# Sequences

> Sequences send a series of emails over time as subscribers move through the steps. Use sequences for onboarding, nurture campaigns, and educational content that should be sent over days or weeks.

- Human page: https://mailrith.com/docs/sequences
- Markdown page: https://mailrith.com/docs/sequences.md
- Category: Automation
- Reading time: 12 min read
- Last updated: 2026-07-13
- Related keywords: Sequences, Sequences documentation, Automation, Automation documentation, Mailrith documentation, Mailrith help, Sequence Structure, Connection and Sending Rules, Drafts, Publishing, and Tests, Analytics and Enrollment, Automations, Email Editor, AI Writing

## AI Agent Notes
- Use this article as step-by-step Mailrith product guidance, not as legal, financial, or deliverability advice unless the article says so.
- Preserve exact Mailrith UI labels from the steps when explaining a workflow.
- Prefer Mailrith's product term Subscribers when referring to people on an email list.

## What this guide covers
Build timed email series with delays for each email, subscriber filters for each email, draft and publish controls, and engagement analytics for each step.

## Sections
- Sequence Structure
- Connection and Sending Rules
- Drafts, Publishing, and Tests
- Analytics and Enrollment

## Visual Reference
![Mailrith sequences page showing the sequence list and email steps within a sequence.](https://mailrith.com/docs/screenshots/sequences.png)

Each sequence shows the total Subscribers who are currently in the sequence or have already gone through it. Open Sequence Statistics to see where Subscribers open, click, or disengage as they progress through the series.

## Sequence Structure

A sequence is a planned series of emails that subscribers receive over time. A broadcast sends once, but a sequence sends each step as each subscriber moves through the series.

Use sequences for onboarding, courses, welcome series, sales nurture, product education, trial follow-up, event preparation, or any message path where the send timing matters.

Each email step has its own subject, preview text, body, delay, draft or published state, and optional subscriber filter. Sequence-level settings control the shared sender, tracking, and sending rules for the full series.

Before you build emails, decide what experience subscribers should have from the first message to the last message. Write the sequence outline first so the timing and message order feel intentional.

1. Click **Sequences** in the left sidebar to open the Sequences page for the current workspace.
2. Click **Create Sequence** in the page header.
3. In the **Select Email Template** drawer, choose the starting template for the first email.
4. In **Sequence Name**, enter a name that describes the journey, such as "New Customer Onboarding" or "Webinar Follow-Up".
5. Write the sequence purpose before you add email steps.
6. Select the first email in the left pane, then fill in the **Subject**, optional preview text, and **Body**.
7. Click the **Email Settings** icon for the email and set the send delay. Use **0** when the first email should send as soon as the subscriber enters the sequence.
8. Click **Add Email** to add later steps in the order subscribers should receive them.
9. Use the [Email Editor](https://mailrith.com/docs/email-editor.md) to write and test each message, then use **Publish** when that email step is ready to send.
10. Keep later steps in draft until the content, timing, and links are complete and reviewed.

## Connection and Sending Rules

Sequence settings control how Mailrith sends the series. Review these settings before you enroll subscribers because they apply to every email in the sequence.

- **Email delivery connection:** the sender used by the sequence. The connection must be enabled and assigned to the current workspace.
- **Published email requirement:** a sequence must have at least one published email before you can enable it. You can save a draft-only sequence while you work, but Mailrith will not treat it as ready to send.
- **Reply-to address:** the email address that receives replies when replies should go somewhere other than the From address.
- **Open and click tracking:** whether Mailrith records engagement for sequence emails. New sequences start with the workspace tracking default from **Workspaces** > **Edit Workspace** > **Privacy & Consent**, then you can review the sequence-level choice before publishing.
- **Sending days:** the days of the week when Mailrith may deliver sequence emails. Mailrith checks these days in the workspace time zone. Use sending days to avoid weekends, holidays, or low-response days when those days matter for your subscribers.

Set the delay on each email step. For example, the first email might send immediately, the second after two days, and the third after one week. A delay can be up to 10 years. Plan delays from the subscriber's point of view: emails sent too close together can feel overwhelming, while long gaps can make the next message feel disconnected.

Optional per-email filters let you choose whether Mailrith sends a specific step to a subscriber based on their current subscriber data. Use filters when a sequence should skip a promotional email for people who already purchased or skip an introductory lesson for people who already completed onboarding.

1. Open the sequence and click **Sequence Settings** in the header before enrolling subscribers.
2. In the **Sequence Settings** drawer, choose the enabled [Email Delivery Connection](https://mailrith.com/docs/email-delivery-connections.md) you want Mailrith to use for every step.
3. Enter an email address in **Reply To Email** if replies should go somewhere other than the sender address.
4. Use **Default Email Template for New Emails** if new steps should start from a specific saved template.
5. Under **Email Schedule**, choose the **Weekdays** when Mailrith may send sequence emails.
6. Use **Exclude Subscribers** only when certain people must never enter or continue through this sequence.
7. Review **Restart Sequence for Completed Subscribers** and **Send New Emails to Completed Subscribers** before you change them, because these settings affect subscribers who already finished the sequence.
8. Confirm **Track Opens**, **Track Link Clicks**, and any UTM fields match your reporting needs, then click **Save**.
9. Open each email step's **Email Settings** drawer, set the delay, add per-email exclusions only when that step should skip certain subscribers, and send a test before publishing.
10. Publish at least one email step before you enable the sequence or add subscribers to it.

## Drafts, Publishing, and Tests

You can draft and publish sequence emails one step at a time. Draft emails do not send to subscribers. Published emails can send when subscribers reach that step and match any filters.

This workflow lets you build a sequence gradually. You can publish the first few emails while later steps stay in draft, but do this only when you are confident you will finish the remaining steps before subscribers reach them.

Send a test email for every sequence step before you publish it. Check that the subject, preview text, personalization, links, buttons, images, mobile layout, and message context are correct before the step can send to subscribers.

1. Open the sequence and click the first draft email in the left pane.
2. Preview the desktop and mobile layouts, and confirm both layouts are readable.
3. Click the email's **Email Settings** icon and send a test email to yourself or reviewers.
4. Fix any copy, links, images, timing, or personalization issues you find in the test email.
5. Click **Publish** for the step only when the test email is correct.
6. Repeat the test and publish process for every step in the sequence.
7. Enroll a small internal test subscriber before you add a large subscriber group.

Editing a published step affects subscribers who have not received that step yet. The edit does not change emails that Mailrith already delivered to subscribers who passed that point earlier.

## Analytics and Enrollment

Subscribers can enter a sequence in several ways:

- Manually from an individual subscriber profile.
- In bulk from the subscriber directory.
- During a CSV import.
- After clicking a magic link configured to enroll them.
- Through an automation action step.
- Through a form or landing page workflow when configured to do so.

Sequence analytics show how the series is performing. Review total enrollment, active subscribers, completed subscribers, removed subscribers, and step-level engagement, including sends, opens, clicks, unsubscribes, bounces, and complaints.

1. Click **Sequences** in the left sidebar.
2. Find the sequence you want to review.
3. Click the bar chart **Sequence Statistics** button in that sequence's row.
4. Review the total metrics first, then select an email row to compare sends, opens, clicks, unsubscribes, bounces, and complaints for that step.
5. Use **Download** in **Top Links by Clicks** or **Subscriber Activity** when you need the full CSV. Mailrith prepares the file in the background and emails you a download link when it is ready.

Use step-level analytics to find weak points. If many people open the first email but few click the second, review the second email's subject, timing, and offer. If bounces or complaints increase, check the subscriber source, subscriber expectations, sender identity, and content relevance.

Before you add many subscribers to a sequence, test the sequence with internal contacts first. Confirm that timing, sending days, content, and filters behave the way you expect.

## Related Guides
- [Automations](https://mailrith.com/docs/automations.md): Automations turn subscriber events into automatic responses. A trigger starts the flow, and each branch can send emails, update tags, fire webhooks, or enroll subscribers in sequences without manual work.
- [Email Editor](https://mailrith.com/docs/email-editor.md): The email editor is used for broadcasts, sequences, templates, automations, notifications, and confirmation emails. This guide explains how to build email content and review the message before subscribers receive it.
- [AI Writing](https://mailrith.com/docs/ai-writing.md): AI writing creates drafts, not final sends. This guide explains where AI appears, how to write a clear brief, how to preview generated content, when replacement confirmations appear, and how to repair provider failures.