Want to stop chasing leads and start having users chase you—without living in your inbox? This guide is for product folks, marketers, and anyone using Unless who’s tired of sending the same follow-up emails over and over. We’ll walk through how to set up automated email follow-ups in Unless based on what your users actually do (or don’t do) on your site. No empty theory, just real steps that work.
Why automate follow-ups based on user behavior?
Let’s be honest: sending every user the same follow-up is lazy, and it doesn’t work. People ignore generic emails. But if you can trigger the right email based on what a user actually does—say, they sign up but don’t finish onboarding, or they view your pricing page three times but never buy—you’re way more likely to get a response.
Unless lets you set up these kinds of emails, triggered by real actions. But like any tool, it only helps if you use it right. Here’s how to do it without creating a mess.
Step 1: Map out what you want to automate (before touching Unless)
Don’t jump into Unless and start clicking around. First, sketch out the key actions that matter for your business. Focus on high-impact behaviors, like:
- User signs up but doesn’t complete their profile
- Someone visits your pricing page multiple times
- A user triggers a support article but doesn’t reach out for help
- A trial user logs in less than twice in the first week
Pro tip:
Keep it simple. You don’t need twenty triggers. Start with one or two that match your biggest drop-off points or sales bottlenecks.
Write down: - The user action that should trigger the email - The goal of the follow-up (e.g., get them to finish onboarding) - What you want to say (keep it short and helpful)
Step 2: Set up user behavior tracking in Unless
Unless can’t read minds. You have to tell it what to watch for.
- Install the Unless snippet on your site (usually a JavaScript code in your site's
<head>). If you’ve already done this, skip ahead. - Identify important events. You’ll want to track things like “Completed Signup,” “Viewed Pricing Page,” or “Started Onboarding.” Unless has built-in events, but you can also create custom events.
- Fire events at the right time:
- For built-in events (like page views), configure them in the Unless dashboard.
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For custom events, you (or your developer) will need to fire them manually using Unless’s JavaScript API. For example:
js unless('event', 'ProfileCompleted', { userId: '12345' }); -
Test your events. Do the action yourself and make sure Unless logs it. If it’s not tracking, fix this first—your emails won’t work otherwise.
What to skip:
Don’t bother tracking every tiny action (“Clicked image,” “Scrolled 20% down page”). Focus on stuff you’d be willing to send an email about.
Step 3: Create your email templates in Unless
Unless lets you build email templates right in their dashboard. Here’s the smart way to do it:
- Go to the Email Automation section in Unless.
- Create a new template for each follow-up you mapped out.
- Use merge tags for personalization (
{{first_name}}, etc.). - Keep it short. No one reads a novel from a tool they barely know.
- Be clear about what you want the user to do.
- Make sure to include a real reply-to address (nothing says “we don’t care” like a no-reply email).
- Test your template. Send it to yourself or a teammate. Check for typos, bad links, and that the merge tags work.
What works:
- Friendly, direct copy (“Saw you checked out our pricing—anything I can help clarify?”)
- A single, clear call to action
What doesn’t:
- Marketing fluff (“Unlock the full potential of our platform!”)
- Overly designed emails—plain text often gets better replies
Step 4: Build automation flows based on user behavior triggers
Here’s where the magic happens. You’ll connect the events you set up to the emails you wrote.
- In Unless, go to Automations or Flows.
- Set up a new automation. Give it a name you’ll actually remember next month.
- Define your trigger:
- Choose the event (“Viewed Pricing Page 3+ times”).
- Set any conditions (e.g., “AND has not started checkout”).
- You can chain triggers if needed, but don’t get carried away.
- Add your action:
- Choose “Send email,” and select your template.
- Set a delay if you want (for example, wait 1 hour after the event).
- Review exclusions:
- Add filters to avoid spamming users (“Don’t send if user already purchased”).
- Limit how often someone can get these emails (once per week is usually plenty).
Pro tip:
Always test your flow with a real user account. There’s nothing like getting a “Hey, finish signing up!” email after you already paid.
Step 5: Monitor, tweak, and don’t overcomplicate
Once your flows are live, watch what happens. Unless will show you open rates, click rates, and (sometimes) replies.
- If no one’s opening your emails, change your subject lines.
- If people open but don’t act, your message probably needs work.
- If you’re getting complaints, you’re emailing too much or at the wrong time.
Keep an eye on: - Unsubscribe rates (a little is normal; a lot means something’s off) - Whether the right people are getting the right emails - If your triggers are firing too often (or not at all)
What to ignore:
Don’t obsess over open rates. Focus on the actual action you wanted (did they finish onboarding? Did sales go up?).
Real-world pitfalls (and how to dodge them)
A few things you’ll run into:
- Trigger overlap: Users can accidentally get multiple emails if your events aren’t set up carefully. Use exclusions and check your logic.
- Analysis paralysis: Don’t wait for perfect data. Start with simple triggers and improve them over time.
- Over-personalization: Fancy dynamic content is nice, but if it slows you down, skip it. A relevant, timely email beats a fancy one every time.
- Spam filters: Avoid sending too many emails or using spammy language (“free,” “act now!”). Unless is pretty good about deliverability, but you still need to be smart.
Wrapping up: Start small, stay useful
Automating follow-ups in Unless isn’t rocket science, but it’s easy to overthink. Start with one or two key user actions, set up clear emails, and test your flows. Watch what happens, and tweak as you go. Fancy automations are cool, but the best results come from simple, relevant emails sent at the right time. Iterate, don’t over-engineer, and keep asking yourself: “Would I find this email helpful?” If not, don’t send it.