01
Paid media
Acquisition gets judged on customer value, not first order cost, so you can afford to bid for the customers who come back.
Retention marketing
Retention marketing that turns first orders into repeat customers.
If you're paying to acquire customers who buy once and disappear, more ads won't fix it. I map who comes back, who doesn't and why, then build the email, SMS and lifecycle programs that turn first purchases into recurring demand.
I'm Monica Hacker, a fractional CMO and retention marketing consultant for DTC, beauty and wellness, subscription and healthcare brands, in New York and Miami.
$10M+in ad spend managed
6.2xreturn on ad spend
$2MARR, grown from $300K for one brand
60%lower cost to acquire a customer
“She doesn't just come in and tell you what you should be doing. She actually gets in there and does it.”
Aaron, Growth Director, HuggiesWhy repeat purchase stalls
Most retention programs run on a calendar, not on the customer.
The usual setup is a welcome series, an abandoned cart flow and a weekly campaign to the whole list. It looks busy. But nobody has asked which customers come back on their own, which ones need a reason, and which ones were never going to buy twice.
Without that, every customer gets the same discount at the same time. You train buyers to wait for codes, and the ones who would have reordered anyway cost you margin.
What I build
The lifecycle program, in the order it pays.
1
Map the lifecycle
Who buys a second time, how long it takes, what they bought first, and where people drop. This decides everything else.
2
Fix the flows that carry revenue
Welcome, browse and cart abandonment, post purchase, replenishment and win back, timed to how your customers actually reorder.
3
Use email and SMS for different jobs
Email to educate and build the routine. SMS for timely reasons to act. Fewer sends, sent to the right people.
4
Build for subscription and replenishment
For subscription and membership brands: onboarding, skip and pause instead of cancel, and saving customers before they churn.
5
Measure the right number
Repeat purchase rate, time to second order and revenue per customer, not open rates.
Where it connects
Retention works best when it is not on its own.
02
The site
Product pages, bundles and the post purchase experience set up the second order before the first box arrives.
03
One owner
Retention sits inside the growth plan with one person answering for the total, which is the seat I take as a fractional CMO.
Tools and fit
Klaviyo, HubSpot or whatever you already run.
I work hands on in Klaviyo and HubSpot, and inside whatever platform you're on. I'll tell you if the tool is the problem, but it rarely is.
Retention runs as part of my fractional CMO engagement, or as a scoped project after a Growth Audit shows where repeat revenue is leaking.
What does a retention marketing consultant do?
Maps who comes back and why, then builds and runs the email, SMS and lifecycle programs that increase repeat purchase and customer lifetime value.
How do I fix a repeat purchase problem?
Start by finding who buys twice and how long it takes. Then build post purchase, replenishment and win back flows timed to that, instead of discounting the whole list.
Do you work in Klaviyo?
Yes, and HubSpot, plus whatever platform you already use.
Do you work with subscription brands?
Yes. Subscription and membership retention is a big part of the work: onboarding, pause and skip options, and saving customers before they cancel.
How much does retention marketing cost?
It runs inside my fractional CMO engagement, which starts at $8,500 a month, or as a scoped project after a $2,500 Growth Audit.
Customers buying once and disappearing?
Bring your repeat rate if you know it, or just the problem. You'll leave knowing where repeat revenue is leaking.
Book a call →Thirty minutes. Bring your numbers, or just bring the problem. You'll leave knowing what I'd fix first.
