10 Types Of Automation Workflows In Email Marketing

Automated workflows remove the need for manual list scrubbing, sender verification, and list expansion tasks (all essential tasks before sending). Automation software takes care of all of these processes behind the scenes, saving you and your team countless hours throughout the year.

With zero chance of user error when using workflow automation tools, you won't have to worry about missing a step or having a task executed at the wrong time. This also safeguards your company’s reputation by sending the right emails at the right time.

With all of the tasks being automated, you'll save money that would've otherwise been spent on labor and less efficient tools.

This money can be invested in other areas of your business that can help it to keep on scaling by putting the right resources (people or tools) in place.

Sending on a more conducive schedule that adapts to your recipients' preferences leads to higher open/click rates, lower spam complaint rates, and better performance overall. It can also reduce the effects of email behavior filters on deliverability.

One of the most significant benefits of an email workflow automation solution is that it allows us to communicate more quickly and efficiently with the right people. Once a bulk mailing job has been assigned to an automation platform, it can process thousands or tens of thousands of emails in minutes (rather than hours or days). This means we can send larger mailings more frequently and not worry about needing to wait a long time to see visible results.

Having an automated campaign workflow tool at your disposal also allows you to send follow-up emails much more quickly; many workflows include tasks like sending second reminder emails at a set-time after an initial campaign is sent out.

In addition to sending higher volumes of emails, you can create pre defined business rules that allow you to create more targeted campaigns. Automation software will allow you to upload your existing customer lists and merge them with other data sources such as email activity, website activity, and CRM records. All of this ensures that the majority of your audience receives relevant content tailored to their interests and needs – not just another one-size-fits-all bulk mailing like we've all seen many times before.

Marketers can start the process of automating workflows by ensuring that new subscribers receive a welcome email after they've joined your newsletter list. You can automate this workflow using something as simple as double opt-in to ensure that only subscribers who want to receive emails from you will actually do so.

If you have an eCommerce shop, then product launch follow-up workflows are essential in helping you keep track of campaigns over time. When someone has visited your website, ended up on your checkout page but didn't make a purchase, your workflow process can automatically send them a cart abandonment email. This email will remind them of the items they could buy and why getting that product would help solve a problem they have or give them another solution that hasn't yet been possible.

This workflow example should be used in conjunction with your product feed to ensure that after a user has visited specific product pages on your site, they receive tailored content and offers for products related to their initial interest.

You can use re-engagement workflow tools to automatically send an email reminding users of an upcoming expiration date of an incentive or promotion you’re running. You could even send out multiple emails offering higher value incentives if recipients don't take the initial one within a specific timeframe.

This workflow example reminds existing customers about benefits they already know about but may have forgotten about over time; it also allows you to entice new customers by offering even more superb deals to encourage initial purchases.

Of course, it's not just during the launch of a product or service that you'll want to send out email newsletters; you should also do so regularly as part of your marketing strategy. That's where automated workflow tools can help save time and effort with monthly, quarterly, or yearly email campaigns that are sent out automatically based on scheduling settings implemented in your newsletter software.

Set business rules that define when a newsletter is sent out and who it's being sent to - all via the right workflow automation processes.

If you use automation software, the logic needs to be smart enough to analyze current email KPIs and email metrics (such as click-through rates of existing campaigns) to determine which ones could do better with additional optimizations. By implementing business rules that recognize when a particular campaign isn't performing well or has been paused because it's not considered beneficial anymore, your email automation process can iterate on failed campaigns that didn't meet their performance goals.

This workflow example saves time and resources by ensuring that campaigns that don't meet their performance goals are automatically improved or updated as needed without manual intervention from marketers.

Workflow software can also be used to track when users have been automatically added to your email list, then send them messages that congratulate them on making it this far. This is a great way to keep subscribers engaged and provide incentives for doing business with you; offering discounts or future exclusive offers can be a couple of methods to make use of.

Real-time product recommendations are a great way to offer personalized shopping experiences based on browsing activities and preferences of existing or prospective customers. The aim with this email workflow is simply to improve your conversions. This workflow example sends out relevant offers in real-time based on a number of factors that can easily be tracked on your website.

Another way marketing automation can be applied is to send prospects and existing customers feedback requests after purchase or engagement with your business. This is an effective way to gather opinions about your products/services so that you can make informed decisions regarding overall strategy, especially if you're involved in retail, B2B sales and eCommerce.

This workflow example efficiently gathers information from users who opted in for such communications. It allows you to find weak links in your marketing, sales or even the products themselves; all of which can be taken into consideration and fixed. You’ll also be involving your customers in helping make the products they’re using that much better.

Another application of marketing automation is in creating a membership site, which gives you the ability to reward your most loyal customers. Such members are given special benefits that encourage them to remain active on an ongoing basis. 

New benefits can be offered over time based on engagement with specific content or features of the membership site. This is a great way to build up an audience for your business that knows, likes and trusts you.