Most businesses think of email as the newsletter they mean to send every month. The bigger opportunity is automated flows: messages that go out on their own when someone takes an action, such as signing up, leaving a cart or buying for the first time.
You set them up once, then they work in the background. These are the five we set up first for almost every client.
1. The welcome flow
Someone who has just joined your list is more interested in you than they will ever be again. A welcome flow makes the most of that.
A simple version has three messages over about a week:
- Message 1, straight away: thank them, deliver anything you promised, such as a discount or guide, and say what to expect.
- Message 2, two or three days later: your story, or the problem you solve, with proof from real customers.
- Message 3, a few days after that: a clear offer or next step.
2. The abandoned cart or enquiry flow
People get distracted. A reminder an hour or so after they leave a cart, followed by one more the next day, brings a surprising number of them back.
For service businesses, the same idea works for half-finished booking or quote forms, as long as you have the contact details and permission to follow up.
If you run an online store and do not have an abandoned cart flow, set this one up first. It usually pays for the whole email setup on its own.
3. The post-purchase flow
The period right after someone buys is when they decide whether they will buy again. Use it to:
- confirm the order and set expectations for delivery;
- help them get the most out of what they bought;
- ask for a review once they have had time to use it;
- suggest a related product or service a little later.
4. The win-back flow
Some customers drift away without any particular reason. A win-back flow notices when someone has not bought or opened anything for a while, and reaches out with a reason to return, such as something new, a reminder of what they liked, or a small incentive.
5. Order and appointment updates by SMS
SMS is best kept for messages people actually want on their phone: order confirmations, delivery updates and appointment reminders. These get read almost immediately and reduce no-shows and "where is my order?" calls.
Use promotional SMS sparingly. It works, but people unsubscribe quickly if it feels like spam.
"The best email flows do not feel like marketing. They feel like good service that happens to bring in sales."
Keep it permission-based
Only send to people who have agreed to hear from you, make unsubscribing easy, and follow the rules in each country you sell to. Besides being the right thing to do, it protects your sender reputation, which keeps your emails out of spam folders.
Measure revenue, not just opens
Open rates have become unreliable because of privacy features in email apps. Look instead at clicks, orders and revenue from each flow. Most email platforms report this directly, and it tells you which flows are worth improving.
What to do next
Start with the flow that matches your biggest gap. For online stores that is usually the abandoned cart flow. For service businesses it is often the welcome flow or appointment reminders. Set it up, let it run for a month, then move on to the next one.
If you would like help choosing where to start, our free audit includes a look at your email and SMS setup.
Mountics is a digital marketing agency in Kathmandu, Nepal. We write about the paid ads, SEO, social and conversion work we do in client accounts every week.