Drip
Why Drip
It provides email and SMS automation built specifically for online stores and direct-to-consumer brands. For ecommerce teams running abandoned-cart and lifecycle campaigns, it offers a visual workflow builder, behavioural segmentation and revenue attribution to connect campaigns to sales. It integrates natively with Shopify, WooCommerce and BigCommerce.
What it does
Drip is an email and SMS automation tool built for online stores. It collects customer and shopping activity from your store, builds a profile per person, and uses a visual workflow builder to send messages based on behaviour.
It integrates natively with Shopify, WooCommerce and BigCommerce. It also offers behavioural segmentation and revenue attribution, so you can see which campaigns led to sales.
Why you would need it
A newsletter tool sends the same message to everyone. A shop needs the right message at the right time: a reminder when someone leaves a cart, a thank-you after a purchase, a nudge when a regular buyer goes quiet.
You feel the pain when you can see the abandoned carts but have no way to follow up without doing it by hand.
Where it fits
It sits on top of your store. The store feeds it customers, orders and carts, and Drip feeds email and SMS back to the customer. It replaces a basic newsletter tool, or a stack of manual follow-ups.
It does not replace a CRM. If your sales are driven by people and deals rather than carts, pair it with a CRM or look at HubSpot or ActiveCampaign instead.
What stands out
- Revenue attribution that links campaigns to sales, which is what a shop owner actually asks about.
- A visual workflow builder that does not need a specialist to use.
- A documented API with webhooks for subscriber, email and custom events.
- An official MCP server.
How it is typically set up
You connect the store, and Drip starts to collect customers, carts and orders. You then build a small set of flows: a welcome series, an abandoned cart reminder and a post-purchase message. Three flows cover most of the value for a small shop.
After that you add segments, such as repeat buyers or people who have not ordered for a while, and compare flow revenue in the attribution reports. Start small and only add flows that you can measure.
My take
I haven't personally run Drip, so this is my read from the product and its documentation. I'd pick it when you run a store on Shopify, WooCommerce or BigCommerce and your main goal is lifecycle email and SMS. It stays focused on that.
What I'd watch is reporting depth and scope. If you want to know which webinar drove pipeline, or you need deal tracking, Drip is the wrong shape. Compare it with Klaviyo, which many shops consider first, before you decide.
Verdict
Pick it when you are an ecommerce brand that wants simple, revenue-linked automation. Skip it when your business is B2B sales led, or when you need advanced analytics.
Books behind it
Notes
Your note
Before you choose
Pricing follows your contact count
Drip charges by the number of active people, so the bill grows with your list. Work out your active list size, not your total, and ask how Drip defines active. A 14-day trial is offered, so check the current pricing page for whether a free plan exists.
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Fit is narrow
Drip is for online shops. A B2B company with a sales team will miss CRM features. Look at HubSpot or ActiveCampaign in that case.
Compare Klaviyo and Mailchimp
Klaviyo is the obvious alternative for ecommerce, and Mailchimp is a cheaper email-first option. Customer.io suits teams that want more control over event-based messages. Compare list size, SMS needs and reporting on a real example.
Check your store platform
The native integrations cover Shopify, WooCommerce and BigCommerce. If you run on something else, you will depend on the API, so test that first.