If you’re tasked with turning web visits into actual sales conversations, you know how tedious and hit-or-miss manual follow-up can be. That’s where automation comes in—done right, it saves you time and keeps leads from falling through the cracks. This guide is for sales or marketing folks who want to use Visualvisitor to set up automated workflows for lead nurturing—and want a straight answer on what actually works.
Why bother with automated workflows?
Let’s be honest: most leads aren’t ready to buy the first time they land on your site. If you’re relying on someone to remember to send a follow-up email or log a call, you’re going to lose deals. Automated workflows make sure leads get timely, relevant touches—without driving your team (or your prospects) nuts.
But automation isn’t magic. If you just blast out generic sequences, you’ll annoy people and end up in spam folders. The point is to use automation to do the repetitive stuff well, so you can jump in with the personal touch when it counts.
Step 1: Get clear about your goals (and don’t overcomplicate)
Before you even log in to Visualvisitor, figure out what you actually want your workflow to do. Here’s what usually works:
- Warm up cold website visitors with a few helpful emails.
- Alert your sales team when a hot lead comes back to the site.
- Nudge leads who downloaded something but never booked a call.
Don’t try to automate every single thing. Start with one clear goal, set up a simple workflow, and improve from there.
Pro tip: If you can’t explain your workflow in one breath, it’s too complicated.
Step 2: Map out your workflow on paper first
This sounds old-school, but it’ll save you a ton of backtracking. Sketch out:
- Trigger: What starts the workflow? (e.g., Lead visits pricing page twice in a week)
- Actions: What actually happens? (e.g., Send email, notify rep, add to list)
- Delays/Conditions: Any waiting periods or branching? (e.g., Only email if they haven’t responded)
Keep it simple for the first version. You can always add more later.
Step 3: Set up your trigger in Visualvisitor
Log in to Visualvisitor and head to the automation/workflows section (the labeling changes, but look for “Automations” or “Workflows” in the menu).
Common triggers to consider: - Visitor identified as a company in your target list - Lead submits a form (eBook download, demo request, etc.) - Lead returns to the site after X days away - Visits a “high-intent” page (like pricing or contact)
Pick just one trigger to start. You can combine or layer them once you’ve seen what works.
What to ignore: Overly broad triggers like “any page visit” will flood your system with junk leads and noise. Focus on signals that actually matter.
Step 4: Choose and configure your actions
Now, decide what should happen automatically when the trigger fires.
Typical actions in Visualvisitor include:
- Send an email: Start with a plain, helpful email—not a marketing novel. Personalization helps, but don’t overthink it.
- Notify a team member: Get alerted in Slack, via email, or in-app when a hot lead is active.
- Add to a list or CRM: Push leads into your CRM or add them to a nurture list for future campaigns.
- Tag or score the lead: Useful for segmenting later, but keep your tags simple (e.g., “Pricing Page Visitor”).
Be careful: Resist the urge to stack up too many actions right away. Too many emails = unsubscribes. Too many notifications = ignored alerts.
Step 5: Build your actual workflow in Visualvisitor
This is where most people overcomplicate things. Visualvisitor’s workflow builder is usually drag-and-drop, but don’t get carried away with branches and conditions.
A straightforward example:
- Trigger: Lead visits the pricing page twice in 7 days
- Action: Send a short, relevant email (“Saw you checking out pricing—can I answer any questions?”)
- Wait: 3 days
- Condition: If they reply, stop workflow. If not, send a gentle follow-up.
- Optional: Notify sales rep for a personal follow-up if there’s still no response.
Pro tip: Test your workflow on yourself or a teammate first to catch embarrassing mistakes (like typos or weird timing).
Step 6: Write emails that don’t suck
Automation fails when emails feel robotic or pushy. Here’s what actually works:
- Keep it short and useful: One or two paragraphs max.
- Reference what they did: “Noticed you downloaded our eBook on X,” not “Dear Valued Customer.”
- Sign off like a human: Use your real name and a basic signature.
Templates are fine as a starting point, but always tweak them. If your email sounds like a canned pitch, it’ll get canned.
Step 7: Test everything (seriously)
Don’t trust the preview. Send test leads through the workflow and check:
- Are the right people getting the right emails?
- Are notifications going to the right rep?
- Are delays and triggers working as expected?
- Are you accidentally sending multiple emails to the same person?
What to ignore: Hitting “activate” and hoping for the best. Bad automation is worse than no automation.
Step 8: Go live—then watch and tweak
Hit activate, but don’t walk away. For the first week:
- Monitor who’s getting what (and if they’re responding)
- Tweak subject lines and timing if open rates are low
- Shut things down fast if people start unsubscribing or complaining
Most workflow tools—even decent ones like Visualvisitor—can be glitchy or send more emails than you expect. Keep an eye on things until you trust it.
What works, what doesn’t, and what to ignore
Works: - Simple, targeted workflows (one trigger, one or two actions) - Personal, plain-text emails - Alerts that go to real humans (not just another inbox)
Doesn’t work: - Over-automating (nobody wants a drip campaign every day) - Generic “nurture” emails that offer no value - Complex branching before you’ve got the basics working
Ignore: - Fancy AI scoring (at least to start—you probably don’t have enough data yet) - “Best practice” workflow templates unless you’ve actually seen them work for your business
Common pitfalls (and how to dodge them)
- Trying to automate everything: You’ll just create a mess. Start small.
- Not testing: You’ll look silly (or spammy) if things break.
- Ignoring replies: If someone responds, stop the automation and handle it personally.
- Letting your list go stale: If leads aren’t engaging, pause and rethink your approach.
Keep it simple (and keep improving)
Automated workflows in Visualvisitor can save you a lot of hassle—but only if you keep things focused and human. Start with one workflow, test it, and don’t be afraid to kill what isn’t working. The goal isn’t to set it and forget it; it’s to build a system that frees you up for real conversations.
Remember: Simple beats clever. Iterate as you go, and you’ll actually see results.