# Smart Send: Best Time Recommendation in Email Marketing Campaigns

> Overview Smart Send helps you send emails at the best possible time to boost engagement. It analyses recipient activity (opens, clicks, and events) from…

- Source: https://docs.ghlcustomercare.com/docs/marketing/campaign-settings-functionalities/smart-send-best-time-recommendation-in-email-marketing-campaigns
- Section: Marketing / Campaign Settings/Functionalities
- Reading time: 3 min
- Images: 4, each explained below

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## **Overview**

**Smart Send** helps you send emails at the _best possible time_ to boost engagement.  
It analyses recipient activity (opens, clicks, and events) from the **past 60 days** to recommend when your audience is most likely to interact with your email.  
Available as a 5th option on the **Send & Schedule** screen, Smart Send ensures higher open and click rates with zero guesswork, all while giving you the flexibility to accept or override the recommendation.

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**TABLE OF CONTENTS**

-   [Overview](#overview)
-   [What Is Smart Send?](#what-is-smart-send)
-   [Benefits](#benefits)
-   [How to Use](#how-to-use)
-   [How It Works](#how-it-works)
-   [Smart Send System Behaviour](#smart-send-system-behaviour)
-   [Frequently Asked Questions](#frequently-asked-questions)

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## **What Is Smart Send?**

Smart Send is a feature which determines the **best possible time to send emails** for maximum engagement.  
It studies your audience’s activity patterns, when they typically open or click emails and suggests the time that is statistically most likely to result in higher engagement.

To ensure accuracy, Smart Send requires:

-   At least **1,000 delivered emails** within the **last 60 days** for the given location.
    

If eligible, you’ll see a recommended send time displayed on your Send & Schedule screen.

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## **Benefits**

-   **Higher engagement:** Automatically improves open and click rates by sending emails when users are most active.
    
-   **Unified experience:** Integrated directly into the existing Send & Schedule flow so no extra setup needed.
    
-   **Flexibility:** You can accept the recommendation or **manually override** it with a custom time.
    
-   **Actionable insights:** Post-send analytics show how Smart Send performed versus your usual engagement rates.
    

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## **How to Use**

1.  Go to **Marketing → Email Builder**
2.  Click on **Campaigns →** Create a new campaign.
3.  Click on **Send or Schedule** button after creating your campaign.
    
    
![Step 3 of 6: Click on Send or Schedule button after creating your campaign](https://s3.amazonaws.com/cdn.freshdesk.com/data/helpdesk/attachments/production/155056517750/original/bq7pMc4XfReii9MKXYceWs8KGBpgvwiqIA.png)

**Step 3 of 6: Click on Send or Schedule button after creating your campaign**

This screenshot accompanies step 3 of 6 in the "How to Use" section of "Smart Send: Best Time Recommendation in Email Marketing Campaigns". At this point in the walkthrough you click on Send or Schedule button after creating your campaign. The next step is to select the new Smart Send option.
- What to click: Click on Send or Schedule button after creating your campaign.
- Controls: Send or Schedule, Marketing → Email Builder, Campaigns →, Smart Send, “Get Recommendation”, engagement lift from Smart Send
- Next: Select the new Smart Send option.

Full procedure:

1. Go to Marketing → Email Builder
2. Click on Campaigns → Create a new campaign.
3. Click on Send or Schedule button after creating your campaign.  <- this image
4. Select the new Smart Send option.
5. Fill in all the fields and then click “Get Recommendation” → system analyses engagement data.
6. Launch your campaign. Post-send, check analytics to see engagement lift from Smart Send.

    
4.  Select the new **Smart Send** option.
5.  Fill in all the fields and then click **“Get Recommendation”** → system analyses engagement data.
    
    
![Step 5 of 6: Fill in all the fields and then click “Get Recommendation” → system…](https://s3.amazonaws.com/cdn.freshdesk.com/data/helpdesk/attachments/production/155056517765/original/D-SQeXlQlHSbA0RlFrT_cFWjjG5AAnKf7g.png)

**Step 5 of 6: Fill in all the fields and then click “Get Recommendation” → system…**

This screenshot accompanies step 5 of 6 in the "How to Use" section of "Smart Send: Best Time Recommendation in Email Marketing Campaigns". At this point in the walkthrough you fill in all the fields and then click “Get Recommendation” → system analyses engagement data. The next step is to launch your campaign. Post-send, check analytics to see engagement lift from Smart Send.
- What to fill in: Fill in all the fields and then click “Get Recommendation” → system analyses engagement data.
- Controls: “Get Recommendation”, Marketing → Email Builder, Campaigns →, Send or Schedule, Smart Send, engagement lift from Smart Send
- Next: Launch your campaign. Post-send, check analytics to see engagement lift from Smart Send.

Full procedure:

1. Go to Marketing → Email Builder
2. Click on Campaigns → Create a new campaign.
3. Click on Send or Schedule button after creating your campaign.
4. Select the new Smart Send option.
5. Fill in all the fields and then click “Get Recommendation” → system analyses engagement data.  <- this image
6. Launch your campaign. Post-send, check analytics to see engagement lift from Smart Send.

    
    
![Step 5 of 6: Fill in all the fields and then click “Get Recommendation” → system…](https://s3.amazonaws.com/cdn.freshdesk.com/data/helpdesk/attachments/production/155056517792/original/2nDn1ugcrWJ0hjlPTQU0AtMC7fqMog8ywA.png)

**Step 5 of 6: Fill in all the fields and then click “Get Recommendation” → system…**

This screenshot accompanies step 5 of 6 in the "How to Use" section of "Smart Send: Best Time Recommendation in Email Marketing Campaigns". At this point in the walkthrough you fill in all the fields and then click “Get Recommendation” → system analyses engagement data. The next step is to launch your campaign. Post-send, check analytics to see engagement lift from Smart Send.
- What to fill in: Fill in all the fields and then click “Get Recommendation” → system analyses engagement data.
- Controls: “Get Recommendation”, Marketing → Email Builder, Campaigns →, Send or Schedule, Smart Send, engagement lift from Smart Send
- Next: Launch your campaign. Post-send, check analytics to see engagement lift from Smart Send.

Full procedure:

1. Go to Marketing → Email Builder
2. Click on Campaigns → Create a new campaign.
3. Click on Send or Schedule button after creating your campaign.
4. Select the new Smart Send option.
5. Fill in all the fields and then click “Get Recommendation” → system analyses engagement data.  <- this image
6. Launch your campaign. Post-send, check analytics to see engagement lift from Smart Send.

    
6.  Launch your campaign. Post-send, check analytics to see **engagement lift from Smart Send**.
    
    
![Step 6 of 6: Launch your campaign. Post-send, check analytics to see engagement…](https://s3.amazonaws.com/cdn.freshdesk.com/data/helpdesk/attachments/production/155056517812/original/hcUou0HlqmYh9ZfxtrSQspEyxHRf2BEj6g.png)

**Step 6 of 6: Launch your campaign. Post-send, check analytics to see engagement…**

This screenshot accompanies step 6 of 6 in the "How to Use" section of "Smart Send: Best Time Recommendation in Email Marketing Campaigns". At this point in the walkthrough you launch your campaign. Post-send, check analytics to see engagement lift from Smart Send.
- What this covers: Launch your campaign. Post-send, check analytics to see engagement lift from Smart Send.
- Controls: engagement lift from Smart Send, Marketing → Email Builder, Campaigns →, Send or Schedule, Smart Send, “Get Recommendation”

Full procedure:

1. Go to Marketing → Email Builder
2. Click on Campaigns → Create a new campaign.
3. Click on Send or Schedule button after creating your campaign.
4. Select the new Smart Send option.
5. Fill in all the fields and then click “Get Recommendation” → system analyses engagement data.
6. Launch your campaign. Post-send, check analytics to see engagement lift from Smart Send.  <- this image

    

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## **How It Works**

1.  The system reviews your recipients’ **email activity data** (opens, clicks, and engagement events) from the **past 60 days**.
    
2.  Based on that data, it predicts the **best time to send** future campaigns.
    
3.  The **recommended send time** is displayed before scheduling, allowing you to:
    
    -   Accept it and use Smart Send, or
        
    -   Override it manually with a custom date and time.
        
4.  After the campaign is sent, your analytics dashboard shows the **engagement lift percentage** i.e., how much better Smart Send performed compared to your average results.
    

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## **Smart Send System Behaviour**

| **Scenario** | **System Behaviour** |
| --- | --- |
| **No eligibility** | Smart Send is disabled (greyed out). Progress bar shows the minimum requirement (1,000 delivered emails in the last 60 days). |
| **Recommended time in the past** | For campaigns which were saved earlier and the recommended time is in the past then the system nudges you to click **“Try New Suggestion”** to refresh the calculation. |
| ****API error or data retrieval issue**** | A banner appears with “Something went wrong. Please try again.” prompting you to re-fetch the recommendation. |
| ****No recommendation available**** | A warning text appears advising you to manually select a **custom time and date**. |
| ****Recipients updated after recommendation**** | The **“Try New Suggestion”** option instantly re-triggers analysis to reflect the new audience data. |

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## **Frequently Asked Questions**

**Q: Can I override the Smart Send recommendation?**  
Yes. You can manually select any custom send time if you prefer not to use the recommendation.

**Q: What happens if the suggested time has already passed?**

_You’ll be nudged to **Try New Suggestion**, or the system will automatically adjust to the next closest available future time._

**Q: What if my account doesn’t have enough data yet?**  
If your location has fewer than 1,000 delivered emails in the past 60 days, Smart Send will be disabled. Continue sending regular campaigns and once you cross the threshold, it’ll automatically unlock.

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Documentation for GHL Customer Care. Support: support@ghlcustomercare.com