Email Campaigns

Campaigns Overview

Campaigns are one-time emails sent to your subscriber list. Unlike automated workflows that run in the background, campaigns are manually created, scheduled, and sent when you're ready.

Campaign Types

MailPilot supports two types of campaigns:

Broadcast Campaign

A standard email sent to your entire list or a specific segment. This is the most common campaign type and is perfect for:

• Newsletter updates
• Product announcements
• Promotional offers
• Event invitations
• Company news

A/B Test Campaign

Test two versions of your email to see which performs better. You can test:

• Subject lines: Which headline gets more opens?
• From names: Does your company name or personal name perform better?
• Email content: Which design or copy converts better?
• Send times: Morning vs. afternoon performance

MailPilot will send version A to a portion of your list, version B to another portion, track the results, and automatically send the winning version to the remainder of your list.

Creating a Campaign

Follow these steps to create and send a campaign:

Step 1: Campaign Details

1. Click Campaigns in the sidebar
2. Click Create Campaign
3. Choose Broadcast or A/B Test
4. Give your campaign a name (internal use only, not visible to subscribers)
5. Click Continue

Step 2: Select Recipients

Choose who will receive this campaign:

• All Subscribers: Send to your entire active list
• Segment: Send to a specific saved segment
• Tags: Send to subscribers with specific tags
• Custom Filter: Build a one-time filter based on custom fields, engagement, or other criteria

You'll see a preview of how many subscribers match your criteria.

Step 3: Design Your Email

Click Design Email to open the email builder. Here you'll:

• Choose a template or start from scratch
• Design your email content using drag-and-drop blocks
• Add personalization with merge tags
• Preview on desktop and mobile

See the Email Builder documentation for detailed instructions on designing emails.

Step 4: Email Settings

Configure your email settings:

Subject Line

Your subject line is crucial for getting opens. Best practices:

• Keep it under 50 characters
• Create urgency or curiosity
• Use personalization: "{{first_name}}, check this out!"
• Avoid spam trigger words (FREE, !!!, $$$)
• Be clear about what's inside

Preview Text

This appears next to the subject line in most inboxes. Use it to expand on your subject line or add a compelling teaser.

From Name and Email

Choose which email account to send from. The from name and email should be recognizable to your subscribers.

Reply-To Address

Where replies will go. This can be different from the sending address.

Scheduling Your Campaign

Once your campaign is ready, you can send it immediately or schedule it for later.

Send Immediately

1. Review all campaign details one final time
2. Click Send Now
3. Confirm you want to send
4. Your campaign will be queued and sent within minutes

Schedule for Later

1. Click Schedule
2. Choose your send date and time
3. Select your timezone
4. Click Schedule Campaign

Your campaign will be sent automatically at the scheduled time. You can edit or cancel scheduled campaigns anytime before they send.

Best Times to Send

While every audience is different, general email best practices suggest:

• Tuesday-Thursday: Typically best open rates
• 10 AM - 11 AM: After morning routines, before lunch
• 2 PM - 3 PM: Mid-afternoon slump
• Avoid Mondays: Inbox overload
• Avoid weekends: Unless your audience is B2C retail

Use your own analytics to find the best times for your specific audience.

Sending Test Emails

Always send a test before sending to your list:

1. In the campaign editor, click Send Test
2. Enter test email addresses (comma-separated for multiple)
3. Click Send Test Email
4. Check your inbox and verify:
   • Subject line looks good
   • Preview text is correct
   • All links work
   • Images load properly
   • Personalization works correctly
   • Layout looks good in your email client
   • No typos or formatting issues

A/B Testing Details

When creating an A/B test campaign, you'll need to configure additional settings:

What to Test

Choose what you want to test:

• Subject Line: Two different subject lines, same email content
• From Name: Test company name vs. personal name
• Email Content: Two completely different email designs or copy

Test Configuration

• Test Split: What percentage gets version A vs. B (default is 50/50)
• Sample Size: What percentage of your list is used for the test (e.g., 20% test, 80% receive winner)
• Winning Metric: Open rate or click rate
• Test Duration: How long to wait before declaring a winner (typically 2-4 hours)

How It Works

1. MailPilot sends version A to half your test sample
2. Version B goes to the other half of the test sample
3. After the test duration, results are analyzed
4. The winning version is automatically sent to the remaining subscribers
5. You'll receive a notification with the test results

Statistical Significance

For reliable A/B test results, you need:

• At least 1,000 subscribers in your test sample
• A clear difference in performance (at least 10% improvement)
• Enough time for subscribers to open and engage

If your list is too small or the results are too close, MailPilot will notify you that the test was inconclusive.

Tracking Delivery

After sending a campaign, you can monitor its delivery status in real-time:

Campaign Status

• Draft: Campaign is being created but not sent
• Scheduled: Campaign is scheduled for future send
• Sending: Campaign is currently being sent
• Sent: Campaign has been delivered
• Cancelled: Scheduled campaign was cancelled

Delivery Metrics

On the campaign dashboard, you'll see:

• Total Recipients: How many subscribers received the campaign
• Delivered: Successfully delivered to inbox
• Bounced: Failed to deliver (invalid email or full inbox)
• Opens: How many recipients opened the email
• Clicks: How many clicked a link
• Unsubscribes: How many opted out

Campaign Best Practices

Frequency

• Don't over-send; 1-2 emails per week is typical for most audiences
• Be consistent; set subscriber expectations (weekly newsletter, monthly update, etc.)
• Reduce frequency for less engaged subscribers

Content

• Provide value in every email
• Focus on one main message or CTA per campaign
• Use a conversational, friendly tone
• Include a clear call-to-action
• Keep it scannable with headings, bullets, and short paragraphs

Compliance

• Always include an unsubscribe link (required by law)
• Include your physical mailing address in the footer
• Honor unsubscribe requests immediately
• Only send to subscribers who opted in
• Clearly identify your email as an advertisement if it's promotional

Managing Campaigns

Viewing Past Campaigns

The Campaigns page shows all your campaigns:

• Filter by status (sent, scheduled, draft)
• Search by campaign name
• Sort by send date or performance
• Click any campaign to view detailed analytics

Duplicating Campaigns

To reuse a successful campaign design:

1. Find the campaign you want to duplicate
2. Click the menu icon and select Duplicate
3. A copy will be created as a draft
4. Edit and send when ready

Deleting Campaigns

You can delete draft campaigns but cannot delete sent campaigns (they're kept for analytics and compliance purposes).