Got 5+ SKUs? You’re Leaving Money on the Table.

Let’s talk about your gateway drug - the product that turns first-time buyers into loyal customers.

Cohort analysis. You’ve seen it - the endless table of dates, percentages, and retention rates. It tells you a lot of things, from when your customers return, the ‘perfect time’ to send win-back campaigns, and where your LTV comes from.

(example below of a blended cohort analysis of 30 brands - totaling 9 figs+ in GMV)

But here’s what most brands miss: looking at retention on a product level.

The Shopify ‘Cohort Inclusion’ Goldmine

Inside Shopify’s cohort analysis, there’s a hidden gem - Cohort Inclusion.

Enter one of your SKUs and you’ll see something eye-opening:
👉 Which product brings back the most repeat buyers.
👉 Which one drives the highest LTV over time.

Let’s say you sell five types of shirts in five colors.

Which color is the ultimate gateway product - the one that turns first-time buyers into repeat customers?

Here’s how you find out:
1️⃣ Run a cohort analysis for each product.
2️⃣ Track the first 2 and 4-month repurchase rates.
(this might differ based on your repurchase cycles)
3️⃣ Compare them.

If blue wins, that tells you:
✅ It’s your best entry-point product - the one first-time buyers love.
✅ It delivers the highest satisfaction, making repeat purchases more likely.
✅ You should double down on traffic, landing pages, and offers for this SKU.

Does that mean you’ll scale it forever?
No. Nothing stays constant at high spend.

But if you know what delights a first-time buyer, you can optimize everything else - traffic, landing pages, post-purchase flows - to drive the highest LTV and profit.

And that’s a wrap!

This is one of our deeper tactics, and honestly - I can’t believe I’m sharing it here for free.

But that’s the point. We want to give you so much value that you start thinking…

"If this is what they’re giving away, imagine what they do for their clients."

Well, there’s only one way to find out. 😉

Q1 is wrapping up fast. If your retention setup isn’t where it should be, let’s fix that - so you can start Q2 strong.

Chat with our team here.