How NVL Hair made $27,000 in 7 days from a dormant customer list
17 March 2025
Every business has one. A customer list from years of trading, sitting in a system nobody opens. NVL Hair's went back more than eight years, with mobile numbers from before TikTok existed.
They'd never run an end of financial year sale. They had stock to clear and no plan for it. Here's what we did, and what came back.
The result
| Contacts messaged | 6,300+ past customers |
| SMS cost | Just over $900 |
| Sales | $27,000 in seven days |
| Return | About 30 times the spend |
| Discounting | Clearance stock only, new stock stayed full price |
What is a customer reactivation campaign?
A reactivation campaign is a message to past customers who've gone quiet, with a simple reason to come back now. It's usually the cheapest money a business can make, because the people already know you. You're reminding, not persuading.
What we sent
One short text to everyone who'd bought from NVL before, linking straight to the clearance range. No long story, no discount on everything. A reason, a link and the business name, plus a reply STOP line.
Some of the orders came from people who hadn't bought in close to a decade. They hadn't gone anywhere. Nobody had asked.
Why it worked
- They already knew NVL. Past customers don't need convincing that a business is real.
- There was a reason to act now. End of financial year and limited clearance stock.
- Texts get read. An SMS lands on the lock screen. An email lands in a promotions tab.
- It protected the margin. Only clearance lines were reduced, so the sale didn't train customers to wait for discounts.
The $27,000 is only the first week. It doesn't count the customers who came back and kept buying.
How to run one properly
- Start with real customers. People who bought from you. Never bought or purchased lists.
- Clean the list. Remove anyone who has opted out before, and obvious bad numbers.
- Give a reason. A season, a clearance, a new service, a quiet week to fill.
- Keep it short. Your name, the reason, one link, and how to opt out.
- Send in daylight. Between 9am and 8pm, not on Sunday morning.
- Have someone ready for replies. Reactivations get conversations, not just clicks.
The rules
Texting past customers is allowed when you have consent, which can be inferred from an existing business relationship. Every message needs your business name and a working opt out, and opt outs have to be honoured within five business days. If someone never bought from you, don't text them.
Questions people ask
What is a customer reactivation campaign?
A message, usually by SMS, to past customers who haven't bought in a while, with a clear reason to come back. It works because they already know you, so you're reminding rather than persuading.
Is it legal to text old customers in Australia?
It can be, if they bought from you and you have consent to message them, which can be inferred from an existing business relationship. Every message needs your business name and a working opt out, and opt outs must be honoured within five business days.
How much does an SMS reactivation campaign cost?
NVL's cost just over $900 for more than 6,300 contacts, a few cents a message. The SMS cost calculator shows the price per text for your own list.
Got a list collecting dust? It's often the fastest win in a revenu build. Book a chat and we'll look at what yours could do.
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