Campaign scheduling controls when Smart Marketing sends emails and understanding how it works is key to making sure your messages go out exactly when you expect.
While all campaign types use scheduling, Automated and Drip campaigns behave very differently, which can cause confusion if you’re new to Smart Marketing.
This article explains:
Scheduling basics that apply to all campaigns
How Automated and Drip scheduling differ
Common limitations and gotchas
Real-world examples to make timing predictable
Scheduling Basics (Applies to All Campaign Types)
No matter which campaign type you use, these rules always apply:
Scheduled, Not Real-Time
Smart Marketing sends emails based on a scheduled time, not the exact moment a contact meets your criteria.
If a contact qualifies after the scheduled send time, they’ll wait until the next scheduled run (or may not send at all, depending on campaign type).
Send Time Matters
Every campaign has a send time, which determines:
The time of day emails are sent
When contacts are evaluated for eligibility
If a contact enters a segment after the send time, they won’t receive that day’s email.
Segment Eligibility Is Checked at Send Time
Contacts must:
Meet segment conditions
Be active and not suppressed
Have a valid email address
at the moment the campaign runs to receive an email.
Automated vs Drip Campaign Scheduling
Automated and Drip campaigns both send emails automatically, but how contacts enter and when emails send is very different.
Scheduling Comparison
Feature | Automated Campaigns | Drip Campaigns |
Email structure | Single email | Multi-step email sequence |
How contacts are evaluated | Segment is checked on each scheduled run | Contacts enter when they qualify |
When first email sends | On the next scheduled run after qualification | Same day the contact enters (at send time) |
Ongoing sends | Yes—continues sending to new qualifiers | No—each contact goes through once |
Timing between emails | Not applicable | Delays set between steps |
Send time behavior | Same time on every run | Same time for all steps |
Real-time triggers | ❌ No | ❌ No |
Best for | Repeated reminders | Nurture and follow-up sequences |
Real-World Scheduling Examples
If you’re unsure how scheduling behaves in practice, these examples show exactly when emails send and why.
Example 1: Automated Campaign (Pre-Move Reminder)
Segment: Customers with a move date in 7 days
Schedule: Daily at 10:00 AM
✔ Result:
Every day at 10:00 AM, Smart Marketing checks for new customers who now qualify and sends the reminder email.
Example 2: Drip Campaign (Lead Nurture)
Segment: New leads created in the last 7 days
Send time: 2:00 PM
Steps:
Day 0: Welcome email
Day 3: Booking reminder
Day 7: Final follow-up
✔ Result:
Each lead enters the sequence individually and receives the same emails at the same times, spaced out over days.
Example 3: One-Time Campaign (Newsletter)
Segment: All active customers
Send date: September 1 at 9:00 AM
✔ Result:
The email sends once, to everyone who qualifies at that moment.
Common Scheduling Limitations & Gotchas
These limitations explain why scheduling behaves the way it does and help prevent common mistakes.
“My email didn’t send today”
Most likely cause:
The contact entered the segment after the scheduled send time
✔ Solution:
Schedule campaigns early in the day (e.g., 9–10 AM) to catch more contacts.
“Only some contacts received the email”
Most likely causes:
Some contacts didn’t meet segment criteria at send time
Some contacts were suppressed, inactive, or unsubscribed
✔ Solution:
Preview your segment before scheduling and double-check filters.
“My automated campaign didn’t send to everyone”
Automated campaigns:
Do not send retroactively
Only send to contacts who qualify on a scheduled run
✔ Solution:
Use a one-time campaign if you need to message everyone at once.
“My drip emails aren’t sending immediately”
Drip campaigns:
Still rely on a scheduled send time
Do not send the moment a contact enters the segment
✔ Solution:
Set a consistent send time that aligns with when leads typically enter your system.
“Can I send emails at different times for each drip step?”
No. All steps in a drip campaign send at the same time of day.
✔ Workaround:
Create separate drip campaigns if timing needs vary significantly.
“Why Didn’t My Email Send?” Decision Tree
If an email didn’t send when you expected, follow the steps below to identify the most common cause.
Step 1: Is the campaign Scheduled or Active?
No → The campaign is still in Draft or Paused.
👉 Schedule or activate the campaign.Yes → Continue to Step 2.
Step 2: Did the contact qualify before the campaign’s send time?
(Remember: Smart Marketing is scheduled, not real-time.)
No → The contact entered the segment after the send time and missed that run.
👉 The email will send on the next scheduled run (Automated) or not at all (One-Time).Yes → Continue to Step 3.
Step 3: Does the contact currently meet all segment conditions?
(At the moment the campaign runs.)
No → The contact didn’t qualify when the campaign checked the segment.
👉 Review date ranges, job status, and dynamic filters.Yes → Continue to Step 4.
Step 4: Is the contact eligible to receive emails?
Check whether the contact is:
Suppressed
Inactive
Unsubscribed
Missing a valid email address
No (not eligible) → The email was correctly blocked for compliance.
👉 Update contact status if appropriate.Yes → Continue to Step 5.
Step 5: Are you using the correct campaign type?
One-Time Campaign:
If the email already sent, it will not resend.
👉 Use an Automated or Drip campaign for repeat sends.
Automated Campaign:
Emails only send on scheduled runs.Drip Campaign:
Emails send in sequence, not all at once.
Continue to Step 6.
Step 6: Is the contact still within the campaign’s timing window?
(Common with date-based segments.)
No → The contact aged out of the segment (for example, move date passed).
👉 Adjust your segment timing if needed.Yes → Continue to Step 7.
Step 7: Was the campaign or segment recently changed?
Changes apply going forward, not retroactively.
Yes → The contact may not be eligible under the updated rules.
👉 Review changes and wait for the next scheduled run.No → Continue to Step 8.
Step 8 (Drip Campaigns Only): Is the contact still active in the sequence?
Contacts stop receiving drip emails if:
They completed all steps, or
They no longer meet the segment criteria
No → The drip sequence ended for that contact.
Yes → The email should send at the next scheduled step time.
Still Not Sending?
In most cases, the issue is related to timing or segment eligibility.
If needed:
Check the campaign’s recipient count
Compare the contact’s timeline to the campaign schedule
Review engagement or attribution data for confirmation
Best Practices for Reliable Sends
Schedule sends earlier in the day to capture more contacts
Keep segments specific and intentional
Use:
One-Time campaigns for announcements
Automated campaigns for repeated reminders
Drip campaigns for structured follow-ups
Preview recipient counts before scheduling
Next Steps
➡️ Learn how to schedule each campaign type: