If you're running a Shopify store, you know how important it is to keep customers coming back. One of the most effective ways to encourage repeat purchases is by sending discount coupons immediately after a customer places an order. But doing this manually for every order is time-consuming and inefficient.
Today, I'm going to show you the simplest, easiest and cheapest way that I know to send a customer a new coupon right after they order in Shopify.
The Solution: Make Automation Platform
We're going to be using a platform called Make, and you do not need a developer to do so. It is much cheaper than any other alternative that I know, including things like Klaviyo or other email platforms. It's very easy to set up and you can actually customize it very well.
Make is an automation platform that allows you to connect Shopify by receiving Shopify orders, then creating a coupon code, and then sending the email. It's really straightforward to implement.
What We're Building
Our automation scenario does three simple things:
- Captures new orders from your Shopify store
- Creates a unique coupon code automatically
- Emails the coupon to the customer immediately
Let me walk you through each step.
Step 1: Setting Up the Webhook Connection
First, you'll need to create a Make account. You can use the free tier to test everything out.
The process starts with setting up a custom webhook. A webhook is simply a way for you to send all the order information from Shopify to Make automatically.
Here's how to set it up:
- In Make, create a new scenario and add a "Custom Webhook"
- Copy the webhook URL that Make provides
- In your Shopify admin, go to Settings → Notifications → Webhooks
- Create a new webhook for "Order creation"
- Paste the Make webhook URL and save
Make will verify that it works correctly by testing with a new order, ensuring you receive all the proper order data.
Step 2: Creating Automatic Coupon Codes
Next, you'll connect to Shopify's discount system. Before setting up the automation, create a template coupon in your Shopify admin (like "20% off coupon") with whatever parameters you want:
- Percentage or fixed amount discount
- Minimum order requirements
- Usage limitations
- Expiration dates
This template will be the basis for all automatically generated coupons.
In Make, you'll add the "Create a new discount code" action from Shopify. You can generate unique codes using random 8-letter combinations, ensuring each customer gets their own exclusive coupon that can't be shared or guessed.
Step 3: Email Delivery Setup
For the email component, you can use Gmail or any other email provider. Make will need authorization to send emails on your behalf.
Important security tip: Create a dedicated email address (like coupons@yourdomain.com) specifically for this automation. Don't give Make access to emails you use for your main business account.
The email setup pulls the customer's email address from the webhook data and can include personalized elements like:
- Customer's first name
- The unique coupon code that was just generated
- Custom messaging about the discount
- HTML formatting for a professional look
Cost Breakdown: Why This Solution Wins
Here's what makes this approach so cost-effective:
- Small businesses with less than 333 orders/month: Completely FREE
- Up to 3,333 orders/month: Only $9-10/month
- More than 3,333 orders/month: Additional $5-10 per each additional ~3,333 orders
Why exactly 333 orders for the free tier? Because our automation flow has three steps (called "operations" in Make), and the free package gives you 1,000 operations per month. Three operations per order means you can process 333 orders automatically without paying anything.
Compare this to enterprise email marketing solutions that can cost hundreds of dollars per month, and you'll see why this approach is so attractive for growing businesses.
Testing Your Automation
Before going live, always test your automation:
- Create a test order in your Shopify admin
- Verify the webhook triggers correctly
- Check that a unique coupon code is generated
- Confirm the email is sent with proper formatting
- Test the coupon code works in your store
Beyond Just Coupons
What we've shown you with Make is just the beginning. This automation platform opens up possibilities for many more Shopify integrations and workflows:
- Inventory management alerts
- Customer segmentation based on purchase behavior
- Abandoned cart recovery sequences
- Social media posting for new products
- Integration with accounting software
Security Best Practices
When setting up any automation that handles customer data:
- Use dedicated email addresses for automation
- Regularly review and update access permissions
- Monitor automation logs for any issues
- Set up appropriate filters to prevent spam or abuse
- Test thoroughly before deploying to production
Getting Started
Ready to implement this automation for your Shopify store? I've created a complete step-by-step video tutorial that shows every single step of the process, including screen sharing of the entire setup.
Watch the full walkthrough here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVUCk1O40h4
The tutorial covers everything from account setup to testing, so you can follow along and have your automation running in about 30 minutes.
Need Help?
If you have any questions about this automation, technical parts you don't understand, or want help with more complex scenarios, feel free to reach out. At One Scales, we're here to help businesses implement practical automation solutions that drive real results.
You can contact us through our website, social media channels, or leave questions in the video comments. We're always happy to help with variations or more advanced implementations of this workflow.
This post is part of our ongoing series on practical business automation. Subscribe to our newsletter to get the latest tutorials and automation strategies delivered to your inbox.
Tags: Shopify, E-commerce Automation, Customer Retention, Make.com, Email Marketing, Business Automation
