Resources Hub » Knowledge base » What Is Triggered Email Marketing and Why Does It Matter?

Triggered emails, automated emails, personalized customer journeys, all of these terms refer to the same concept.

As a marketer, you create a series of personalized emails for each individual subscriber. Once a subscriber takes a specific action, they receive a related email.

What is triggered email marketing?

Triggered email marketing allows you to provide your subscribers with the most relevant content possible.

Some marketers who take advantage of automated or triggered emails report conversion rates of up to 50%. This is likely because marketers who send automated emails are 133% more likely to send content that’s relevant to the subscriber’s buying journey and interests.

Marketers who use triggered emails report conversion rates of up to 50%.

Examples of triggered email campaigns

To better understand what triggered emails are, let’s look at a few examples.

Perhaps you purchased something at an Adidas store where you entered your email address. That same day, Adidas sent you an email welcoming you to the club and offering you a discount. A week later, Adidas may have sent you another email asking you to review the product you purchased.

These types of emails are all premade and automated to go out based on triggered events. Triggered emails may also include:

  • Thank you emails after making a donation
  • Personalized content and coupons based on the amount a customer has spent
  • Content preference surveys after new subscribers enter their email address
  • Relevant content based on where the subscriber entered their email address
  • Personalized coupons based on product browsing history
  • Re-engagement attempts based on inactivity

A subscriber takes some kind of action and this action triggers a relevant email.

It might sound complicated, but email service providers like Campaign Monitor make it easy to set up beautiful and relevant triggered email campaigns. This automated campaign for Sephora sends out personalized emails based on triggered events such as hitting a $200 threshold.

his automated campaign for Sephora sends out personalized emails based on triggered events such as hitting a $200 threshold.

Source: Campaign Monitor

How to measure your triggered email marketing

After sending out automated messages, you need to make sure they’re hitting all the right notes with your customers.

Log in to your email service provider and head over to the dashboard to check all the important metrics.

First, you’ll want to check how many subscribers are opening your emails. Getting those campaigns opened is the first sign you’re onto something good.

Next, check out your click-through rates. If your email is relevant enough for each subscriber, they should feel compelled to take action by clicking your link.

Finally, you want to know whether or not your triggered email recipients are converting into buyers. Providers like Campaign Monitor make it easy to integrate data from Google Analytics, WooCommerce, WordPress, and Shopify so you can figure out which clicks have ultimately turned into sales.

Does it really matter?

There’s a good chance your competitors are already taking advantage of automated email campaigns. If marketers want to meet the demand for personalized content, they’ll need to adopt a triggered email marketing strategy.

Automated email messages produce over 70% higher open-rates and 152% higher click-through rates due to the hyper-personalized aesthetic. Your brands really can’t afford to go without automation anymore.

Automated email campaigns boast 70% higher open rates than generic emails.

What now?

Now that you understand what triggered email is and what it looks like, it’s time to figure out how to apply it to your business. After conducting thorough research about your subscribers, you can develop personalized journeys that meet their needs, wants, and interests at every stage of the sales cycle.

Are you ready to make the most of your triggered email marketing? Check out our handy resource for creating customized customer journeys to get started.

This blog provides general information and discussion about email marketing and related subjects. The content provided in this blog ("Content”), should not be construed as and is not intended to constitute financial, legal or tax advice. You should seek the advice of professionals prior to acting upon any information contained in the Content. All Content is provided strictly “as is” and we make no warranty or representation of any kind regarding the Content.

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