Skip to content

Drip Emails Documentation

Menu Location: Settings > System Settings > Drip Emails

Access Level: Administrator and above

Last Updated: 2026-03-01

Overview

The Drip Emails page allows you to create and manage automated email campaigns that send a series of emails to subscribers over time. Drip campaigns nurture leads, onboard new customers, re-engage inactive users, and automate personalized communication at scale based on customer actions and behaviors.

Primary Functions:

  • Create automated email sequences
  • Trigger emails based on customer actions or time delays
  • Build welcome series for new subscribers
  • Re-engage cancelled or inactive customers
  • Segment audiences for targeted campaigns
  • Track email performance and engagement
  • A/B test email content and timing
  • Schedule emails for optimal delivery times

Page Layout

Header Section

  • Create Campaign button: Start new drip campaign
  • Search Bar: Find campaigns by name
  • Filter Dropdown: Filter by status, type, or performance
  • Analytics Dashboard: Overview of all campaign metrics

Campaigns List

Displays all drip campaigns with:

  • Campaign Name (clickable to edit)
  • Status - Active, Paused, Draft, Completed
  • Type - Welcome, Re-engagement, Nurture, etc.
  • Subscribers - Total enrolled count
  • Emails Sent - Total emails delivered
  • Open Rate - Percentage opened
  • Click Rate - Percentage clicked
  • Conversions - Goals achieved
  • Actions - Edit, Pause/Resume, Duplicate, View Stats, Delete

Campaign Builder (when creating/editing)

  • Campaign Settings section
  • Email Sequence Builder with drag-and-drop
  • Trigger Configuration (what starts the campaign)
  • Delay Settings (timing between emails)
  • Subscriber Management tools
  • Performance Analytics dashboard

Understanding Drip Campaigns

What is a Drip Campaign?

Definition: A series of automated emails sent to subscribers on a predefined schedule or triggered by specific actions.

How It Works:

  1. Customer triggers campaign (signs up, cancels, etc.)
  2. First email sends immediately or after set delay
  3. Subsequent emails send based on time delays
  4. Customer progresses through sequence automatically
  5. Campaign ends when sequence completes or goal achieved

Example Welcome Series:

  • Day 0: Welcome email (triggered by signup)
  • Day 2: Product overview and benefits
  • Day 5: Customer success story
  • Day 8: Special offer or discount
  • Day 14: Request feedback/review

Drip vs. Broadcast Emails

Drip Campaign:

  • Automated, triggered by events
  • Sent over time with delays
  • Personalized journey for each subscriber
  • Once set up, runs automatically
  • Example: 7-email onboarding sequence

Broadcast Email (one-time):

  • Manually sent one time
  • All recipients get immediately
  • Same content for everyone
  • Requires manual sending each time
  • Example: Weekly newsletter

Use drip for: Onboarding, nurturing, automation Use broadcast for: Announcements, newsletters, one-time promotions

Creating Drip Campaigns

Basic Campaign Setup

Steps:

  1. Click "Create Campaign" button
  2. Enter campaign name (internal reference)
  3. Choose campaign type (Welcome, Nurture, Re-engagement, etc.)
  4. Select trigger (what starts campaign for subscriber)
  5. Define target audience/segment
  6. Set campaign schedule and timing preferences
  7. Build email sequence (add emails)
  8. Configure each email in sequence
  9. Test campaign with test subscriber
  10. Activate campaign

Campaign Types

Welcome Series:

  • Trigger: New subscriber signup
  • Goal: Onboard and engage new customers
  • Duration: 1-2 weeks
  • Emails: 3-7 emails

Re-engagement:

  • Trigger: No activity for 30/60/90 days
  • Goal: Win back inactive customers
  • Duration: 2-4 weeks
  • Emails: 3-5 emails

Nurture Campaign:

  • Trigger: Downloaded guide, showed interest
  • Goal: Educate and move toward purchase
  • Duration: 4-8 weeks
  • Emails: 5-10 emails

Post-Purchase:

  • Trigger: Completed first order
  • Goal: Encourage repeat purchase, gather feedback
  • Duration: 3-6 weeks
  • Emails: 3-6 emails

Winback:

  • Trigger: Cancelled subscription
  • Goal: Convince to reactivate
  • Duration: 1-2 months
  • Emails: 4-6 emails

Abandoned Cart:

  • Trigger: Items in cart, didn't complete checkout
  • Goal: Complete purchase
  • Duration: 3-7 days
  • Emails: 2-3 emails

Setting Campaign Triggers

Available Triggers:

Time-Based:

  • X days after signup
  • X days since last order
  • X days before subscription renewal
  • Specific date/time
  • Customer birthday or anniversary

Action-Based:

  • New subscriber signup
  • First purchase completed
  • Subscription cancelled
  • Browsed specific product/category
  • Downloaded content
  • Submitted contact form
  • Added to cart but didn't purchase

Condition-Based:

  • Customer has no orders
  • Customer has X or more orders
  • Customer in specific tag/segment
  • Customer hasn't opened last X emails
  • Account balance below $0

Manual:

  • Manually add subscribers to campaign
  • Import subscriber list via CSV

Defining Target Audience

Segmentation Options:

By Customer Status:

  • New subscribers (0-30 days)
  • Active customers
  • Inactive customers (no order 60+ days)
  • Cancelled customers
  • Trial customers

By Behavior:

  • Opened previous emails
  • Clicked links in previous emails
  • Purchased specific products
  • Browsed specific categories
  • Engagement score above/below threshold

By Demographics:

  • Location (city, state, zip)
  • Subscription type/box size
  • Customer lifetime value
  • Account age

By Tags:

  • Has specific tag
  • Doesn't have specific tag
  • Any combination of tags

Building Email Sequences

Adding Emails to Campaign

Create Email in Sequence:

  1. In campaign builder, click "Add Email"
  2. Enter email subject line
  3. Choose email template or start blank
  4. Write email content in editor
  5. Add personalization tags (firstname, etc.)
  6. Set delay from previous email (hours/days)
  7. Configure send time preferences
  8. Save email

Sequence Example: 

Email 1: Welcome (Day 0 - immediate)
    ↓ Wait 2 days
Email 2: Getting Started Guide (Day 2)
    ↓ Wait 3 days
Email 3: Customer Success Story (Day 5)
    ↓ Wait 3 days
Email 4: Special Offer (Day 8)
    ↓ Wait 5 days
Email 5: Final Tips & Resources (Day 13)

Email Content Best Practices

Subject Lines:

  • Keep under 50 characters
  • Personalize when possible: "{{firstname}}, here's your guide"
  • Create curiosity or urgency
  • Avoid spam trigger words (FREE, BUY NOW, $$$)
  • A/B test different approaches

Email Body:

  • Start with personalized greeting
  • Single clear call-to-action (CTA)
  • Keep paragraphs short (2-3 sentences)
  • Use bullet points for scannability
  • Include images but don't rely solely on them
  • Mobile-friendly formatting
  • Clear unsubscribe link (required)

Personalization Tags:

  • {{firstname}} - Customer first name
  • {{lastname}} - Customer last name
  • {{email}} - Email address
  • {{company}} - Business name
  • {{box_type}} - Subscription type
  • {{order_count}} - Number of orders
  • {{next_delivery}} - Next delivery date
  • Custom tags available based on customer data

Example Personalized Email: 

Subject: {{firstname}}, welcome to FarmBox! 🌱

Hi {{firstname}},

Thank you for joining FarmBox! Your first delivery of our {{box_type}}
is scheduled for {{next_delivery}}.

Here's what to expect:
• Farm-fresh produce delivered to your door
• Seasonal selection from local farmers
• Recipes and cooking tips every week

Ready to customize your box? Click below to get started.

[Customize My Box]

Questions? Just reply to this email.

Cheers,
The FarmBox Team

Setting Email Delays

Delay Types:

Time Delay:

  • Wait X hours/days/weeks before next email
  • Example: "Wait 3 days after previous email"

Wait Until Day/Time:

  • Wait until specific day of week at specific time
  • Example: "Wait until next Tuesday at 10am"

Wait Until Condition:

  • Wait until customer action occurs
  • Example: "Wait until customer opens this email" or "Wait until customer makes first purchase"
  • Set timeout: If condition not met in X days, proceed anyway

Best Practices:

  • Give 2-3 days between emails (avoid daily emails)
  • Send on weekdays (Tuesday-Thursday best)
  • Morning send times (9-11am) often perform well
  • Match delays to content urgency
  • Longer delays for educational content
  • Shorter delays for abandoned cart

Managing Subscribers

Adding Subscribers to Campaign

Automatic Addition (via trigger):

  • Campaign automatically enrolls matching customers
  • Trigger checks run hourly/daily
  • No manual action needed

Manual Addition:

  1. Open campaign
  2. Go to Subscribers tab
  3. Click "Add Subscribers"
  4. Search for customer(s)
  5. Add individually or import CSV
  6. Subscribers enter campaign immediately

Bulk Import:

  1. Prepare CSV with email addresses
  2. Download template for format
  3. Upload CSV file
  4. Map columns (email, firstname, etc.)
  5. Confirm import
  6. All subscribers added at once

Removing Subscribers

Unsubscribe (customer action):

  • Customer clicks unsubscribe link
  • Removed from THIS campaign only
  • OR removed from ALL campaigns (global unsubscribe)
  • Cannot be re-added unless they opt back in

Manual Removal:

  1. Open campaign > Subscribers tab
  2. Find subscriber in list
  3. Click "Remove"
  4. Subscriber stops receiving future emails
  5. Already-sent emails cannot be recalled

Pausing Individual Subscriber:

  • Temporarily pause without removing
  • Subscriber retains position in sequence
  • Resume anytime to continue where left off

Subscriber Status

Active:

  • Currently enrolled in campaign
  • Receiving emails on schedule
  • Progressing through sequence

Completed:

  • Reached end of email sequence
  • No more emails to send
  • Can be re-enrolled if campaign repeats

Paused:

  • Temporarily stopped
  • Position in sequence preserved
  • Can be resumed

Unsubscribed:

  • Opted out of campaign
  • Will not receive further emails
  • Cannot be automatically re-added

Bounced:

  • Email address invalid or full
  • Removed after hard bounce
  • Soft bounces retried before removal

Campaign Performance & Analytics

Key Metrics

Subscriber Metrics:

  • Total Enrolled: All-time subscriber count
  • Active: Currently receiving emails
  • Completed: Finished sequence
  • Unsubscribed: Opted out
  • Conversion Rate: Achieved campaign goal

Email Performance:

  • Sent: Total emails delivered
  • Delivered: Successfully received
  • Bounced: Failed delivery
  • Open Rate: % opened
  • Click Rate: % clicked links
  • Unsubscribe Rate: % who opted out

Engagement Over Time:

  • Opens by day/week
  • Clicks by day/week
  • Best performing send times
  • Engagement by email in sequence

Revenue Metrics (if tracked):

  • Revenue attributed to campaign
  • Average order value
  • ROI (return on investment)
  • Cost per conversion

Email-Level Analytics

View Performance of Each Email:

  1. Open campaign
  2. Go to Emails tab
  3. Click email to view stats

Email Metrics:

  • Sent count
  • Open rate (industry average: 15-25%)
  • Click rate (industry average: 2-5%)
  • Conversion rate
  • Revenue generated
  • Most clicked links
  • Unsubscribe rate

Insights:

  • Identify top performers (replicate success)
  • Find weak emails (improve or remove)
  • See drop-off points (where subscribers disengage)
  • Optimize timing based on engagement

A/B Testing

Test Email Variations:

  1. Select email in sequence
  2. Click "Create A/B Test"
  3. Choose test type:
    • Subject line
    • Email content
    • Send time
    • From name
  4. Create variation B
  5. Set test split (50/50 or 80/20)
  6. Define success metric (opens, clicks, conversions)
  7. Set test duration
  8. Winner automatically sent to remaining subscribers

What to Test:

  • Subject lines (biggest impact on opens)
  • Call-to-action button text/color
  • Email length (short vs detailed)
  • Personalization level
  • Send day/time
  • Image vs text-heavy

Best Practices:

  • Test one variable at a time
  • Requires minimum subscriber count (100+)
  • Run test long enough (3-7 days)
  • Apply learnings to future campaigns

Common Use Cases

Use Case 1: Welcome New Customers

Goal: Onboard new subscribers and encourage first purchase

Campaign Setup:

  • Name: "New Customer Welcome Series"
  • Trigger: Customer creates account
  • Target: All new signups
  • Duration: 14 days

Email Sequence:

  1. Day 0 - Welcome Email
  2. Subject: "Welcome to FarmBox! Here's what to expect 🌱"
  3. Content: Thank you, what's included, how it works

  4. CTA: "Customize Your First Box"

  5. Day 2 - Product Education

  6. Subject: "Meet your farmers and see what's growing"
  7. Content: Farm stories, seasonal highlights

  8. CTA: "Browse This Week's Selection"

  9. Day 5 - Recipe Inspiration

  10. Subject: "5 easy recipes for your first box"
  11. Content: Recipe ideas, cooking tips

  12. CTA: "View All Recipes"

  13. Day 8 - Social Proof

  14. Subject: "See why 10,000+ families love FarmBox"
  15. Content: Customer testimonials, success stories

  16. CTA: "Join the Community"

  17. Day 12 - Special Offer

  18. Subject: "{{firstname}}, here's $10 off your first box"
  19. Content: Limited-time discount, urgency
  20. CTA: "Claim My Discount"

Success Metrics:

  • 50%+ open rate on email 1
  • 10%+ click rate average
  • 20%+ first purchase conversion

Use Case 2: Win Back Cancelled Customers

Goal: Re-engage customers who cancelled subscription

Campaign Setup:

  • Name: "Winback Campaign"
  • Trigger: Customer cancels subscription
  • Target: Cancelled in last 7 days
  • Duration: 60 days

Email Sequence:

  1. Day 0 - We'll Miss You
  2. Subject: "We're sorry to see you go, {{firstname}}"
  3. Content: Sorry to lose you, ask for feedback

  4. CTA: "Tell us why you left" (survey)

  5. Day 7 - Address Concerns

  6. Subject: "We heard you - here's what's new"
  7. Content: Improvements based on feedback

  8. CTA: "See what's changed"

  9. Day 21 - Special Offer

  10. Subject: "Come back to FarmBox - 50% off"
  11. Content: Win-back discount, what they're missing

  12. CTA: "Reactivate My Subscription"

  13. Day 45 - Last Chance

  14. Subject: "Your comeback offer expires tomorrow"
  15. Content: Urgency, final reminder
  16. CTA: "Claim Before It's Gone"

Success Metrics:

  • 30%+ survey response rate (email 1)
  • 5-10% reactivation rate
  • Positive ROI on discount offers

Use Case 3: Abandoned Cart Recovery

Goal: Recover lost sales from incomplete checkouts

Campaign Setup:

  • Name: "Abandoned Cart Recovery"
  • Trigger: Items in cart, no purchase for 4 hours
  • Target: All customers with abandoned carts
  • Duration: 3 days

Email Sequence:

  1. 4 hours later - Cart Reminder
  2. Subject: "You left something behind..."
  3. Content: Show items in cart, easy checkout

  4. CTA: "Complete My Order"

  5. 24 hours later - Add Urgency

  6. Subject: "Your cart expires in 24 hours"
  7. Content: Items may sell out, cart expires

  8. CTA: "Secure My Items"

  9. 72 hours later - Final Incentive

  10. Subject: "Last chance: Free shipping on your order"
  11. Content: Special offer to complete purchase
  12. CTA: "Get Free Shipping"

Success Metrics:

  • 15-25% cart recovery rate
  • Higher AOV with incentives
  • ROI positive even with discounts

Use Case 4: Post-Purchase Follow-Up

Goal: Encourage repeat orders and gather feedback

Campaign Setup:

  • Name: "Post-First-Purchase Series"
  • Trigger: First order delivered
  • Target: New customers after first delivery
  • Duration: 21 days

Email Sequence:

  1. Day 1 - Post-Delivery Check-In
  2. Subject: "How was your first FarmBox delivery?"
  3. Content: Ask about experience, offer help

  4. CTA: "Rate Your Experience"

  5. Day 5 - Recipe Follow-Up

  6. Subject: "Did you try our recipes?"
  7. Content: More recipe ideas using delivered items

  8. CTA: "Browse More Recipes"

  9. Day 10 - Subscription Upsell

  10. Subject: "Save time with a weekly subscription"
  11. Content: Benefits of subscribing vs one-time

  12. CTA: "Start My Subscription"

  13. Day 21 - Referral Request

  14. Subject: "Love FarmBox? Share with friends"
  15. Content: Referral program, both get rewards
  16. CTA: "Refer a Friend"

Success Metrics:

  • 40%+ feedback response rate
  • 25%+ conversion to subscription
  • 10%+ referral participation

Use Case 5: Re-Engage Inactive Subscribers

Goal: Re-activate customers who haven't ordered recently

Campaign Setup:

  • Name: "Inactive Customer Re-engagement"
  • Trigger: No order in past 60 days
  • Target: Previously active customers
  • Duration: 28 days

Email Sequence:

  1. Day 0 - We Miss You
  2. Subject: "{{firstname}}, we've missed you!"
  3. Content: It's been a while, what's new

  4. CTA: "See What You've Missed"

  5. Day 7 - Show What's New

  6. Subject: "Check out our new products"
  7. Content: New items since their last order

  8. CTA: "Browse New Arrivals"

  9. Day 14 - Exclusive Offer

  10. Subject: "Welcome back gift: 20% off"
  11. Content: Special comeback discount

  12. CTA: "Shop Now"

  13. Day 28 - Final Attempt

  14. Subject: "Should we say goodbye?"
  15. Content: Last chance, about to remove from list
  16. CTA: "I'm still interested" / "Unsubscribe"

Success Metrics:

  • 10-15% reactivation rate
  • Engagement increase
  • List hygiene (remove truly disengaged)

Troubleshooting

Campaign Not Sending Emails

Check:

  1. Campaign status is "Active" (not Draft or Paused)
  2. Subscribers are enrolled
  3. Emails in sequence are enabled
  4. Email service configured correctly
  5. No sending errors in campaign log

Common Issues:

  • Campaign still in Draft mode
  • No subscribers match trigger criteria
  • Delay settings not configured
  • Email sending paused globally

Low Open Rates

Possible Causes:

  • Poor subject lines
  • Sending at bad times
  • Emails going to spam
  • List quality issues (inactive emails)

Improvements:

  • A/B test subject lines
  • Adjust send times
  • Check spam score of emails
  • Clean subscriber list
  • Improve sender reputation

High Unsubscribe Rate

If >2% unsubscribe rate:

  • Emails too frequent
  • Content not relevant
  • Didn't meet expectations
  • Over-promotional

Actions:

  • Reduce email frequency
  • Improve targeting/segmentation
  • Balance educational vs promotional
  • Set clear expectations at signup
  • Provide preferences center (not just unsubscribe)

Emails Going to Spam

Solutions:

  1. Verify email domain authentication (SPF, DKIM)
  2. Use reputable email service
  3. Avoid spam trigger words
  4. Include physical address
  5. Make unsubscribe easy
  6. Warm up new email domains
  7. Maintain list hygiene (remove bounces)
  • Email Templates - Design emails for campaigns
  • Customers - Manage subscriber data
  • Customer Tags - Segment audiences
  • Email Stats - View overall email performance
  • Business Settings - Configure email sending domain

Permissions & Access

Required Access Level: Administrator or higher

Access Levels:

  • Manager: Cannot access Drip Emails
  • Administrator: Create, edit, manage campaigns; view analytics
  • Kiva Admin: All features + technical configuration

Best Practices

Campaign Strategy

  1. Start with welcome series (highest engagement)
  2. Keep sequences 3-7 emails (don't overwhelm)
  3. Space emails 2-5 days apart
  4. Have clear goal for each campaign
  5. Test before activating to subscribers

Email Content

  1. Personalize beyond just {{firstname}}
  2. One clear call-to-action per email
  3. Mobile-first design (60%+ open on mobile)
  4. Balance promotional and educational content
  5. Include clear unsubscribe option

Timing & Frequency

  1. Send on Tuesday-Thursday (best performance)
  2. Morning send times (9-11am) often best
  3. Test send times for your audience
  4. Don't send daily (email fatigue)
  5. Respect time zones if national audience

Performance

  1. Monitor metrics weekly
  2. A/B test continuously
  3. Remove low performers
  4. Optimize based on data
  5. Track revenue attribution

List Management

  1. Clean list quarterly (remove bounces/inactive)
  2. Segment for relevance
  3. Honor unsubscribes immediately
  4. Double opt-in for quality
  5. Make it easy to update preferences

Things to Avoid

  • ❌ Buying email lists (illegal, damages reputation)
  • ❌ Sending without permission
  • ❌ Hiding unsubscribe link
  • ❌ Misleading subject lines
  • ❌ All-image emails (accessibility & spam issues)
  • ❌ Sending too frequently (burnout)
  • ❌ Not testing before launch

Quick Reference Card

Task Action
Create campaign "Create Campaign" button
Add email to sequence Campaign builder > "Add Email"
Set email delay Edit email > Delay settings
Add subscribers Campaign > Subscribers > "Add"
Pause campaign Campaign > "Pause" button
View analytics Campaign > Analytics tab
A/B test email Edit email > "Create A/B Test"
Export subscribers Subscribers tab > "Export"
Duplicate campaign Campaign list > "Duplicate"

FAQs

How many emails should be in a drip campaign?

3-7 emails is ideal. Enough to nurture without overwhelming. Welcome series: 4-5 emails. Re-engagement: 3-4 emails.

What's a good open rate?

Industry average is 15-25%. Welcome emails often 40-50%. Under 10% needs improvement.

How long should I wait between emails?

2-5 days for most campaigns. Abandoned cart: shorter (hours to 1 day). Nurture: longer (5-7 days).

Can I send to customers who unsubscribed?

No, never. It's illegal (CAN-SPAM) and damages reputation. Honor unsubscribes immediately.

Should I use plain text or HTML emails?

HTML for visual appeal, but ensure plain text version included. Some email clients block images.

How do I avoid spam filters?

Authenticate domain, avoid spam words, include physical address, easy unsubscribe, maintain list hygiene, use reputable email service.

Can I stop a campaign mid-sequence?

Yes, pause campaign. Subscribers keep position. Resume to continue, or remove subscribers to stop.

What's the best day/time to send emails?

Tuesday-Thursday 9-11am often performs best. Test for your specific audience. Avoid Mondays (inbox overload) and weekends.

How do I re-engage inactive subscribers?

Create re-engagement campaign: reminder of value, new offerings, special offer, final "are you there?" email. Remove if no response.

Can I include purchase history in emails?

Yes, use personalization tags to reference products ordered, order count, last order date, etc.

End of Documentation

For additional help, contact your system administrator or Kiva Logic support.