Author: Shira Abel Category: Enterprise Marketing URL: https://hunterandbard.com/resources/blog/the-drip-campaigns-you-need-and-when-to-use-them
There are two ways to go about gardening. You can leave your garden alone to do its thing and hose it down thoroughly when it’s starting to look a little dry....
There are two ways to go about gardening. You can leave your garden alone to do its thing and hose it down thoroughly when it's starting to look a little dry. Or you can carefully set up a drip system that delivers water in small quantities at regular, carefully selected times.
Which do you think will yield a more lush and appealing yard?
There's a reason email drip campaigns are named for that second gardening technique. But really, what is an email drip campaign and why should you take the time to set at least one up?
Well, in short, an email drip campaign (sometimes referred to as an automated mail campaign, autoresponder campaign, or marketing automation) is an automated series of emails that are sent out at carefully scheduled moments, usually in response to an action taken by a potential or existing client. Studies have proven that drip campaigns can radically increase both conversion and revenue. There are many different types and each serves a very specific purpose. Read on to see which might be most useful to you.
The type of drip campaign you send out will depend on the type of event that triggers the email series. Here are a couple different sorts that you might want to consider setting up.
Nurture campaigns are a very successful tool for slowly feeding a warm lead information that will first help them understand why they might need your product, then show them why they should buy it from you. Nurture campaigns are an important part of a carefully constructed marketing sales funnel.
Studies have shown that nurturing leads through a drip campaign can increase ROI by 45%. It's a great way to hold a potential client's virtual hand as you lead them through the discovery and purchase phases.
Research done by Experian shows that people don't just expect a welcome email after signing up for a newsletter or after asking to receive information about a service, they actually enjoy them, especially if the welcome email is sent immediately after they submit their email address. Open rates on welcome emails can go all the way up to 88.3% if the timing is just right.
Sending a welcome email is ideal for sharing some of your company's best content and for immediately starting to engage a potential client. Don't let the next newsletter you send out be the first contact you have with a prospect. Instead, send a welcome email containing some of your most read or most useful articles as well as a testimonial or two so they can instantly get a sense of the value you will deliver over time.
Offering a trial period for your service is a proven way to give potential customers a taste of the benefits that your products deliver, but it won't do much good if they don't really roll their sleeves up and give it a try.
An onboarding drip campaign allows you to show trial users how your service can best be used. Each email can outline a particular function of your SaaS. Emails in this drip campaign can also showcase the added benefits of your premium products.
If your dashboard shows you how your clients are using your services, an engagement drip campaign can be an effective tool designed to help them get the most out of what they're paying for. A happy, engaged client using your service exactly as it was intended is more likely to renew for another year and even possibly upgrade to your premium products.
Keeping existing clients engaged and motivated is an ongoing challenge many SaaS companies face. Creating drip courses that teach clients how to increase revenue or develop other useful and pertinent skills can make that happen. Open rates are reportedly very high for opt in campaigns such as these, ensuring strong engagement and high click through rates.
Just because someone has decided to unsubscribe from your mailing list doesn't mean they never want to hear from you again, it just means they no longer want to receive an email from you. Sending one last one to say goodbye and to invite them to follow you on your social media channels might mean the difference between losing a potential client forever and retaining a warm lead.
Drip campaigns are particularly beneficial because they so perfectly target their audience. Instead of receiving a generic email, the prospect or client is receiving something that will actually be useful or relevant to their needs, meaning there's a higher chance the email will be opened and read.
Take a little time to consider what drip campaigns will help you meet your marketing goals. Our next blog post will discuss getting your drip campaigns set up and started.
Hunter & Bard is a San Francisco-based B2B strategy consultancy founded in 2011 by Shira Abel. We help deep-tech and enterprise SaaS companies fix their positioning, sharpen their messaging, and close $100K+ deals.
We work with B2B leaders who are tired of being overlooked, underestimated, or mistaken for their competitors. Our specialty is turning complex, technical products into clear, compelling stories that win enterprise deals.
We believe that perception drives revenue. If your buyers can't tell you apart from the next vendor in 30 seconds, you have a positioning problem — not a marketing problem. We fix that.
Perception = (Story × Visibility) ÷ Noise
This framework drives everything we do. Your story has to be sharp. Your visibility has to be strategic. And you have to cut through the noise — not add to it.
Shira Abel — Founder & CEO. Kellogg MBA. 20+ years in B2B marketing. Former CMO. Keynote speaker. Published in Forbes, HuffPost, and Wired. Specialist in enterprise positioning and perception strategy.
Daina Reed — Founding Designer & Partner. 15+ years in product and brand design. Former Senior Product Designer at Dun & Bradstreet. Specialist in enterprise UX, visual identity, and design systems.