Milestone emails check those boxes, leading to various business benefits:

• Increase customer engagement: Recognizing milestones makes customers feel valued, acknowledged, and appreciated, fostering a stronger relationship with a brand.
• Boost conversions: When tied with enticing special offers and powerful call-to-actions, they can increase sales and conversions.
• Enhance customer loyalty: Creating memorable, personalized experiences through valuable content can lead to long-lasting customer relationships.
• Improve brand image: The emotional connection caused by milestone emails can strengthen a business’ image, enhancing brand loyalty.
• Build a strong community: Nurturing prospective and existing customers with those emails makes them feel part of an extended community catering to their needs.

To bear fruit, you should use informed customer data, otherwise your email campaigns will sound off and irrelevant. Thankfully, most CRM and email marketing platforms have intuitive analytics tools to provide you with historical and real-time data.

Types of Milestone Emails with Examples

Businesses can choose different milestones to celebrate with customers based on their niche and goals. Here are some of the most common email types, including examples from notable brands:

Birthday emails

Most people love receiving birthday wishes and presents from their loved ones. Sending heartwarming emails with incentives such as discount coupons makes them feel valued and seen, leading to extra loyalty points.

To make birthday emails even more effective, you can send personalized recommendations based on previous purchases, creating upselling and cross-selling opportunities. This will add an extra personal touch to an already kind gesture. You can also set up a reminder email for non-openers to boost conversions.

Check out this beautiful birthday email by Camper, offering a generous discount for the customer’s next purchase. They added a few product recommendations they might be interested in to make it more attractive:

Subject line: Happy birthday!

Customer anniversary emails

You can create distinct types of customer anniversary emails based on your business model. If you offer a service, celebrate one year since the first signup or registration. Send a special reward, such as a discount or exclusive access to a special event, to show them what their loyalty means to you.

If you’re blogger, thank them for staying around and set expectations for the next year, including topics you’ll cover. As for B2C, you can send them on the anniversary of the first purchase and cherish customers with a discount code or similar rewards to rekindle your relationship.

Here’s an amazing example by Etsy, with a 5% discount for the next purchase:

Subject line: 🎉 Enjoy $5 OFF! 🎉

Customer milestones

In addition to celebrating firsts, you can also recognize activity milestones. For example, congratulate your customers for reaching a certain number of orders, points, or referrals, and reward them with a unique incentive, such as a limited-time offer. This not only pleases them but also encourages engagement.

This approach is impactful for B2B and subscription-based business models. By acknowledging customers’ progress, you remind them of the impact your platform has had on their success.

Grammarly sends regular milestone emails to celebrate users’ progress, with personalized insights.

Subject line: You’ve reached a new weekly streak milestone!

Company achievements

Has your company reached a new milestone, such as a new product or feature launch? Have you recently redesigned your website or opened a physical store? Then nudging customers with a milestone email would be valuable.

Also, mention what this achievement means for them in terms of customer experience to boost engagement and excitement.

Here’s how Myndlift announced their new feature launch to their customer base:

Subject line: NEW: Like tracking your daily steps… but for your brain! 🧠

Company anniversary

Birthday emails are not just for customers—businesses can celebrate their own birthday or product anniversaries as well. The email content can take various forms based on the goal each brand sets.

For instance, you can highlight some of the biggest achievements you’ve made over the years, plan a flash sale, or introduce unique initiatives like Starbucks:

Subject line: 50th anniversary celebration 🎉

Best Practices for Engaging Milestone Emails

With so many company and customer first-time anniversaries and achievements to choose from, planning your milestone becomes a bit overwhelming. To make your milestone emails shine, it’s important to have a clear plan.

Here are some steps to help you maximize their value:

1. Set your milestone email goals

What business areas would you like to improve through milestone emails? Are boosting loyalty and retention enough or are you seeking a sales booster, too? Asking yourself these questions will help you find the right milestones to recognize with your audience, catering to different segments.

Let’s imagine that you have a SaaS business and have decided to celebrate first-year customer anniversaries. You can send different messages to people who’ve already renewed and inactive customers. Share heartwarming wishes to the first with free resources to honor them for their loyalty, and exclusive discounts to the latter to keep them on board.

In this case, we aimed at two goals simultaneously; customer satisfaction and retention. Time to pick your own goals and tailor them to customers’ lifecycle stages to boost engagement metrics.

2. Write an attractive subject line

Want to ensure that subscribers will spot your email in busy inboxes and, most importantly, open it? Then you need a special subject line that will make an impression and indulge readers to learn more.

Check out these compelling milestone email subject lines for different goals:

• Check Out Your 2025 milestones!
• Happy 1 Year! 🎁 Special Gift Inside
• 🎂 It’s Your Birthday! Enjoy a Gift!
• 500 Points! 🎉 Unlock Your Reward
• New Feature Alert! Check It Out
• 10 Years! 🎉 Join the Celebration

Overall, your subject line should be up to 40 characters and reflective of the email content. Use words hinting at celebratory vibes and if you share a special incentive, mention that too.

Unsure about the efficiency of your subject line? Use an AI writer to improve your copy based on your goals and industry or conduct A/B testing to find the winning version.

3. Hyper-personalize your messages

While milestone emails are already personalized, certain targeted email marketing tactics can lead to better results. One simple way is adding your customer’s name on the subject line or email intro.

Here’s a personalized birthday email example by Nintendo:

Subject line: Today it’s all about you, Smiles Davis!

Source

Dividing your audience into segments can maximize your conversion potential. Schedule different milestone emails to customers based on their engagement level and preferences, especially if you offer a wide range of options.

For example, if you offer wellness services, send different content to users who’ve signed up for nutritional insights and those who’ve chosen you for fitness tips. You can also use dynamic content to present different content to subscribers based on your selected criteria.

For instance, when combining your birthday emails with a discount incentive, sharing personalized product recommendations can elevate your sales.

4. Craft unique content

What should a milestone email include to be engaging and promote long-lasting relationships? Craft your email copy in a heartwarming tone to move subscribers, mentioning why you love having them as part of your community.

Depending on your goal, focus on company or customer achievements and add a few info of what to expect next. Enhance your content with engaging visuals or GIFs that emphasize the celebratory vibes.

Want to make your content even more creative? Add a GIF or infographic to grab readers’ attention faster. Plus, when offering a special incentive, ensure it’s easy to spot inside by mentioning it early on or bolding certain words. Clearly mention how to claim the reward to avoid confusion, or worst, disappointment.

5. Create a clear call-to-action

Most milestone emails come with unique incentives to delight customers who’ve engaged with the brand for long. Whether it’s a discount, a free resource, or loyalty points, invite them to complete an action to boost engagement.

Design a call-to-action button that stands out from the rest of the text to make it easy to spot and easier to tap for people who read emails on their mobile. Write action-oriented copy, especially for limited-time incentives to add a sense of urgency. “Claim now” will be more effective than “Learn more” to increase conversions.

And if you don’t offer a special reward, motivate your audience in different ways. For example, invite them to explore different opportunities your brand offers to expand their experience. Or challenge them to post their products on social media to enter a competition and claim a special prize.

6. Analyze data and refine

Once you start collecting data from your milestone emails, analyze it to determine if your goals are met. For example, if you’ve shared a discount code, open and click-through rates will show you how engaging your content was. But code redemptions will tell you whether your campaign was a success.

To nail the optimization process, apart from existing data, conduct A/B testing to see what patterns appeal to your customers the most. Overall, data-informed processes can elevate your milestone email strategy and help you create emails that leave a lasting impression to customers, by wholeheartedly acknowledging their achievements.

5 Best Milestone Email Examples & Why We Loved them

Need more inspiration for your next emails? Explore 5 milestone emails and why we chose them:

1. Peloton’s activity milestone email

Subject line: [Recipient’s Name], check out your 2024 milestones

Peloton sent a yearly review email to inform users about milestones they reached in 2024 and pump them up for next year:

Why it works:

• They created a personalized subject line including the recipients’ name to yield higher open rates.
• They built an infographic with different milestones users reached including total miles traveled and calories burned.
• They shared the recipients’ workout personality and a download option to share it with friends.

2. Teachable’s birthday email

Subject line: 🎂 It’s our birthday…

Teachable celebrated their 10th birthday offering a limited time offer to subscribers to thank them for their loyalty.

Why it works:

• They visualized the core components of the email—the birthday and incentive—to make readers spot them fast.
• They designed an outstanding CTA with direct copy to create a sense of urgency and boost conversions.
• They shared a brief description of their milestones during their journey to show customers how they’ve grown over the years.

3. BareMineral’s anniversary email

Subject line: Our anniversary gift to you? 15% OFF

BareMinerals created a customer anniversary email including the first day they met and a generous incentive to mark this day:

Why it works:

• The subject line clearly reflects the content of the email, including the incentive.
• They placed the gift at a prominent place, followed by a “Shop now” call-to-action button to create a sense of urgency.
• They added a section with personalized product recommendations to boost sales.

4. Apple’s grand reopening email

Subject line: Grand Reopening: The Apple Store, Oakridge.

Apple sent an email to invite subscribers and customers to the grand reopening of the store to celebrate this milestone together.

Why it works:

• They added valuable information about the event at the top to grab readers’ attention.
• The copy explained what customers can expect from the new store to build anticipation.
• They shared their giveaway initiative including terms and conditions to clear the air.

5. Rothy’s sustainability milestone email

Subject line: 200,000,000+ PLASTIC BOTTLES ♻

Rothy’s created a milestone email to share their recycling and sustainability achievements with customers:

Why it works:

• They proved that they stayed true to their values and met their sustainability goals.
• They thanked customers for their support and added a link to their sustainability hub to display their initiatives.
• They set expectations for similar initiatives they want to run in the future.

Premade Milestone Email Templates to Save Time

Ready to craft your next milestone email? Check out the templates below to kick off the creation process smoothly. We’ve included two HTML email templates you can simply tailor with Moosend’s editor, and two plain text ones.

1. Birthday email

Customize this email template and wish customers “Happy Birthday” on their special day. Tweak the copy to add your gift:

Customize this

2. Customer anniversary email

Use this template to celebrate customer anniversaries appropriately, leaving a lasting impression:

Tailor this

3. Customer milestone emails

Customize this template based on your service to celebrate your customers’ milestones and motivate them to thrive:

Subject Line: “100 Workouts! 🏋️‍♂️ Keep Going Strong”

Hi [Recipient’s name],

You’ve just completed your 100th workout with us! Congratulations! 🎉 This is a great achievement, and we couldn’t be prouder of your dedication and hard work.

To celebrate this milestone, we’re excited to offer you a special reward:

[Reward Details]

Keep pushing forward and reaching new heights. We’re here to support you every step of the way.

Best regards,
[Your Company Name]

4. Company milestone emails

What about your business’s achievements? Tweak this template and show your customers what you have achieved through hard work, appreciating their support along the way:

Subject Line: “10 Years! 🎉 Join the Celebration”

Dear [Recipient’s Name],

We’re celebrating a major milestone! 🎉 This year marks our 10th anniversary, and we want to thank you for being a part of our journey. Here are some the biggest milestones we reached over the years:

[Mention achievements in bullet points]

To show our appreciation, we’re offering an exclusive discount for your next purchase. Add [Code] at checkout to claim it before [Date].

Thank you for your continued support!

Warm regards,
[Your Company Name]

Milestone Email Do’s and Don’ts

Want a snackable overview of best and worst practices that will affect your milestone email performance? Here’s a checklist with important do’s and don’ts:

✅ Personalize your email by adding the recipient’s name and targeted recommendations based on data.

✅ Offer value to customers by sharing rewards or limited time offers to maximize conversions.

✅Keep the focus on the customer even when celebrating company milestones to make content that resonates with them.

❌ Avoid overwhelming the recipients with too much information. Keep the message clear and focused.

❌ Don’t neglect timing—send them at a suitable time to maximize their impact and relevance.

❌ Don’t forget the CTA—without it, customers won’t know what to do next, leading to lower conversion rates.

Making Small Achievements Count

Whether celebrating a customer’s personal milestone or a significant company achievement, milestone emails play a crucial role in fostering engagement and building lasting relationships. These moments of recognition make customers feel valued and appreciated, encouraging loyalty and continued interaction with your brand.

And remember, every milestone is an opportunity to celebrate, engage, and grow together, even small ones. In the grand scheme of things, they’re the ones that keep us going every day.