He didn't leave angry, he changed his route
Thomas came every week for two years. In November, his office moved to the other side of town. Nothing reminds him you exist any more.
November: his office moves
Hello Antoine,
It's been a while since we've seen you, and we miss you! Good news: we're now open on Saturdays until 6 pm.
Simply show this message in the shop. See you soon,
Julien
Six months away, and the return
He'd lost sight of you,
a note and a gift brought him back.
Forgetting isn't a judgement
He changed his route, he no longer walks past your shop. He came one Monday, you were closed, he went elsewhere. He speaks well of you and hasn't been in for eleven months. He thinks you've closed, nothing from you has reached him. And the day someone writes it's been a while, he feels caught out. Insee Première no. 2073, September 2025, mobility 2023. CNIL, Commercial management guidelines, 28 January 2022: retention during the relationship, then three years. Law no. 2025-594 of 30 June 2025, applicable from 11 August 2026, phone calls.
You decide, step by step, what you hand over
Here's the message for Thomas, step by step. For each one, say whether it goes through Atlas® or stays as it is today, then run the simulation.
He reads your name, and he smiles
The shop's name first, not an unknown number. He hadn't left you, he'd lost sight of you.
He learns something
Longer opening hours, something new, an address that's moved two streets over. A piece of information that didn't exist at his last visit.
Nothing is asked of him, and he can leave
No code, no deadline, no reply needed. A line at the bottom says how to stop receiving messages, and he can go.
Whatever your volume
Book an assessmentFrom €400 excl. VAT set-up fee, one time only
Indicative estimate, not a firm price: the exact rate is agreed with you at the assessment.
Does this module speak to you? See what it does with your figures.
What goes on in his head while he no longer comes
Nobody decides to stop. You space it out, you forget, you pick up another habit. Each month makes coming back a little less obvious.
Two months: he hasn't noticed a thing
Without a word from you. For him nothing has changed: he'll go next week, as usual. Except next week has been going on for eight weeks.
With a word from you. Nothing goes out, and that's deliberate. At two months he isn't lost, he's late. Writing now would be a reproach.
Six months: he's picked up another habit
Without a word from you. He stops elsewhere, near his new office. It isn't better, it's on the way. He still likes you and never thinks of you.
With a word from you. Four lines arrive, with no discount and no reproach: you're open Saturdays until 6 pm. He didn't know, and on Saturdays he's free.
One year: he thinks you've closed
Without a word from you. A year without news, for a customer, means gone. He doesn't check: he's crossed your name off without even realising.
With a word from you. He discovers you're still there, and what you're doing that's new. He doesn't come back out of loyalty, he comes back because he has a fresh reason.
The limits, stated up front
The message that reproaches
- It's been a while since we've seen you. He reads: you owe us something. He never promised anything
- We miss you, come back soon. He reads: they're struggling. Nobody comes back out of pity
- 20 per cent off to welcome you back. He reads: so I paid too much on my last visit
The message that informs
- We're now open Saturdays until 6 pm. He reads: on Saturdays, I'm free. Nobody asks anything of him
- Gluten-free has been on the shelves since April. He reads: it wasn't for me, now it is. A fresh reason
- We're at 12 rue Pasteur, 200 m away. He reads: they haven't closed. He thought the opposite
Will I look like I'm begging? Announcing opening hours or something new isn't a request, it's information: you're asking for nothing, so he has nothing to refuse. Will I remind him that he left? He doesn't know he left, and that's why we don't tell him: we never count the months out loud. Won't he unsubscribe? Some will, and so much the better: they wouldn't have read anything anyway. A simple way to stop receiving messages is compulsory, the CNIL requires it. Some won't come back. The one who moved far away won't pass by again, the one who left unhappy is waiting for things to be put right. Beyond two messages, you create an annoyed one.
What the note brings back to you
600 customers, 150 without a visit for six months. Insee: 8.8 per cent move home each year, two in three out of town. So 9 gone, 141 forgotten.