Learn what email automations are, how they work, and some of the most common ways authors and small businesses use them to stay connected with their audience.
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Automations may sound technical, but they’re actually quite simple. An automation is anything you set up to happen automatically when certain conditions are met.
What is an email automation?
In the context of email marketing, automations are emails you prepare in advance and that your email marketing tool (such as Mailchimp, MailerLite or Kit) sends automatically in specific situations.
Unlike one-time email “blasts,” automation is triggered by an action, such as someone joining your list, downloading a resource, or clicking a link.
Common examples include a welcome message for new subscribers or a short email sequence that introduces readers to your work over time.
Automations save you time while also creating a more polished, timely, and consistent experience for your subscribers. Your emails go out when they should, even when you’re busy (or asleep).
They also give you the opportunity to be more intentional. Because these emails are planned in advance, you can guide readers toward a specific outcome. This may be attending an event, buying your books, providing a review, or simply getting to know you better.
As your email list grows, automations become an especially effective way to manage repeated communications without adding to your workload.
Let’s take a closer look at some of the most popular types of automations used by authors and other small businesses.
Email automation examples
Here are some of the most common types of email automations you might use as an author or small business owner.
Welcome Email
A Welcome Message or Thank You Message is automatically sent when someone joins your list. This is your first introduction. Most people expect to receive a welcome message as confirmation that they successfully subscribed. It’s a simple way to say hello, thank them for subscribing, set expectations, and make a strong first impression.
Freebie Delivery
Sent when someone signs up to receive a worksheet, sample chapter, or other resource. This email delivers the promised item and often includes a helpful next step. Often, the Welcome Message also delivers the freebie, but you may choose to separate these into two different messages.
RSS / Blog Updates
Automatically sends an email when a new blog post is published. This can be a simple way to stay in touch, especially if you publish regularly. Some services support this feature more fully than others. For example, MailerLite still offers RSS-style blog update automations.
Nurture Sequence
You can plan ahead and write several messages in advance, scheduled to be sent every few days. A short series of emails sent over time to help new subscribers get to know you, your work, and what you plan to share or offer. Think of it as a guided introduction rather than a one-time message.
Announcement Sequences
A small series of emails used to promote something specific, like a new book or event. Instead of a single announcement, you build anticipation over a few well-timed messages. A common example is a book launch sequence where you encourage readers to order (or pre-order) your book within a short timeframe to support launch rankings and visibility.
Transactional Emails
Triggered by a specific action, such as a purchase or an abandoned cart. These are practical, expected messages that confirm details or help someone complete what they started. The most common example is a purchase receipt. Transactional emails are different because they are tied to a customer action and generally do not require a marketing opt-in.
How Email Automations Work
It helps to know the basics of how automations work so that you can set them up more confidently and troubleshoot them when needed.
Automations work using simple “if this happens, then do that” logic. If this thing happens, then that action occurs. Most email automations have three basic parts. The trigger, the action and the timing.
The Trigger: This is the action or condition that happens to “trigger” your email, like when a subscriber joins or is tagged.
When a visitor clicks the subscribe button on your subscribe form, the new email address is sent to your email marketing service and is added to your subscriber list.
The Action: The action is the sending of a specific email. When the trigger happens, the system prepares the email to send.
The Timing: You also have to decide if the email will be sent immediately or after a certain amount of time. It can be an hour, a day, a week, whatever you choose.
A Welcome Message is typically sent immediately. But it doesn’t have to be. When using sequences you need to indicate a time period for when to send each message. Is the second email sent 1 hour after the first? One day? A week later? It depends on your goals.
Where to Set up Your Automations
Although it is technically possible to manage email sending directly through your website, most people use a dedicated email marketing service instead. These services have taken care of the technical side of email deliverability and make sure you are compliant with email marketing laws.
There are many fine services but the ones I end up using most often with my authors and other small business clients are: Mailchimp, MailerLite, Kit (formerly Convert Kit), and Constant Contact.
When comparing services, pay attention to what kinds of automations they make available. Not all services offer all types of automations.
Also know that automations are not “all or nothing.” For example, Mailchimp includes basic Welcome Message automations in its lower-tier plans, while more advanced sequences may require an upgrade.
Conclusion
Email automations are one of the most useful features included with modern email marketing services. They allow you to send timely, intentional messages automatically based on actions your subscribers take.
Whether you are welcoming new readers, delivering a free resource, sharing blog updates, or promoting a new release, automations help create a more consistent and professional experience for your audience. They also make it easier to stay connected without having to manually send every email yourself.
Although automations may sound technical at first, most are built from a few simple parts: a trigger, an action, and a timing setting. Once you understand those basics, the concept becomes much easier to understand and use.
If you would like help setting up your first automations or improving the ones you already have, feel free to reach out. I regularly help authors and small business owners create email systems that are practical, approachable, and built to grow over time.
