As your website begins to attract new users, it’s essential to introduce them to your brand effectively. However, overwhelming them with too much information at once can be counterproductive.
A straightforward approach to achieve this is by implementing drip notifications. Automated drip campaigns are excellent for welcoming new users and enhancing engagement on your WordPress site. They allow you to guide users through a tailored journey, gradually unveiling different content over time.
At CanadaCreate, we utilize both push notifications and emails for this purpose. In this guide, we will walk you through the process of setting up automated drip notifications in WordPress.
When Should You Implement Automated Drip Notifications in WordPress?
Drip notifications are automated messages sent to your subscribers, typically delivered as push notifications or emails.
These messages are part of a sequential series and are automatically triggered to be sent at set intervals. Essentially, they are ‘dripped’ to your subscribers over time instead of being ‘poured out’ all at once.
You can leverage drip campaigns to promote products, increase page views on your WordPress blog, foster relationships with users, boost sales, and even deliver a course over a designated timeframe.
Explore various scenarios to maximize the effectiveness of automated drip campaigns in WordPress.
- Automatically send a welcome drip notification to new subscribers and customers, allowing you to educate them about your products and services while building trust in your brand.
- If you operate an eCommerce store, setting up automated drip notifications can enhance upselling and cross-selling opportunities after a purchase.
- Promote your key content and encourage visitors to return to your website.
- Utilize drip notifications to deliver targeted messages to users from specific regions, increasing conversions through geographic segmentation.
- Encourage registrations for your webinars and upcoming events with automated drip notifications.
Pro Tip:Discover how CanadaCreate leverages push notifications to boost return traffic.
This guide will discuss both push notifications and email drip campaigns. Click the links below to navigate to your preferred topic:
- How to Create an Automated Push Notification Drip Campaign
- Set Up Automated Drip Notifications with an Email Marketing Tool
- Bonus: Expand Your Email List in WordPress
How to Create an Automated Push Notification Drip Campaign
Setting up automated push notifications is simple with PushEngage, the leading web push notification software for WordPress, trusted by over 25,000 businesses to deliver targeted messages.
Begin by visiting the PushEngage website and clicking the ‘Get Started for Free Now’ button.
Next, choose a pricing plan that suits your requirements. PushEngage offers a free plan that allows for 30 campaigns and up to 200 subscribers.
After selecting a pricing plan, you can either create a new account or sign up using your Google account.
Once you log into your account, you’ll be greeted by the PushEngage dashboard.
The tool will guide you toSite Settings » Site Detailswhere you will need to input your website information, including your site name, domain name, site icon, and more.
If you scroll down in the ‘Site Details’ section, you can generate the API key to connect PushEngage with various platforms, select your time zone, and enable geolocation features.
There is also an option to remove the ‘Powered by PushEngage’ branding from your notifications.
Next, connect your WordPress site to PushEngage by installing the PushEngage WordPress plugin.
Begin by installing and activating the PushEngage plugin for WordPress. If you need assistance, refer to our guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.
Once activated, the setup wizard will appear. Click the ‘Connect Your Existing Account’ button to proceed.
A new popup window will open at this point.
Select your website from the dropdown menu and click the ‘Let’s Get Started’ button.
You will then see a confirmation message indicating that PushEngage is successfully connected to your website.
You can now select the ‘PushEngage Dashboard’ option to exit the setup wizard.
For more information, check out our comprehensive guide on adding web push notifications to your WordPress site.
Next, set up automated drip notifications using PushEngage. In this example, we will create a welcome campaign for new subscribers.
To begin, navigate toPushEngage » Dripin your WordPress dashboard. Then, click the ‘Add New’ button.
Afterward, you can add various push notifications and customize the content you wish to display.
Click the arrow at the end of the notification to explore additional options.
You can customize each notification by modifying the title, message, URL, icon image, and more. A preview of how your notifications will appear in the browser is also available.
Scroll down to discover additional options, such as enabling multi-action notifications. This feature allows you to add call-to-action buttons to your push notifications and customize their text.
You have the option to set a notification duration, which lets you define an expiration time for your notifications.
PushEngage allows you to schedule when each notification is sent. For instance, you can dispatch the first notification immediately and choose a different time for subsequent notifications.
To set the timing for your push notification, simply click on the ‘Send notification’ dropdown menu.
To include another notification in your drip campaign, just click the ‘Add New Notification’ button located at the bottom.
After adding all your notifications, click the ‘Drip Settings’ button to proceed.
Next, you can decide whether to send notifications to all your subscribers or target a specific audience group that you create.
PushEngage enables you to segment your subscribers and form different groups. For this tutorial, we will select the ‘Send to All Subscribers’ option.
Next, click the ‘Activate Autoresponder’ button to turn on automated push notifications for your WordPress site.
Then, navigate to PushEngage » Drip in your PushEngage dashboard to view the drip notifications marked as ‘Active.’
Congratulations! You have successfully set up an automated push notification drip campaign for your website.
You can now access detailed statistics about its performance in the Analytics section of your PushEngage account.
Bonus: Check out our guide on how CanadaCreate utilizes push notifications to increase returning traffic.
Establish Automated Drip Notifications with an Email Marketing Tool
Another method to create automated drip notifications in WordPress is by using an email marketing tool.
We recommend Constant Contact as it is the top email marketing service available. It is user-friendly and features a drag-and-drop email builder.
However, drip email notification capabilities are available on all major email marketing platforms, including Brevo (formerly Sendinblue), HubSpot, and others.
Easily set up email automation in just a few clicks to send a series of emails to your subscribers. Constant Contact seamlessly integrates with popular WordPress plugins such as WPForms and OptinMonster.
This tool is also compatible with eCommerce platforms like WooCommerce and Shopify, allowing you to automate emails for new customers and recover abandoned shopping carts.
To get started, visit the Constant Contact website and create an account. The best part is that you can take advantage of a 60-day free trial, allowing you to explore the features before committing to a paid plan.
By using our Constant Contact coupon code, you can receive a 20% discount when you purchase your plan upfront.
Once you’ve created your account, head to the Constant Contact dashboard to set up your contact list.
Constant Contact automatically generates a default list for you. However, you can create a custom list by navigating to the ‘Contacts’ tab in the top menu and clicking on the ‘Create List’ button.
A popup window will appear where you can enter a name for your new list.
After entering a name, simply click the ‘Save’ button to finalize your list.
Next, you can start adding contacts to your email list.
To manually add contacts, go to the ‘Contacts’ tab and select the ‘Add Contacts’ button.
A popup window will appear with various options for adding new contacts.
You can link your WordPress newsletter form to Constant Contact to begin building your email list. For more information, check out our guide on adding email subscriptions to your WordPress blog.
Alternatively, you can manually add new contacts, upload a spreadsheet or CSV file, or connect with various other platforms to import saved email addresses.
Once you’ve added subscribers to your Constant Contact list, the next step is to set up an automated drip campaign.
To do this, navigate to the ‘Marketing campaigns’ tab and click the ‘Create’ button.
Next, Constant Contact will present you with several options for creating a campaign.
Select the ‘Automations’ campaign option.
From this point, Constant Contact will display various templates for you to choose from.
You can either pick a pre-designed template and modify it to suit your needs or create an automation path from the ground up.
For this tutorial, we will choose the ‘Create custom path’ template option.
After that, you will need to specify when your contact begins the path. Constant Contact will provide different options.
Select the ‘Subscribe for email’ option and then click the ‘Next’ button.
Next, you need to provide a name for your custom path.
Once that is complete, simply click the ‘Create path’ button.
This will open the Path Builder, where you can design your automated workflow.
By default, the Trigger for your path will be displayed, which is set to activate when someone subscribes to any list.
You can easily drag actions and rules from the menu on the left into the path. For example, you can add actions like sending an email or an SMS to your workflow.
There are various rules available to help you personalize your automation. You can introduce a time delay and specify when the subsequent email should be sent. Additionally, there is a conditional split option that allows you to set Yes and No conditions to divide the path.
You can also modify each action within the automated workflow. Simply click the three-dot icon and choose the ‘Edit’ option. For instance, let’s edit the ‘Send an email’ action.
A popup window will appear where you can create a new email or copy an existing one.
Since this is your first time creating the workflow, select the ‘Create a new email’ option, enter a name for your email, and click the ‘Continue’ button.
Next, Constant Contact will present you with a variety of email templates to choose from.
You can search for templates based on specific occasions or opt for a blank template to design your email from the ground up.
Once you choose a template, the email editor will open for you to customize.
You can add various content blocks to the template, modify existing text, personalize the design, and more.
When you’re finished, simply click the ‘Save & Close’ button located at the top.
You will then return to the Path Builder in Constant Contact. Complete your automation path by adding multiple actions and rules, and editing each one as needed.
After setting up your automated workflow, just click the ‘Activate’ button at the top to launch it.
Congratulations! You have successfully initiated an automated drip notification campaign using an email marketing tool.
You can also check out our comparison of push notifications and email to determine which method is more effective for your business.
Bonus: Tips for Growing Your Email List in WordPress
In the second part of this tutorial, we demonstrated how to set up email drip notifications. However, before sending out your emails, you need to build a list of subscribers.
Here are some effective strategies to expand your email list:
- Utilize OptinMonster to create various email newsletter signup forms and exit-intent popups to engage users before they leave your site.
- Provide content upgrades such as downloadable PDFs, podcast transcripts, and blog post checklists in exchange for email subscriptions.
- Host giveaways and contests using RafflePress, requiring participants to submit their email addresses for entry.
For additional strategies, check out our comprehensive guide on growing your email list. You may also find our article on launching an email newsletter helpful for crafting effective email campaigns.
We hope this guide has assisted you in setting up automated drip notifications in WordPress. Additionally, explore our expert recommendations for the best WordPress Mailchimp plugins and learn how to establish a professional email address using Gmail.
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