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8 ways to automate your email newsletters and drip campaigns

By Krystina Martinez · February 13, 2024
A man checks email on a tablet. An envelope icon shows 38 new messages.

While we like to think email is dead, in fact, email newsletters and drip campaigns are still an incredibly effective marketing tool. From highlighting sales to promoting products and providing useful content throughout the sales funnel, they're a great way to engage audiences and promote services. But there's a maintenance cost in doing them well. 

You might not have the resources to maintain your subscriber lists, for example, or experiment with segmentation. Fortunately, automation can easily help you bridge that gap. From automatically subscribing your leads to keeping your subscriber lists updated, here are a few ways to automate your email newsletters and drip campaigns.

Zapier is a no-code automation tool that lets you connect your apps into automated workflows, so that every person and every business can move forward at growth speed. Learn more about how it works.

Table of contents

To get started with a Zap template—what we call our pre-made workflows—just click on the button. It only takes a few minutes to set up. You can read more about setting up Zaps here.

Add subscribers to your newsletters

While putting your newsletter sign-up form in a prominent place on your website is a good first step, there's more than one way to grow your subscriber base. 

For example, you can offer a checkbox in a form where you collect leads allowing people to opt in to your newsletter. Here's where the sneaky maintenance cost comes in: You often need to manually download a CSV file, filter for the people who opted in, and upload their email addresses to your email newsletter software. 

Instead, use a Zap to automatically add subscribers to your newsletters from other apps you use to collect contacts. Keep in mind that you can't automatically subscribe people to your newsletter without permission. 

Create or update ActiveCampaign contacts for new form submissions in HubSpot

  • HubSpot logo
  • ActiveCampaign logo
HubSpot + ActiveCampaign
More details
    When you have new submission on your online form, you'll want the details added to your marketing tools. This integration makes it easy by automatically creating/updating a contact in ActiveCampaign when there is a new form submission in HubSpot. It's never been this easy to coordinate your marketing efforts.

    Subscribe new Facebook Lead Ad leads to a Mailchimp list

    • Facebook Lead Ads logo
    • Mailchimp logo
    Facebook Lead Ads + Mailchimp
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      Facebook Lead Ads are an excellent way to grow your list of individuals interested in learning more about your product or service, but taking a next step with those people can sometimes take a back seat to your other tasks. With this Facebook Lead Ads-Mailchimp integration, you'll no longer need to think about adding new leads to a marketing campaign—each new lead is automatically added to the list of your choice.

      Add new LinkedIn Ads lead gen form responses as subscribers in Flodesk

      • LinkedIn Ads logo
      • Flodesk logo
      LinkedIn Ads + Flodesk
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        Effortlessly manage your leads from LinkedIn Ads with this seamless workflow. When a new lead submits a form response, this automation will create or update subscribers in your Flodesk app. Keep your subscriber list up-to-date and never miss out on engaging potential clients.

        Create/Update Subscriber in Flodesk for new lead form entries in Google Ads

        • Google Ads logo
        • Flodesk logo
        Google Ads + Flodesk
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          Act on new leads from Google Ads quicky. Take action within Flodesk automatically whenever a new lead form entry is submitted by a prospective customer in Google Ads.

          You can also add a filter, available on our paid plans, to only filter for people who want to subscribe to your newsletter. 

          Automatically segment your subscribers

          Segmenting your subscribers into different categories allows you to tailor and test messages based on their interests. For example, you might send a newsletter promoting upcoming webinars to subscribers who've previously attended an event you hosted. Or, you could send segmented follow-up resources based on people's answers to a quiz.

          Instead of manually tagging subscribers or adding them to lists, you can try a Zap to automatically get the segmentation party started.  

          Add new Interact Quiz leads to Flodesk segments

          • Interact logo
          • Flodesk logo
          Interact + Flodesk
          More details
            Use this integration to add new Interact Quiz leads to a Flodesk segment. This allows you to send targeted email marketing campaigns in the future.

            Add Mailchimp subscribers to tags for new attendees registered in Eventbrite

            • Eventbrite logo
            • Mailchimp logo
            Eventbrite + Mailchimp
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              When you have attendees registering for your upcoming event, you'll want them tagged in your email tool so you can follow up. This integration helps by automatically adding a subscriber to a tag in Mailchimp when there is a new attendee registered in Eventbrite. You won't have to manually tag subscribers again.

              Save Formsite form submissions to a Constant Contact list

              • Formsite logo
              • Constant Contact logo
              Formsite + Constant Contact
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                Automate your Constant Contact email list building using your Formsite form. Any form that collects a visitor's email address can also send the information to your Constant Contact list along with any additional info, such as name, address, or other custom fields.

                Use AI with your email newsletters

                Keeping your subscribers engaged means sending regular emails on a recurring basis. The hard part? Brainstorming themes and coming up with engaging content every week. 

                If you ever struggle with content creation, you can use these Zaps to automatically write email content for you—based on topics you store in Google Sheets or blog posts you publish in WordPress. Once a new row is added, ChatGPT will draft the content for you, then create a campaign or email in your newsletter app. 

                Write Brevo emails with ChatGPT based on WordPress posts

                • WordPress logo
                • ChatGPT logo
                • Brevo logo
                WordPress + ChatGPT + Brevo
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                  Blog content is a great way to generate newsletter content. This Zap template will create email content any time a new WordPress blog post of yours is published. ChatGPT will write email content with a snappy summary that can be sent as an email.

                  Repurpose campaigns into new content 

                  Repurposing content is a marketing trick that works. It can give new life to the email campaigns you've worked hard to create. For example, maybe you launched a drip campaign a year ago to help your customers get more out of a specific product feature. There are no rules against repromoting that campaign on social media or in a blog post.

                  These Zaps will automatically create new posts on social media or your website without the added burden. Of course, some content needs to be email-exclusive to give would-be subscribers an incentive, so you can limit cross-posting to the start of an email campaign if you'd like. 

                  Post new ActiveCampaign campaigns to your Facebook Page

                  • ActiveCampaign logo
                  • Facebook Pages logo
                  ActiveCampaign + Facebook Pages
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                    Easily tie your social media in to your email marketing. Once this ActiveCampaign-Facebook Pages integration is set up, Zapier will automatically make a post on your Facebook Page the moment a new campaign starts sending on ActiveCampaign.

                    Post new Mailchimp campaigns on WordPress

                    • Mailchimp logo
                    • WordPress logo
                    Mailchimp + WordPress
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                      Need a way to share your marketing efforts? Kick off your campaigns with a bang by using this Mailchimp-WordPress integration. Once you set it up, it will create a new post on WordPress for each new campaign you start in Mailchimp.

                      Share new Mailchimp campaigns on your company LinkedIn profile

                      • Mailchimp logo
                      • LinkedIn logo
                      Mailchimp + LinkedIn
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                        Your Mailchimp email newsletters come with a shareable link, so anyone (even non-subscribers) can read your content online. Use this Zap to automatically share a link to new Mailchimp campaigns to LinkedIn, so your content picks up more subscribers and views.

                        Keep subscriber lists tidy

                        Another hidden maintenance cost? Keeping your subscription lists clean. Just like a shrub, you have to prune your subscriber lists regularly. A glut of bounced emails and unengaged subscribers can tank your metrics and give an inaccurate picture of performance. (Unless the percentage of unengaged subscribers point to a trend, then perhaps you want to re-evaluate your content!)

                        You can use a Zap to track email bounces, get alerts, or even automatically unsubscribe bounced emails.  

                        Update Google Sheets spreadsheets when MailerLite emails bounce

                        • MailerLite Classic logo
                        • Google Sheets logo
                        MailerLite Classic + Google Sheets
                        More details
                          Having the most accurate subscriber information across all your tools is critical. Use unsubscribe, email bounce or spam complaint triggers to change the status in your external database (Google Sheets). Or, keep your subscriber details up to date using the subscriber fields updated trigger.

                          Update Google Sheets spreadsheet rows when new MailerLite spam complaints are received

                          • MailerLite Classic logo
                          • Google Sheets logo
                          MailerLite Classic + Google Sheets
                          More details
                            Use spam complaint triggers to change the status in your external database (Google Sheets).

                            Get Slack notifications for new ActiveCampaign campaign unsubscribers

                            • ActiveCampaign logo
                            ActiveCampaign
                            More details
                              Keep track of ActiveCampaign unsubscribes by setting up this ActiveCampaign to Slack integration. Once set up, Zapier will notify you in Slack every time someone unsubscribes from your ActiveCampaign email campaign.

                              If you prefer tracking or getting alerts for bounced emails, you can use a digestavailable on our paid plans—to collect bounced emails and alert you at specified intervals. 

                              Back up your email lists 

                              You worked hard to build your email lists, so it's smart to back up everything in case some horrible meltdown occurs. I'm going to go out on a limb here and say most people aren't opposed to backing up information. It's just difficult to remember to do it until it's too late. 

                              If you want to back up your email lists automatically, you can use one of the Zaps below to back up your contacts to your favorite spreadsheet app. 

                              Save new Mailchimp subscribers to rows in Google Sheets spreadsheets

                              • Mailchimp logo
                              • Google Sheets logo
                              Mailchimp + Google Sheets
                              More details
                                Save your new Mailchimp subscribers to a Google Sheets spreadsheet so that it's easier to share your list with teammates. This integration will automatically add new Mailchimp subscribers to a new row in a Google Spreadsheet.

                                Create Airtable records for new MailerLite subscribers

                                • MailerLite Classic logo
                                • Airtable logo
                                MailerLite Classic + Airtable
                                More details
                                  With this integration, it's easy to keep a record of your subscribers that you can sort and analyze without any manual data entry. When there is a new Mailerlite subscriber, a corresponding record will be created in Airtable.

                                  Generate items in Notion databases for new MailerLite subscribers

                                  • MailerLite Classic logo
                                  • Notion logo
                                  MailerLite Classic + Notion
                                  More details
                                    Your outreach is only as good as your contact list, which is why it’s important to keep it up to date. But who has time for all that tedious data entry? Just set up this integration to save yourself from that hassle. It automatically stores each new subscriber in your MailerLite account as an item to a Notion database, so that you can stay focused on sales.

                                    Automatically add new leads to the right email list

                                    Leads are a key ingredient for business growth. From form submissions to events to ads—the options to source new leads are endless. But engaging them all via email after the fact can get complicated. 

                                    For example, do you ever host an event or webinar? You can simplify the lead management process by automatically sending new leads sourced from an event sign-up to a specific list in your email marketing app. That way, your marketing doesn't end when the event is over. You can follow up and nurture event sign-ups through the rest of your lead lifecycle with ease.

                                    Add new Typeform forms respondents to Kit sequences

                                    • Typeform logo
                                    • Kit logo
                                    Typeform + Kit
                                    More details
                                      Add contacts to automated workflows without manual data entry. Set up this integration and, when someone fills out a Typeform form, they'll get added to an automation. Now, sending leads targeted messages will be automatic.

                                      Create or update Drip subscribers for new form submissions in Squarespace

                                      • Squarespace logo
                                      • Drip logo
                                      Squarespace + Drip
                                      More details
                                        When you have a new form submission, you'll want to add the details to your marketing tool for future follow up. This integration makes it easy by automatically creating/updating a subscriber in Drip when you have a form submission in Squarespace. You won't have subscribers fall through the cracks anymore.

                                        Add new Eventbrite attendees to Kit tags

                                        • Eventbrite logo
                                        • Kit logo
                                        Eventbrite + Kit
                                        More details
                                          People like getting together and doing things. Eventbrite lets you keep track of the people coming to your workshop, 5k, or festival so you know what (and who) to expect. Kit takes it even further by giving you the power to automatically email your attendees after the event, tag them in multiple events, and share a follow up sequence to your next Eventbrite shindig.

                                          Add Woodpecker.co prospects from new LinkedIn Ads entries

                                          • LinkedIn Ads logo
                                          • Woodpecker.co logo
                                          LinkedIn Ads + Woodpecker.co
                                          More details
                                            Thanks to this zap, you can automate your lead generation completely. Every time a new lead is captured from your LinkedIn Ads, they will be automatically imported to Woodpecker as prospects.

                                            Enroll Teachable users with new tags to Kit subscribers

                                            • Kit logo
                                            • Teachable logo
                                            Kit + Teachable
                                            More details
                                              This Zap lets you effortlessly enroll your Teachable users in courses as soon as they are tagged as Kit subscribers.Set up this integration to automatically manage your enrollment workflows and skip the tedious hassle of manual registration!

                                              Add subscribers to your CRM

                                              Before you launch a targeted marketing campaign, you need to make sure your sales pipeline is ready. Is your sales team equipped to handle an influx of new leads? Or do they already have too much on their plate, causing leads to fall through the cracks?

                                              Easily manage your sales pipeline by automatically updating subscriber or contact profiles. With an automated workflow, you can automatically create deals in your CRM when a subscriber takes specific actions from your emails. This allows your sales team to reach out to only the most qualified leads while minimizing manual tasks.

                                              Add new lemlist email acitivity to Salesforce as leads

                                              • lemlist logo
                                              • Salesforce logo
                                              lemlist + Salesforce
                                              More details
                                                Now you can keep Salesforce up-to-date based on the latest emails that your contacts responded to or clicked on. Set up this Zap to automatically add leads to Salesforce whenever new email activity is created in lemlist. Now your sales team can reach out to only the most engaged leads in order to be more efficient.

                                                Create new Pipedrive deals for new Drip subscribers

                                                • Drip logo
                                                • Pipedrive logo
                                                Drip + Pipedrive
                                                More details
                                                  Want to get super-organized and close deals in less time? This Drip-Pipeline integration makes it easy for you to manage your deals and automate your marketing. Whenever a new subscriber is added to your Drip account, Zapier will create a new deal in Pipedrive automatically—or it can update an existing deal with your Drip subscriber info. It's an easy way to monitor your marketing efforts and work harder on closing new deals.

                                                  Update existing Salesmate deals with new Woodpecker.co prospect replies of "Maybe Later"

                                                  • Woodpecker.co logo
                                                  • Salesmate logo
                                                  Woodpecker.co + Salesmate
                                                  More details
                                                    Managing your sales pipeline becoming tougher by the day? Now stay up to date with the status of your prospects inside Salesmate automatically as they reply "Maybe Later" in Woodpecker.co. This makes your manual updating a thing of the past.

                                                    Take your newsletter automation to the next level

                                                    Don't let maintenance and upkeep tasks prevent you from going all in on an email marketing strategy. Automation, especially when used to fuel your newsletters, can be an extra assistant when you're limited on time and resources.

                                                    This article was originally published in July 2021. It was most recently updated in February 2023 by Elena Alston.

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