Automated sequences send a series of emails on their own, triggered by something an artist or subscriber does, rather than by you pressing "send." Set one up once, turn it on, and it keeps running in the background—welcoming new subscribers, following up after a submission, or checking in after a decision. This guide walks you through how automations work and how to build your first sequence.
Automations vs. one-off campaigns
A one-off campaign is a single email you write, schedule, and send to a list at a chosen time. An automation is a reusable, multi-step series that starts whenever a triggering event happens for an individual person—so different people enter the sequence at different times and move through it on their own clock.
Use a campaign for newsletters, announcements, or call promotions sent to a list at once. See Email Campaign Basics.
Use an automation for recurring, event-driven follow-up that should happen automatically for everyone who qualifies—no manual sending required.
Availability
Automations are part of the Marketing Hub add-on. The Marketing Hub is available as an add-on on the Starter, Growth, and Professional plans, and is included on Premier. If you don't see the Automations area under Marketing, your plan likely needs the Marketing Hub added. You can add it from your subscription settings.
Trigger types
The trigger is the audience event that enrolls someone into a sequence. When you create an automation, you pick one of these:
Subscription Confirmed — Fires when a new subscriber confirms their opt-in. Great for onboarding and welcome series.
Submission Created — Fires when an artist completes a submission to one of your calls. Great for receipt confirmations and "what happens next" guidance.
Decision Made — Fires when a jury decision is recorded for a submission. Useful for outcome follow-up.
Event Registration — Fires when someone registers for one of your events. Useful for confirmations, pre-event reminders, and post-event thank-yous.
Manual / Custom — For sequences driven by a custom event rather than one of the built-in triggers.
Note: Each automation has exactly one trigger. If you want different messaging for different events (for example, an acceptance email vs. a submission receipt), build a separate sequence for each.
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Finding automations
Open Marketing in the admin sidebar.
Select Automations.
You'll see three areas:
Welcome Email Sequence — A dedicated onboarding series for new subscribers that you can configure and turn on.
Recipe Gallery — Proven, ready-made sequences (welcome series, re-engagement, event reminders, submission journey, donor/member thank-you). Starting from a recipe creates an inactive draft you can edit before enabling.
Triggered Sequences — Every custom multi-step sequence you've created, each showing its trigger, step count, and how many people are currently enrolled.
Tip: Starting from the Recipe Gallery is the fastest way to learn the builder. The draft arrives with sensible subjects and delays already filled in—you just swap in your own links and copy before turning it on.
Building a sequence
1. Create the sequence
On the Automations page, click Create Sequence.
Enter a Name (this is internal—your team sees it, recipients don't). For example, "Post-submission follow-up."
Optionally add a Description as a note for your team.
Choose the Trigger (the audience event that enrolls people).
Click Create Sequence.
New sequences are created disabled so nothing sends until you've added steps and turned them on.
2. Add email steps
Each sequence is made of ordered steps. For every step you set:
Subject Line — The subject of that step's email.
Send After — The delay before this step sends, measured from when the person entered the sequence (or completed the previous step). Choose a preset such as Immediately, 1 hour, 6 hours, 1 day, 3 days, 7 days, 14 days, or 21 days.
Content — The body of the email for that step.
To add a step, click Add Step. To remove one, use the trash icon on the step card; remaining steps renumber automatically.
Tip: A typical pattern is an immediate first email, a follow-up a few days later, and a final nudge a week or two out. Spread steps out enough that they feel helpful, not pushy.
3. (Optional) Add a condition for branching
Each step can carry a condition so the sequence reacts to engagement. Under Condition (Branching) you can choose:
No condition — Always continue to the next step.
Previous email opened — Branch based on whether the prior email was opened.
Previous email link clicked — Branch based on whether a link was clicked.
When a condition is set, you can tell the sequence which step to jump to if true and which to jump to if false. Use branching sparingly—start simple and add it only once a straight-line sequence is working.
4. Save and enable
Click Save Sequence to store your changes.
Flip the Active / Disabled toggle to Active when the sequence is ready.
A sequence only enrolls people and sends email while it is Active. You can pause it at any time by toggling it back to Disabled—people already enrolled stop receiving further steps, and new events stop creating enrollments.
Good use cases
Welcome series (trigger: Subscription Confirmed) — Introduce your gallery, explain what subscribers can expect, and point them to current opportunities over the first week or two.
Post-submission journey (trigger: Submission Created) — Confirm you received the work, explain the review timeline and how to reach you, then share other relevant opportunities while they wait.
Decision follow-up (trigger: Decision Made) — Follow up after a jury decision with outcome-appropriate next steps.
Event reminders (trigger: Event Registration) — Confirm registration, send a "what to know before you arrive" reminder, and follow up afterward with a thank-you and a link to the next program.
Re-engagement — Use an upcoming call as a concrete reason to reconnect with quieter subscribers.
Best practices
Draft first, enable last. Sequences stay disabled until you turn them on—use that window to send yourself the copy and check every link.
Replace placeholder content. Recipes ship with generic copy and example links. Swap in your real program links, dates, and contact details before enabling.
Keep timing humane. Avoid stacking several steps within the same day. Days between steps usually read as thoughtful follow-up rather than spam.
One trigger, one purpose. If you find yourself writing very different copy for different outcomes in one sequence, split it into separate automations.
Watch enrollment counts. The "enrolled" number on each sequence tells you how many people are currently moving through it—useful for confirming a newly enabled sequence is actually picking up events.
Troubleshooting
I don't see Automations under Marketing. Your plan likely needs the Marketing Hub add-on. Premier includes it; Starter, Growth, and Professional can add it.
My sequence isn't sending. Confirm the toggle is set to Active. A disabled sequence neither enrolls new people nor sends steps.
No one is being enrolled. Make sure the trigger you chose matches an event that's actually happening (for example, a Submission Created trigger only enrolls people when someone submits to a call).
The first email went out too early or too late. Check the Send After delay on the first step. "Immediately" sends as soon as the trigger fires; any other preset waits that long first.
A delay shows an unexpected value. If a sequence was started from a recipe with a custom interval, the step keeps that exact timing even if it isn't one of the named presets. You can leave it or pick a standard preset instead.
FAQs
Can someone be in more than one automation at once?
Yes. Automations are independent—a person can be enrolled in a welcome series and an event-reminder sequence at the same time if they qualify for both.
Do automations send to people who unsubscribed?
No. Standard subscriber eligibility and suppression rules still apply, so unsubscribed and suppressed contacts are excluded.
Can I edit a sequence after enabling it?
Yes—edit and save as usual. Changes affect the steps people receive going forward. For major rewrites, consider pausing first.
What happens to enrolled people if I disable a sequence?
They stop receiving further steps, and no new enrollments are created while it's disabled. Re-enabling resumes normal behavior for future events.
