Published on August 19, 2025/Last edited on August 19, 2025/5 min read
Marketers don't wake up thinking about how much they want to send an email. They're focused on encouraging customers to take key actions—like making purchases or joining loyalty programs. Use cases make that possible, bringing together all the tools at a marketer's disposal in a focused, impactful way.
But which use cases? Many marketers operate with a small number of road-tested campaigns that serve as the foundation of their customer engagement efforts. But they may not have a full picture of what’s possible when it comes to marketing use cases, leaving high-impact programs on the shelf. That’s why we created the first version of the Braze Inspiration Guide back in 2021: To demystify what’s possible with customer engagement and to make it easier for marketers in every industry, region, and maturity level to drive stronger results where it matters.
Imagine this: Your brand needs to improve your push opt-ins, or repeat purchase rates, or 90-day retention, but you and your team aren't sure how to make it happen. The latest edition of the Braze Inspiration Guide provides a library of inspirational customer engagement campaigns that you act on (or share with relevant stakeholders) in order to boost your activation, monetization, or retention efforts.
But the customer engagement space hasn’t stood still in the years since the first version of the Braze Inspiration Guide, and we’ve worked hard to make sure the latest edition is primed to serve marketers today as they work to thrive in an exciting, challenging landscape. Let’s take a look at what’s shifted and what it means for customer engagement.
Customer engagement has changed dramatically in the last five years. New channels emerged. AI went from up-and-coming technology to must-have. Consumer expectations around personalization and privacy only became more complex. And we’ve seen the stakeholders behind customer-focused campaigns expand—with marketers joined by growth hackers, product managers, and many others.
Some use cases are classics—it's hard to imagine onboarding campaigns or abandoned carts going anywhere. But just like marketing, this guide is anything but static. Over the five years since its launch, we've seen the number of use cases it contains grow by 32%. Retention campaigns remain dominant, reflecting a continued focus on driving loyalty in a challenging environment. At the same time, activation campaigns are growing faster than any other category (+45%), reflecting the high acquisition costs and tight budgets that are making it increasingly essential for brands to set up new users for success.
The number of channels that brands can use to activate these use cases is also on the rise, doubling since 2021. That increase is largely driven by the emergence of messaging apps as a major new way to engage users, as well as the emergence of new in-product and non-traditional channels (like landing pages).
As we head toward 2026, the picture is clear: More campaigns, across more of the funnel, on more channels than ever before. But while the possibilities are vast, it’s important not to lose focus—while we identified more than 55 use cases in this edition of the Braze Inspiration Guide, different brands will have different needs and savvy marketers will be strategic about which ones they test and implement in the coming year. One new use case, thoughtfully and effectively executed, can have more of an impact than a dozen that lack the strategy and support needed to succeed.
Inspiration takes time, focus, and support. And it can be hard to aim high when you can’t see what’s possible. This guide provides the building blocks for true, creative ideation, drawing on real-life campaigns from Braze customers to help marketers understand what's achievable—and how to achieve it. Dream big, even if you need to start small. Try out different channels or tools. Test and iterate and optimize. And make these use cases your own. We can’t wait to see where you take it.
From onboarding to abandoned cart campaigns to loyalty program messaging and so much more, the Braze Inspiration Guide is your roadmap to exceptional customer engagement.
Forward-Looking Statements
This blog post contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including but not limited to, statements regarding the performance of and expected benefits from Braze and its products and features. These forward-looking statements are based on the current assumptions, expectations and beliefs of Braze, and are subject to substantial risks, uncertainties and changes in circumstances that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Further information on potential factors that could affect Braze results are included in the Braze Annual Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended April 30, 2025, filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on June 6, 2025, and the other public filings of Braze with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The forward-looking statements included in this blog post represent the views of Braze only as of the date of this blog post, and Braze assumes no obligation, and does not intend to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by law.
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