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Drip Campaigns – Setup, Customization, and Best Practices

Introduction

Drip campaigns in TrackStat are automated text (SMS) and email sequences sent to patients based on specific triggers, timelines, or behaviors. They are designed for ongoing, automated messaging based on specific criteria. They help healthcare practices (especially chiropractic and wellness offices) maintain consistent, personalized communication to boost engagement, retention, and reactivation with minimal manual effort. This guide focuses specifically on drip campaigns, while blast campaigns are a separate type of messaging available in TrackStat.

Overview of Campaign Types

Blast Campaigns

  • Purpose: Blast campaigns are designed for one-time message sends.

  • Behavior: Once a Blast campaign is enabled and scheduled, it sends messages to the targeted recipients. After the messages are sent, the campaign will not send again automatically. There is no need to disable the campaign manually after the messages have been sent.

Drip Campaigns

  • Purpose: Drip campaigns are designed for ongoing, automated messaging based on specific criteria.

  • Behavior: Drip campaigns continuously monitor for recipients who meet the defined criteria (e.g., patients with certain attributes or appointment histories). Messages are sent automatically whenever the criteria are met. To stop the campaign from sending further messages, you must manually turn it off.

Once activated, campaigns run automatically and can stop when a goal is met (e.g., the patient books an appointment).

Who Can Set Up Drip Campaigns?

User Plus, Manager, and Administrator roles can view and edit campaigns. The basic “User” role cannot access campaign features.

Common Uses for Drip Campaigns

  • Happy Birthday Messages

  • New Patient Welcome Series (First Visit Date)

  • Anniversary Messages (first visit milestone)

  • Patient Education / Post-Visit Check-Ins

  • Missed Appointment Follow-Ups

  • Reactivation / No-Conversion Campaigns (based on Last Visit Checked In or Last Visit Scheduled) - encourage patients with no future appointment to schedule an appointment

  • Online Scheduling Invitations

Step-by-Step: How to Create a Drip Campaign

Step 1: Access Drip Campaigns

  1. Click the Communication megaphone icon in the side menu.

  2. Click Drip Campaigns.

  3. Click +Add Campaign (yellow button).

Step 2: Name & Set Up Audience

  1. Give your campaign a clear name and click Next.

  2. Select the primary trigger/filter:

    • Birthday – Sends on patient birthdays.

    • First Visit Date – New patient welcome series.

    • Anniversary – Celebrates first visit anniversary.

    • Scheduled Appointment

    • Last Visit Date - Checked In – Most common for reactivation or post-visit education.

    • Missed An Appointment (with timing options).
      ​

Fine-tune with advanced filters:

  • Tags (exclude with red minus “-” sign e.g., “not qualified” or "moved")

  • Active/Inactive Status (Inactive means marked as "Inactive" or "Deceased" in ChiroTouch or "Discharged" in ClinicMind)

  • Has Future Appointment (Yes/No)

  • Appointment Purpose

  • Attorney

  • Care Package

  • Case Types

  • Diagnosis

  • Fee Schedule

  • Insurance Company

  • Paid - Total (minimum or maximum $ amount)

  • Provider (Appointment or Primary)

  • Referral Source

  • Services/CPT Codes

  • Age, Sex, etc.

  • Address

Click Show All Selected Filter to review. Click Next when ready.

Step 3: Add Messages

  1. Click blue + Add Message button.

  2. Create a new message or select from predefined/master messages in folders.

  3. Choose Text (SMS) or Email. Type message content. Personalize with merge fields such as {{PatientFirstName}} . Save

  4. Set Schedule frequency (daily, weekly, monthly) and time.

  5. Set delay timing for additional messages (if multiple messages in campaign).

  6. Preview message (eye icon) and send a test to yourself.

  7. Click Next.

Step 4: Set Goals (Optional) Goals automatically remove patients once they complete the desired action. Goals are only used if the campaign contains more than one message.

  1. Select Yes under “Set a goal.”

  2. Choose goal: "Clicked The Link" or "Future Appointment" scheduled.

  3. Add filters or link as appropriate (appointment purpose, provider, etc.).

  4. Click Next.

Step 5: Activate & Review

  1. Enable the campaign by sliding the toggle to Campaign On (will be green). Enabled campaigns have a green Status bell. Disabled campaigns have a red Status bell.

  2. Results can be monitored in the Report tab:

  • Total Recipients

  • Total Delivered and Delivered %

  • Total Opened

  • Total Errors / Bounced / Unsubscribed

  • Green Bell Icon: This status indicator signifies that a campaign has been enabled and is active.

Specialized Drip Campaign Examples

Missed Appointment Notifications Trigger: “Missed An Appointment” → select “Today” + delay (15, 20, 25, 30 minutes, 1 hour, or 2 hours after appointment time).

Post-Appointment Check-Ins

  • Use Last Visit Checked In – Today (e.g., 1–2 hours after visit).

  • Use Last Visit Checked In – Yesterday (next-morning soreness check). These offer more filtering options than standard reminders.

Reactivation Campaigns Target patients based on time since last visit (e.g., 6+ months).

Birthday & Anniversary Use the dedicated triggers for automatic, personalized outreach.

FAQs

Q: Why can’t I see new appointment purposes?

A: Purposes only appear in TrackStat after they are used at least once in your EMR/EHR.

Q: How do I exclude patients who have opted out of marketing from a previous communication system such as CT InTouch? (ChiroTouch users)

  1. In Front Desk app → Billing Statements & Reports → Labels/Lists → Patient List.

  2. Select Patient Marketing = FALSE.

  3. Generate list and apply a tag such as "no marketing" to each patient in TrackStat.

  4. Exclude tag "no marketing" in campaign filters.

Q: Can I send campaigns to non-patients?

A: No - only patients in your EMR/EHR can receive automated messages.

Q: How do I send a message on a specific visit number?

  1. Set Last Visit Date = Today or Yesterday.

  2. Set Visit Count filter for the desired visit number.

  3. Build the message sequence.

Q: How do Goals work?

A: Patients are automatically removed from the campaign once the goal (link clicked or appointment booked) is met.

Troubleshooting Tips

  • Missed message sent even after patient check-in → Staff delayed checking patient in (in EHR). Use 25 or 30 minutes after appointment time option instead of 15 minutes after appointment option to allow more flexibility when office team is busy.

  • Low engagement → Test timing, shorten sequences, improve personalization.

  • Campaign not visible → Confirm you have User Plus, Manager, or Administrator role.

  • Duplicate or frequent sends → Ensure proper exclusion filters. Add Exclude from new drip campaign for X days selection.

  • Patients with future appointments still receiving reactivation messages → First, verify whether the messages are coming from a Reactivation Drip campaign. Drip campaigns are based on Case Types, so if a patient has multiple case types assigned, they may still receive a reactivation message if even one of those case types meets the campaign criteria. One solution is to adjust the Case Types filter within the drip campaign so that only the specific case types you want included are selected.

Best Practices

  • Start with narrow filters and expand based on performance.

  • Use images in emails (designed in Canva or similar) for visual appeal.

  • Prompt replies so your team can respond from the Inbox.

  • Regularly review settings and adjust timing to match patient behavior.

Keywords: TrackStat drip campaigns, automated patient messaging, missed appointment follow-up, reactivation campaigns, birthday messages, patient education series, TrackStat filters

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