What is Email Automation & Best Tools You Should Use?

Have you ever wondered how businesses can send timely, personalized emails to thousands of customers with just a few clicks? 

The answer is email automation. 

This post will demystify email automation, explain what it is, why you need it and which tools to use. 

Curious about how to save time, increase engagement, and drive sales with automated emails? Read on to find out how email automation can be a game changer for your business. 

Let’s get into email automation and the top tools you can start using today.

Key takeaways

• Email automation helps increase revenue by sending targeted and personalized messages at optimal times to drive conversions.
• Automating repetitive tasks saves time and allows your team to focus on strategic initiatives, improving overall productivity.
• Email automation tools enable the creation of customized email sequences that deliver relevant content based on customer behavior and preferences.
• Using advanced email automation tools gives your business an edge over competitors by executing sophisticated and responsive marketing campaigns.
• SMB Guide recommends platforms like Mailchimp, ActiveCampaign, and Kit that have robust features to help businesses implement effective email automation strategies.

Understanding email automation

Email automation refers to the use of technology to send emails to a defined audience based on triggers or schedules.

This can be welcome emails to new subscribers, follow-ups after a purchase, or even reminders for abandoned carts. Essentially, it allows businesses to manage their email marketing without manual intervention.

Email automation has come a long way since the early days of email marketing. The first email was sent in 1971 by Ray Tomlinson, marking the birth of digital communication.

As the Internet became commercially available in the 1990s, businesses started to see the potential of email as a marketing tool. Marketers initially sent bulk emails manually which was time-consuming and inefficient.

In the late 1990s and early 2000s, technology advancements allowed for the development of email marketing software which could automate the sending of emails.

This innovation allowed businesses to create complex campaigns with personalized messages sent at the right time and improve their marketing efforts.

Today, email automation is a key part of digital marketing strategies across all industries. Modern email automation platforms offer features like segmentation, personalization and analytics to help businesses deliver targeted messages to their audience. 

According to a report by Statista, the global email marketing market was $7.5 billion in 2020 and is expected to be $17.9 billion by 2027, so it’s growing incredibly fast.

By understanding and leveraging email automation the right way, businesses can save time, increase engagement, and drive conversions more effectively.

How does email automation work?

Email automation works by using software to send emails based on pre-set triggers or schedules. It involves several key parts and steps to make sure the right message gets to the right person at the right time.

How it works:

Here’s the general workflow and how it goes.

1. Set Triggers: Triggers are specific events or actions that make the automated email go out. Common triggers are a new subscriber joining your list, a customer buying, or someone abandoning their cart.
2. Create Email Templates: Businesses create email templates for different scenarios, like welcome emails, order confirmations, or promotional offers. These templates are designed to be easily customizable with dynamic content like the subscriber’s name or product details.
3. Segment Your Audience: Audience segmentation involves dividing your email list into smaller groups based on specific criteria like demographics, purchase history, or engagement level. This allows for more targeted messaging.
4. Personalize Messages: Email automation tools allow you to personalize emails making them more engaging. Personalized elements can be the subscriber’s name, personalized product recommendations, or content tailored to their preferences and behaviors.
5. Schedule or Trigger Emails: Once the triggers are set and the templates are ready the emails are either scheduled to go out at specific times or automatically go out when the trigger events happen.
6. Monitor and Analyze: Email automation tools have analytics and reporting features to track your campaigns. Metrics like open rates, click-through rates, and conversion rates will give you insight into how your emails are performing and where you can improve.

What email automation can do

• Welcome Emails: Send a welcome message to new subscribers or customers and set the tone for your relationship.
• Transactional Emails: Send order confirmations, shipping notifications, and receipts after a purchase.
• Abandoned Cart Emails: Remind customers of items left in their cart and encourage them to complete the purchase.
• Birthday or Anniversary Emails: Celebrate special occasions with personalized offers or greetings.
• Re-engagement Campaigns: Reach out to inactive subscribers with targeted messages to win them back.
• Lead Nurturing: Send a series of emails to nurture leads through the sales funnel based on their interactions and behavior.

Why is email automation important?

Email automation is a key part of modern digital marketing for businesses and e-commerce sites. It has many benefits that can impact growth, efficiency, and customer engagement.

Time and effort

One of the biggest benefits of email automation is the time it saves. By automating the sending of welcome emails, order confirmations, and follow up emails, businesses can save a lot of time.

Marketing teams can then focus on the strategic work of content creation and campaign optimization rather than manual email management.

Personalized customer experience

Email automation allows businesses to send highly personalized messages at scale. By using customer data and behavior triggers, automated emails can be tailored to the individual recipient’s preferences and actions.

This personalization leads to more relevant and engaging content which can enhance the customer experience and build stronger relationships.

Better engagement and conversion rates

Automated emails tend to have higher open and click-through rates than generic non-targeted emails. Because they are triggered by specific actions and behaviors, these emails are more likely to be relevant to the recipient.

For example, an abandoned cart email sent shortly after a customer has left items in their cart can prompt them to complete the purchase and boost conversion rates.

Scalability

Email automation allows businesses to scale their email marketing without extra resources. Whether you have 100 or 100,000 subscribers, automated systems can handle the load.

This is especially important for growing businesses and e-commerce sites looking to expand their customer base and marketing reach.

Consistency

Consistency is key to building trust and loyalty. Email automation ensures customers get timely and relevant updates whether it’s a welcome email for new subscribers or a follow-up email after a purchase.

Consistency keeps the brand top of mind and reinforces the relationship with the customer.

Data driven insights

Automation platforms provide valuable data and analytics to help businesses understand their audience better and refine their marketing strategy.

Metrics such as open rates, click-through rates, and conversion rates give insight into what works and what doesn’t so you can continually improve and run better campaigns.

Cost effective

Compared to other marketing channels email automation is relatively low cost. It reduces manual labor and minimizes the risk of human error so operations are more efficient and marketing budgets are used better.

The high ROI of email marketing makes it a no-brainer for businesses of all sizes.

Email automation examples

Taking a look at real life examples of email automation can show you how businesses can simplify their marketing and increase customer engagement through timely and relevant messaging. 

Here are a few practical examples of how email automation can be put to use.

Event registration and follow-up

Example: A professional development organization hosts webinars and online workshops.

• Email 1: Send an immediate email after someone registers for the event with all the webinar details and how to join.
• Email 2: Send a reminder 24 hours before the event with a summary and what to expect and any prep work.
• Email 3: Send a follow-up email the day after the event to thank people for attending, and provide a link to the recording, and additional resources or upcoming events.

Customer feedback request

Example: A hotel asks for feedback from guests after their stay.

• Email 1: Send an email 2 days after check-out to thank them for staying and ask for feedback through a survey.
• Email 2: Send a reminder email 1 week later if the survey hasn’t been completed, to reiterate the importance of their feedback and offer a small incentive like a discount on their next stay.
• Email 3: Send a thank you email after the survey is completed to summarize the key points of their feedback and let them know their feedback is valued.

Product launch campaign

Example: A tech company launches a new product.

• Email 1: Send a teaser email 2 weeks before the product launch to build up the hype with a sneak peek of the product.
• Email 2: Send the launch day email to announce the product is live, with features and a link to buy.
• Email 3: Send a follow-up email 1 week after the launch with customer testimonials, detailed reviews, and more product use cases to encourage more sales.

Membership renewal reminder

Example: A gym sends reminders for membership renewals.

• Email 1: Send an email 1 month before the membership expires to remind to renew and highlight new facilities or classes.
• Email 2: Send a follow-up email 2 weeks before the expiration with a special renewal offer or discount.
• Email 3: Send a final reminder email a few days before expiration to remind of the benefits of continued membership and easy renewal steps.

Content upgrade

• Email 1: Send an email with a link to download the content upgrade (e.g. PDF guide or checklist) after someone opts in.
• Email 2: Send an email 3 days later to ask if they found it helpful and offer more related resources.
• Email 3: Send an email 1 week later to invite them to a related webinar or offer a consultation call.

Email automation benefits

Now that you know what email automation is, let’s talk about the benefits.

Here are some of the advantages:

• Builds Customer Love: Automated emails keep your customers engaged with timely updates, personalized offers, and valuable content that builds loyalty and long-term relationships.
• Personalized Experiences: Email automation lets you message based on customer behavior and preferences, so your messages resonate with your audience and get more engagement.
• Higher Customer Retention: By sending the right messages at the right time (re-engagement campaigns or special offers) you can keep customers interested and reduce churn and increase retention rates.
• Grow Your Marketing: Automation lets you scale your marketing without extra resources or manual intervention, managing large lists and complex campaigns.
• Free Up Your Team: With routine tasks automated your marketing team can focus on strategy and creative work, be more productive, and create more campaigns.

How to grow your business with email automation

You can get more for your business with email automation. Here’s how:

• Grow Faster: Email automation delivers targeted promotions and personal offers to customers in the right moment and boosts conversions and sales.
• Save Time and Scale Your Team: Automate repetitive tasks like welcome emails, follow-ups, and customer segmentation and free up time for your team to focus on growth initiatives.
• Beat the Competition: Advanced email automation gives you an edge by letting you run more complex and responsive marketing campaigns than your competition.
• Create Custom Email Sequences: Automation lets you create custom email sequences for different customer journeys so each interaction is relevant and valuable.
• Automate Sales Process: Email automation can streamline your sales process by nurturing leads, sending follow-ups and personal recommendations, and getting more efficient and effective sales cycles.

Best email automation tools

Picking the right email automation tool can help you get the most out of your campaigns.

Here are the top ones:

Mailchimp

Mailchimp is a comprehensive email marketing tool with a super user-friendly interface and loads of automation features. Pre-built templates and advanced analytics make it a great fit for all business sizes.

Start your free trial of Mailchimp

ActiveCampaign

ActiveCampaign provides email marketing, automation, and CRM all in one. It has powerful automation workflows and segmentation options to create super personalized and targeted email campaigns.

Start your free trial of ActiveCampaign

Kit

For creators such as bloggers and online business owners, Kit is a great fit. It provides automation tools and customizable signup forms to grow your audience and automate sequences.

Start your free trial of Kit

Bottom Line

Email automation is a game changer for your marketing and business. By understanding how it works and using the right tools you can create personalized, timely, and effective email campaigns that engage your audience and get results.

In this post we’ve covered:

• The basics and benefits of email automation
• Email automation in real-life
• How to grow your business with email automation
• The best email automation tools

So what are you waiting for?

Choose the right platform and craft killer email sequences so you can be ahead of the game and achieve your business goals.

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