What is a Drip Campaign?

Drip campaigns are an automated way of sending targeted, personalized - so more relevant -, and perfectly timed campaigns. As a result, they contribute to building relationships with your audience, demonstrating you can cater to their needs in a timely manner, and as such turn visitors into buyers, boost sales, re-engage your audience, and increase repeat purchases.

For any kind of Drip Campaign, there are certain steps you need to take while setting up your series of messages:

• Prepare the content of your emails, including the personalized fields and the dynamic content blocks
• Determine which type of engagement points will trigger each message (e.g. someone places an order, abandons their cart, adds a product to favorites, doesn’t place a product for a while, etc.)
• Set up your strategic automation plan or the preset schedule according to which the campaigns will be sent out.
• Monitor how your various emails are working, their click rates, and conversion rates, and be prepared to make tweaks based on what you learn.

Drip Campaigns are excellent for letting automation run its course while you focus your resources on other priorities. As mentioned earlier, you can determine what will trigger your campaigns, so you can accompany each potential or existing customer alongside their shopping journey, from onboarding to post-purchase cross-sale product recommendations. So let’s take a look at some examples of Drip Campaigns:

Date-based automations

This kind of campaign enables you to communicate with your audience on key occasions, such as birthdays or anniversaries, or - if you offer subscription-based services - when their subscription is about to renew or expire.

Craft your messages in a way that shows them they matter to you and use this opportunity to remind them of the value your business brings them, how they’ve benefited from your services so far, or even surprise them with a special deal to make them feel extra appreciated.

Automations based on users’ behavior

These kinds of campaigns are some of the most popular among online businesses, and they include:

• Welcome email series - they refer to the messages users receive when signing up; they are a great chance to give newcomers more information about your business and what it can offer, details about upcoming events, or even a welcome coupon or a discount to lead them further down the sales funnel.
• First purchase - reaching out to your customers as soon as they complete their first purchase can be a great opportunity to thank them and remind them about the product quality, features, and the additional services they could benefit from, such as free returns, for example. Moreover, you can recommend complementary products or items other customers have purchased, to further confirm that they’ve made a good decision.
• Product recommendations - as mentioned earlier, suggesting complementary products, new, popular, or soon-to-be out-of-stock items can be a great way of boosting your sales. You can send product recommendations with your order confirmation emails, or a few days, weeks, or even months after the purchase. For example, if someone buys a water purifying system, you can follow up 3 weeks later with an email recommending replacement filters.
• Cart abandonment - users abandon their carts on a regular basis. And a well-crafted abandoned cart email series can encourage them to reassess their decision and, as such, contribute to your bottom line. Don’t stick only to the products they left in their cart - maximize your chances and make additional product recommendations, from the same collection, brand, etc.
• Lead nurturing - you can use Drip Campaigns to further engage prospects that are showing active interest. If someone registers for one of your events, downloads free content from your website, or uses an interactive tool, you can send them a series of emails with additional tips, product recommendations, or offers, to provide additional value and encourage them to convert.