How We Took a Wellness Creator (@yourcoachclaire) from 11% to 56% Open Rates in Just 40 Days
Fixing the Invisible Funnel Blockers
Claire, a fitness and wellness creator, came to us with a list of engaged followers and high-quality content — but her emails were falling flat. Despite her best efforts, her campaigns were consistently landing in spam and promotions tabs, capping her reach and killing momentum.
The problem wasn’t the message. It was the infrastructure.
The Partner
Claire (@yourcoachclaire) is a fast-growing wellness influencer sharing science-backed advice on fitness, nutrition, and personal growth. With a loyal Instagram community and a desire to scale her digital coaching programs, email was the next logical growth lever.
But behind-the-scenes issues were stalling that potential — and that’s where we stepped in.
The Challenge
Get emails out of spam, warm up an inactive list, and turn cold opens into high-intent engagement — fast.
Claire’s email system had all the wrong signals:
📉 Open rates stuck at ~11%
❌ DMARC, SPF, and DKIM records missing
📬 Bounce rates high, list hygiene poor
🧊 A cold list with >12 months of no interaction
⚠️ ESP configuration working against her
The goal: Build a clean, reliable foundation and warm up the list without losing subscribers or inbox reputation.
The Strategy
Build Deliverability. Build Trust. Build the Funnel.
Here’s how we rebuilt her email engine from the inside out:
Set up proper email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) to restore sender trust and get off blacklists
Scrubbed and cleaned her list of cold, bounced, and unengaged subscribers
Implemented a 2-week warm-up flow, using strategic segmentation to reintroduce her emails gradually
Deployed an anti-promo banner to improve inbox placement for Gmail and Apple Mail
Configured her ESP settings based on industry best practices to maintain a positive sending reputation
Results & Metrics
📈 From 11% → 56% Average Open Rates in Under 2 Months
5x
jump in average open rates
100%
Major increase in click-through and engagemen
0 list
growth needed — results came entirely from fixing backend and reactivating existing fans
Claire now sends weekly emails with confidence, knowing they’ll actually be seen — and sell.