When it comes to the difference between a drip campaign and a mass email campaign, there are several things marketers should know.
Read on to discover the differences between the two, as well as how to measure the overall success of an email campaign.
Mass email campaign
A mass email campaign or broadcast email campaign is sent out to the masses, regardless of whether you really wanted the information, and they don’t often allow for user customization.
It’s essential to note the difference between sending out a mass email and email to the masses. If you’ve taken the time to build your email list, you may find yourself sending out “mass” emails to hundreds of individuals.
However, with today’s technology, the chances of you sending out the exact same email to every single person on your list are slim to none.
Drip campaign
A drip campaign is an email campaign that consists of multiple pre-written emails that move email subscribers towards a final conversion point (for example, towards a purchase).
These emails tend to slowly “drip” helpful information out to subscribers over a given period, such as a welcome email series.
Source: Really Good Emails
This welcome email from nDash.co is not only welcoming the new user but is giving them options of how to proceed. They can either choose to sign in and complete their account, or they can schedule a content call. Either way, the user will trigger the next email in the campaign by clicking on one of the options.
How to measure the overall success of an email campaign
When measuring the overall success of an email campaign, it is vital that the entire marketing team has access to the proper tools.
The simplest way to track the overall success of an email campaign is to monitor a variety of different metrics, including the open rate of the email, the click-through rate, and even metrics such as opt-outs and unsubscribes.
Source: Campaign Monitor
Does the difference in email campaigns really matter?
Yes. Different email campaigns play a vital role in moving subscribers through the sales funnel.
While “normal” email campaigns are considered rather outdated, there are a variety of different types of drip campaigns that marketers use to help separate their clientele. It all comes down to how they work their list segmentation.
Depending on the brand and what they have to offer, they may choose to create a list segment that focuses on a given gender or geographical location.
Source: Campaign Monitor
Take this email example from Adidas. While they choose to send out mass emails to their audience, they still take the time to segment their list in different ways to appeal to their customers. For this example, they segmented their list by gender.
Source: Campaign Monitor
While list segmentation is one way to help create different drip campaigns, marketers can create other formats, such as milestones, to create engagement.
Take this example from Iterable. They kept track of a variety of different accomplishments of this brand and send it as a year-end milestone campaign.
Source: Really Good Emails
Whichever of the included links the user decides to click on will trigger the next email in the drip campaign. By clicking on campaigns, the next email they receive may be campaign suggestions. If they click on analytics, the follow-up email may include tips to maximizing your results.
What now?
The type of email campaign that your team decides to focus on will largely depend on how you set up your list segmentation. Once you’ve done that, automating your campaigns will help simplify the entire process.
Below are a few tips to keep in mind when automating your email campaigns:
- Write show-stopping subject lines
- Keep your content scannable
- Use compelling writing
- Have a call-to-action button
- Analyze key metrics
- Revamp your campaign as needed
Ready to go more in-depth with email automation? Head on over to our helpful guide to learn more.