Which kind of email workflow should I use?
Sound familiar?
You open Email Workflows, start a new workflow, and reach a row of five cards under How does this workflow run? You're not sure which one fits. Maybe you want a monthly newsletter. Maybe you're running a webinar next month and want a countdown. Maybe you want every patient to get a birthday email, or an email when their membership renews. Or you've built something before and it didn't behave the way you expected 🤔.
This article helps you pick the right card first time.
What's happening
There are five kinds of workflow, in two groups.
- On a rhythm (three cards): emails go out on a regular beat, such as one a week on a Wednesday. Use these for newsletters, nurture and education.
- Around a date (two cards): every email is timed from a date. Either one date everyone shares, like a webinar, or each person's own date, like their birthday.
The quick rule: if your emails are about a moment in time, choose a date card. If they're about staying in touch, choose a rhythm card.
Why it works this way
Some emails only make sense at a certain moment. "See you tomorrow!" is wrong if it arrives the day after the webinar. A rhythm workflow can't know about your webinar, so it can't get that right. A date workflow can, because every email in it says when it goes compared with the date. That's why the two groups exist: one is built for a steady beat, the other is built around a moment 📅.
What to do now
- Go to Email Workflows on the left-hand menu: https://app.co-kinetic.com/email-workflows
- Click + New Workflow / Quick Email, then choose Full Workflow.
- Pick a purpose. This sets a sensible starting choice for you. Promote Offer or Event and Seasonal Campaign start on A shared date. Patient Journey starts on Each person's own date. You can change it.
- On the Setup step, under How does this workflow run?, choose one of the five cards using the guide below.
On a rhythm
- From the beginning. Everyone starts at email 1 and goes through the full sequence, one email each time the workflow sends. Good for: a new patient welcome series, a six-email course, a rehab programme.
- From the latest email. People join wherever the workflow is right now and carry on from there. Good for: your monthly newsletter, weekly health tips, ongoing nurture. Nobody gets last year's news.
- Never-ending (recipe updates). The workflow has no end. New emails added to its source recipe are added automatically. Good for: long-running programmes fed by Co-Kinetic recipes.
For these three you set how often it sends (Daily, Weekly, Fortnightly or Monthly), the day and the time.
Around a date
- A shared date. One date that everyone shares. You tell it the date (and a time if you want hour-level reminders) and what it is: A webinar, An offer closing, An event or Something else. Good for:
- a webinar or workshop ("Tomorrow!", "We're live in an hour")
- an offer closing date ("Last 3 days to book at the launch price")
- an open day or event
- a calendar moment, such as Valentine's Day or the start of the ski season
- Each person's own date. Everyone has their own clock, so everyone gets the full sequence on their own timeline. You choose what starts the clock:
- The moment they join this workflow (via a form, tag or rule): for a follow-up after someone signs up, downloads a guide or claims an offer ("Your offer ends in 7 days").
- A date on their contact record…: such as Date of birth or Last appointment, or your own date field like a renewal date. Good for birthday emails, renewal emails and "it's been six months since we saw you".
- A date supplied by the system that enrols them (webhook): when another system sends the person to you with their date attached.
For the date cards you don't choose a frequency. Instead, each email gets its own timing. "How does email timing work when a workflow runs around a date?" explains that part.
[SCREENSHOT TO CAPTURE: the Setup step showing the five cards under "How does this workflow run?", On a rhythm and Around a date]
Quick examples
| You want to... | Choose |
|---|---|
| Send a monthly newsletter | From the latest email |
| Welcome every new patient with five emails in order | From the beginning |
| Count down to a webinar on a set date | A shared date (A webinar) |
| Promote an offer that closes on the 31st | A shared date (An offer closing) |
| Wish every patient a happy birthday, every year | Each person's own date, using Date of birth, with "This date comes round every year" ticked |
| Email members on their renewal date each year | Each person's own date, using your renewal date field, with "This date comes round every year" ticked |
| Follow up a 30-day voucher after someone claims it | Each person's own date, starting from the moment they join, with a deadline of 30 days |
If you want more detail
- You can't switch an existing workflow between a rhythm card and a date card. They schedule emails in different ways. If you chose the wrong one, create a new workflow. Your emails can be rewritten quickly with the assistant.
- Date campaigns are time-sensitive. The wizard suggests setting the workflow's priority to High once it's created, so reminders aren't crowded out by your regular emails. You'll find Edit priority on the workflow's own page.
- Your daily and weekly limits still apply to every kind. They are your promise to patients about how much email they get, and no workflow can go over them.
- Birthday vouchers are different. A birthday email workflow sends emails you write. If you want to give a voucher on someone's birthday, that's a date-based promotion in the Revenue Hub.
The question behind the question
"Will I get this wrong and send something silly?" The date cards are built to stop exactly that. An email tied to a date can never go out after its moment has passed. Someone who joins late simply doesn't get the "7 days to go" email, rather than getting it on the day of the event. And Preview as a joiner lets you see exactly what someone joining today would receive, with real dates, before anything is sent 😊.
The next question is usually...
- How does email timing work when a workflow runs around a date?
- How do I check who gets which email, and when?
- How do I send birthday or renewal emails every year?
- How do I create a nurture email workflow?
Still stuck? This usually means...
- Your emails are about a moment, but you've used a rhythm card. Create a new workflow with A shared date or Each person's own date. A rhythm workflow has no idea when your event is.
- You can't see the date cards. They appear on the Setup step of a Full Workflow, under How does this workflow run? A Quick Email is a single email and doesn't have them.
- Each person needs their own date, but the date isn't on their record yet. See "How do I send birthday or renewal emails every year?" for adding a date field and filling it in.
- Still not sure which to pick? Ask in the chat and describe what you want to send. We'll point you at the right card.