Automation Playbook: 10 Growth Automation Workflows

Primary Keyword: growth automation workflows

Introduction

Small teams win when they automate repeatable growth tasks not by building everything but by shipping a small set of focused automations that deliver measurable lift. This playbook lays out ten ready to run growth automation workflows with a clear trigger tool agnostic steps and KPIs so founders and growth marketers can implement each one in one to two hours.

This guide is written for early stage founders growth marketers and compact marketing teams who lack engineering bandwidth. Read it as a menu pick one workflow and deploy it this week. Later you can iterate and stitch these pieces into a larger system.

Automate the next obvious step not the entire funnel at once.

Quick checklist and anchors

• Pick one workflow to start
• Implement the steps in a no code builder or in your CRM
• Measure the KPIs for two weeks and iterate

Jump to a workflow

• #1 Lead Capture then Welcome plus Tagging
• #2 Short Drip Nurture three email lead nurture
• #3 Trial Activation then Product Onboarding Sequence
• #4 Trial to Paid Conversion Push with time limited offer
• #5 Churn Prevention and Winback Flow
• #6 Post Purchase Onboarding plus Cross Sell
• #7 Webinar Signup then Reminders and Replay Flow
• #8 Sales Handoff MQL to SQL Workflow
• #9 Feedback Loop NPS to Segment and Follow up
• #10 Content Distribution Automation

How to use this playbook

Each workflow follows a consistent recipe so you can scan copy and deploy. Use this structure

• Trigger then Goal
• Tool agnostic Steps
• Example template or snippet
• KPIs then Time to implement
• Quick testing checklist

Difficulty ratings

• 0 means no code tools alone will do it
• 1 means light setup or small script may help
• 2 means you will want developer help for integration

Keep a short runbook for each workflow that lists an owner expected outcomes and a rollback plan. Observability matters more than cleverness. If you cannot measure it do not ship it.

#1 Lead Capture then Welcome plus Tagging

Trigger

New form submission or inbound lead capture.

Goal

Confirm receipt set proper segmentation tag and start a short nurture journey.

Steps tool agnostic

• Capture lead with form add metadata for source and campaign
• Immediately send a personalized welcome email
• Add tag or segment in CRM for source and intent
• Enroll lead in the appropriate nurture track if applicable and notify sales for high intent leads

Example content

Email subject

Welcome and next step

Hi there

Thanks for signing up. We will send a quick guide to get you started. If you want a demo pick a time with this link.

Best

Team

KPIs

Welcome open rate tag accuracy percent of leads tagged and conversion to the next step.

Time to implement

Thirty to ninety minutes in most no code builders.

Visuals and UX

Show form field to CRM field mapping and a preview of the welcome email.

#2 Short Drip Nurture three email lead nurture

Trigger

Lead tagged as new lead after the welcome sequence.

Goal

Move a lead from awareness to product interest within seven to fourteen days.

Steps tool agnostic

• Map three sequential emails covering problem proof and next step CTA
• Wait windows for sending set for day two day five and day ten but adjust to your product rhythm
• If prospect clicks the CTA remove them from the drip and notify sales
• Use conditional splits to personalize follow up for engaged leads

KPIs

Open and click rates CTA click to conversion and unsubscribe rate.

Implementation tips

Personalize the second message with a short case or testimonial and the third with a clear next step that requires minimal friction to take.

#3 Trial Activation then Product Onboarding Sequence

Trigger

User signs up for a free trial or activates an account.

Goal

Drive the core activation metric the first key action inside the trial period.

Steps tool agnostic

• Immediately send an activation checklist and one or two educational emails focused on the aha moment
• Trigger an in app tooltip or checklist when the user fails to act within forty eight hours
• Escalate to a human touch if a high value account shows intent signals

KPIs

Day three activation rate time to first key action and trial to paid conversion.

Example snippet

Subject

Unlock key feature

Body

Congrats on getting started. Try this checklist and complete the first task to see how this product will save you time.

Time to implement

One to two hours for email sequence plus a basic in app prompt using a product messaging tool.

#4 Trial to Paid Conversion Push with time limited offer

Trigger

Trial end date approaching such as three days left.

Goal

Increase trial to paid conversion with a clear value reminder and a time limited incentive.

Steps tool agnostic

• Send reminder at three days left
• Follow with benefit driven message at one day left
• Send a last chance offer in the final twenty four hours with a clear CTA
• Tailor messages based on behavior if the user has already used key features

KPIs

Conversion lift versus baseline and redemption rate of the offer.

#5 Churn Prevention and Winback Flow

Trigger

Inactivity for a defined period for your product for example thirty sixty or ninety days.

Goal

Re engage dormant users with targeted incentives or helpful updates.

Steps tool agnostic

• Identify lost signals like no login and no feature use
• Send segmented messages offer product tips for light users and a special offer for at risk high value users
• If no response move them to a long term nurture list

KPIs

Reactivation rate cost per reactivation and unsubscribe rate.

#6 Post Purchase Onboarding plus Cross Sell

Trigger

Completed purchase or first paid invoice.

Goal

Reduce buyer remorse increase product adoption and seed cross sell opportunities.

Steps tool agnostic

• Send order confirmation with onboarding steps
• At seven to fourteen days send usage tips and a complementary product suggestion
• Track usage and trigger cross sell when the user reaches a usage threshold

KPIs

Time to first use cross sell conversion rate and NPS after thirty days.

#7 Webinar Signup then Reminders and Replay Flow

Trigger

User registers for a webinar.

Goal

Maximize live attendance and capture replay viewers.

Steps tool agnostic

• Immediate confirmation with calendar link
• Send reminders at one week one day and one hour before the event
• After the event deliver the replay and segment follow up based on attendance

KPIs

Attendance rate replay view rate and post webinar conversion.

#8 Sales Handoff MQL to SQL Workflow

Trigger

Lead reaches MQL criteria such as score threshold or demo request.

Goal

Ensure fast visible sales handoff and a reliable follow up cadence.

Steps tool agnostic

• Auto create task in CRM send a Slack notification to the account executive and send an immediate contact email with a meeting link
• If the account executive does not book within twenty four hours auto escalate to a manager

KPIs

Sales response time meeting booked rate and MQL to SQL conversion.

#9 Feedback Loop NPS to Segment and Follow up

Trigger

NPS survey completion or a specific rating threshold.

Goal

Close the feedback loop and turn promoters into referrers and detractors into recoveries.

Steps tool agnostic

• Route promoters to a referral sequence
• Pass detractors to support for remediation
• Send targeted educational content to mid range respondents

KPIs

Response rate promoter referral rate and detractor resolution time.

Feedback is only useful when it leads to an action.

#10 Content Distribution Automation

Trigger

New blog post or asset published.

Goal

Syndicate and promote content across channels for reach and lead capture.

Steps tool agnostic

• Publish then push an email to a relevant list segment
• Queue posts in your social scheduler and post a note in your community channel
• Update your retargeting pool with a UTM tagged audience and enroll engaged readers into a nurture track

KPIs

Traffic lift lead capture per asset and social engagement.

Bonus Tip Monitoring and Runbooks

Each workflow needs a short runbook that lists an owner expected outcomes error states and a rollback plan. Set basic observability for delivery rates and error alerts and create a weekly automation health report.

Testing QA and Privacy notes

Testing checklist

• Dry run with test contacts
• Verify personalization tokens and fallback values
• Confirm suppression lists and opt out handling

Privacy

Capture consent clearly store minimal personal data and align retention to policy. When in doubt lean on opt in and explicit consent.

Conclusion and next step

These ten growth automation workflows are high impact repeatable and adaptable to common tools. Pick one workflow to implement this week measure the key metrics and share what you learn. Small wins compound when you automate the basics and follow the data.

If you want a fast start use the welcome email template and the three email drip as a pair then extend into onboarding automation. Share your results in the comments or in the community.

“A single automation that saves ten minutes a day is worth building.”