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The Welcome Emails workflow is the first onboarding communication you send after a user signs up or subscribes. It sets expectations, introduces your product value, and guides users to the most important first actions. MailerPath owns the workflow definition and execution logic, so you can relax and let it run for you. If you want to adapt the experience, you can customize the provided fields and the email template content.

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Definition and business outcome

Use this workflow to reduce time-to-value for new users and increase early activation. Primary outcomes:
  • Users understand the first action to take.
  • Users complete at least one onboarding milestone.
  • Users know where to get help.

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Entry criteria

Trigger event:
  • Signup completed or subscription confirmed.
Required conditions:
  • Contact has a valid email.
  • Contact is subscribed.
  • Contact is in a new-user segment (for example trial or newly converted).
Recommended send window:
  • Immediate to 5 minutes after trigger.

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Exit criteria

Mark workflow complete when one of these happens:
  • Welcome email is sent successfully.
  • Contact completes the first key onboarding action.
Cancel or expire when:
  • Contact unsubscribes before send.
  • Contact is no longer eligible for the entry segment.
  • Queue item exceeds expiration policy.

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Suppression and conflict rules

Apply these default safeguards:
  • Do not send if contact unsubscribed.
  • Do not send if contact has no valid email.
  • Do not send duplicate welcome email within 30 days.
  • Respect account-level frequency caps.
  • Queue prioritization and conflict handling are system-managed by MailerPath.

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Required configuration fields

Use this field-level checklist in MailerPath setup:
  • Workflow status: enabled.
  • Trigger type: event-based signup/subscription (system-defined by MailerPath).
  • Audience filter: new-user segment only (system-defined for this workflow).
  • Timing customization: delay_minutes.
  • Send-time customization: send_time_mode and, when needed, preferred_send_hour and preferred_send_minute.
  • Priority customization: priority_score.
  • Template customization: onboarding-safe template with fallback subject and body.
  • Sender profile: verified sender and configured provider.
  • Tracking: opens, clicks, and onboarding conversion event.
Minimum user data:
  • Email address.
  • Signup timestamp.
Optional personalization data:
  • Name.
  • Plan type.
  • Acquisition source.
Customization boundary:
  • Clients do not modify workflow structure, trigger architecture, or execution engine behavior.
  • Clients customize allowed timing/priority fields and email template content.

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Message blueprint

Suggested message structure:
  1. Personalized greeting.
  2. One-sentence value statement.
  3. First 2 to 3 setup steps.
  4. Single primary CTA.
  5. Support/help pointer.
Recommended CTA examples:
  • Explore your dashboard
  • Complete your profile
  • Start quick setup
Content rules:
  • Keep one primary CTA only.
  • Use variable-safe fallbacks for personalization fields.
  • Keep the message short and action-oriented.

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Launch checklist

Before enabling in production:
  1. Test trigger with a sandbox contact.
  2. Confirm suppression rules work for unsubscribed contacts.
  3. Validate template rendering with missing optional fields.
  4. Verify provider and sender domain are healthy.
  5. Confirm event and delivery tracking appears in reporting.

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Metrics and target thresholds

Monitor these metrics weekly:
  • Open rate target: 40% to 60%.
  • Click-through rate target: 8% to 20%.
  • First key action completion target: 25% or higher.
  • Median time to first key action target: less than 24 hours.
Optimization trigger points:
  • Open rate below 30%: revise subject line and send timing.
  • Click-through rate below 6%: simplify CTA and first-step copy.
  • Activation below 20%: improve onboarding step clarity.

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Failure scenarios and fixes

Common issues and responses:
  • High skips due to missing email: enforce required identity at signup.
  • High skips due to unsubscribed state: verify subscription capture logic.
  • Delivery failures: check sender domain and provider health.
  • Duplicate sends: tighten deduplication window and event idempotency.
Use these as next-step workflow pages:
  • Getting Started Guide
  • Product Tour
  • Account Setup Reminder

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Workflow group and source

Workflow group:
  • Onboarding
Source reference:
  • MailerPath Workflow Details in docs/workflow/MailerPath Workflow Details.md