---
title: "Drip Campaign: Definition and Examples"
description: "A drip campaign is a series of automated emails sent on a schedule or after specific triggers, such as a sign-up, a download or no reply, to move a contact..."
path: /glossary/drip-campaign
family: glossary
updated: 2026-10-17
html: /glossary/drip-campaign
sources:
  - "https://www.salesforce.com/marketing/email/drip-marketing/"
  - "https://www.campaignmonitor.com/resources/knowledge-base/whats-an-email-drip-campaign/"
facts:
  term: "Drip campaign"
  also_called: "drip marketing, drip email campaign, drip sequence, automated email sequence"
  category: "Marketing"
---

# Drip campaign

A drip campaign is a series of automated emails sent on a schedule or after specific triggers, such as a sign-up, a download or no reply, to move a contact toward a next step without writing each message by hand.

## What Is Drip Campaign?

**In short:** You write the messages once, set the timing (for example day 0, day 3 and day 7) and the rules, and the system sends each step to every contact who enters.

Triggers can be time-based or behavior-based: a welcome series after sign-up, a nurture series after a webinar or a follow-up when someone visits the pricing page.

In marketing, drip campaigns go to people who opted in, like subscribers and trial users. In sales, the same mechanic is called a sequence or cadence: cold emails and LinkedIn steps to a prospect list, which stop for each contact as soon as they reply.

## Drip Campaign Example

Example: a B2B software company sends new trial users a 5-email drip over 14 days: a welcome on day 0, a setup guide on day 2, a case study on day 5, a feature tip on day 9 and an offer to book a call on day 13. In this example 9% of trial users book a call, up from 4% before the drip.

## Drip Campaign in Practice

They matter because many replies come after the first message, and nobody follows up by hand five times with 500 people. The common mistakes are too many steps, the same pitch repeated in every email and not stopping when someone answers.

## FAQ

### What is the difference between a drip campaign and a nurture campaign?

The terms overlap. A drip campaign usually means a fixed series of emails on a timer. A nurture campaign is often more behavior-driven, changing what it sends based on what the contact does.

### How many emails should a drip campaign have?

There is no standard number. Start short and add a step only while later emails still bring replies or clicks; when the last step mostly brings unsubscribes, cut it.

### Is a drip campaign the same as an email sequence?

Mostly. Marketing teams say drip campaign, sales teams say sequence or cadence. Sales sequences usually stop the moment a prospect replies and often mix in calls or LinkedIn steps.

### What is an example of a drip campaign?

A welcome series for new trial users: a welcome email on day 0, a setup guide on day 2, a customer story on day 5 and an offer to book a call before the trial ends.

## Do this in Ken

### Do This in Ken

Campaigns runs drip-style sequences for outbound: email and LinkedIn steps on a schedule, and an email reply can pause the LinkedIn steps for that lead.

- Link: [Do This in Ken](/features)

## Related

- [GTM Glossary](/glossary): Every GTM term, grouped by topic.
- [Email sequence](/glossary/email-sequence)
- [Cold email](/glossary/cold-email)
- [Inbound marketing](/glossary/inbound-marketing)
- [A/B testing](/glossary/ab-testing)
- [Email open rate](/glossary/open-rate)
- [Ken features](/features)

## Sources

| Source | URL | Checked |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Salesforce: What is drip marketing | https://www.salesforce.com/marketing/email/drip-marketing/ | 2026-10-17 |
| Campaign Monitor: What's an email drip campaign | https://www.campaignmonitor.com/resources/knowledge-base/whats-an-email-drip-campaign/ | 2026-10-17 |

## Changelog

- 2026-10-17: Page published.