Marketing technology is constantly changing. Brands are competing for attention on every avenue, including marketing through influencers, using chatbots or streaming live video to reach their customer base.
These marketing trends can yield fruitful results, but you shouldn’t overlook one of the oldest and most effective forms of communication — email.
It’s safe to say that email isn’t dead. Email marketing still generates up to 3,500% ROI. Plus, with the advantages of email workflow automation, leveraging this valuable marketing tactic is easier than ever. So there’s no excuse to leave an entire database of opportunities on the table.
In this post, I’ll break down how to build and leverage a successful email automation strategy. I’ll also share some of the best email automation workflows you can implement today to engage customers for a lifetime.
Table of Contents
- What Is Email Automation?
- Why Should You Automate Your Marketing Emails?
- 7 Email Automation Workflows to Start Using Today
What’s an Email Automation Workflow?
Email automation is a process that allows your company to send time or action-triggered emails to subscribers. Once the workflow is triggered—for example, someone signs up for your newsletter or a free trial of your software—each email within that flow is sent out automatically at the intervals you’ve set.
Email automation campaigns are successful due to their individualized nature and time-saving benefits. Because these campaigns utilize a basic trigger and action system, an email can be set up once and used continuously every time a contact sets off the trigger.
Take a look at our favorite email personalization examples to inspire your targeted marketing strategy.
Why Should You Automate Your Marketing Emails?
For most businesses, email automation is crucial. 96% of visitors who arrive at a website aren’t ready to make a purchase yet. However, they’ve conveyed a certain level of interest which makes them potential customers and open to your brand’s communications.
Email marketing is useful for nurturing prospective leads that can turn into future business. By sending emails regularly, you can build relationships with customers by providing valuable content or offers. Your contacts will also consider your brand whenever they see a message from you.
Learn how Human can help you develop a powerful email marketing strategy.
Email automation can be mistaken for a robotic process with no predefined strategy, but that’s not the case. Email automation systems allow for in-depth customization and streamlined drip campaigns.
Good software can help you segment according to categories such as:
- Company type
- Job title
- Location
- Age
- Gender
- Potential interests
- Lead source
With this information, you can develop an email strategy that targets demographics closely related to specific products and services, keeping them engaged for the long haul. Growing a business isn’t just about attracting customers — it’s about retaining them on a long-term basis.
Next, I’ll share some of the best email automation examples you can begin using ASAP.
The 7 Best Email Automation Workflows to Start Using Today
Check out our seven top workflow and email series ideas to nurture your contacts and build value for your brand.
1. Subscriber Welcome Workflow
- Main Trigger: Subscribing to your blog or newsletter
- Goal: Send resourceful and engaging content over time
Build relationships with new customers by getting them to subscribe to your blog. Send a welcome email thanking them for subscribing while enlightening them on your blog’s benefits. Be sure to follow up regularly with engaging content.
2. New Customer Welcome Workflow
- Main Trigger: Lifecycle stage
- Goal: Provide continuous value about your products or services
Send a series of emails thanking customers for their business and offering additional value about your brand’s products or services. For example, if your company sells curtains, you can ask buyers how they’re enjoying their curtains so far. Then, send a newsletter that shares unique and creative ways to hang curtains.
A welcome workflow is a great way to foster a relationship and keep customers engaged after they make purchases. In the future, they’ll be more willing to purchase from you again. Establishing long-term relationships with customers is exponentially more profitable than a one-time transaction.
3. Engaged Contact Workflow
- Main Trigger: Visits, clicks or form submissions
- Goal: Turn top customers into long-term evangelists
Consider setting up a dynamic list for customers that are already highly engaged with your brand. Triggers might include a threshold of website visits, clicks on emails or engagements with social media posts. These individuals follow your business closely, so they’re more likely to promote your content to their network or purchase again from you in the future.
4. Lead Nurture Workflow
- Main Trigger: Top-of-the-funnel conversions
- Goal: Turn leads into conversions
If a contact has already downloaded your content, they might be ready to take the next step or make a purchase. A lead nurture workflow allows your brand to stay on the mind of potential customers, create awareness and build trust. You should provide content such as customer success stories, free trial offers or product demos.
5. Re-engagement Workflow
- Main Trigger: Lack of activity
- Goal: Resurface contacts’ interest and engagement
It’s essential to make an effort to reconnect with contacts who haven’t interacted with your business recently. If a contact hasn’t made a purchase, visited your website or clicked on emails lately, you should attempt to re-engage them. Try sending exclusive offers such as discount codes or special promotions to revitalize their interest.
Read: Should You Say Goodbye to Inactive Email Subscribers?
6. Abandoned Cart Workflow
- Main Trigger: Leaving items in shopping cart
- Goal: Get interested customers to complete their purchase
Ecommerce businesses can always benefit from an abandoned shopping cart workflow. If a customer adds items to their shopping cart but doesn’t complete their purchase, you can trigger a series of emails to remind them. Offer an incentive or discount to motivate them to check out.
7. Upsell Workflow
- Main Trigger: Past purchases
- Goal: Increase the number of repeat customers
Businesses often fail to continue communication after a customer makes a purchase. However, workflows can be used to turn existing customers into repeat customers. Promote related items or suggest other things the customer may be interested in purchasing. Segment your lists based on the purchase of certain items, so you can create workflows that promote related products or services.
Bolster Your Email Marketing Strategy With Personalize
Creating compelling, dynamic email content can be difficult. It’s even more challenging to know where to start if your business has a large database or offers multiple products or services. Luckily, Human has a solution for you.
Personalize is a revolutionary AI-powered tool designed to optimize your email strategy and help you target the customers you want.
If you’re looking for a way to create unique, engaging emails, you should be aware of what your customers want or are interested in at any given time.
Your contacts’ preferences can change at any moment. Personalize provides real-time insights into individuals’ top three interests so you’re always in the loop with what your contacts want. You’ll garner valuable data that helps you create automated email marketing campaigns and workflows to maximize your marketing strategy.
Ready to start creating content that your customers want? Boost email engagement rates and customer lifetime value by signing up for a free trial today!
