> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.instantcampaign.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Create a campaign

> Start a campaign from a template or generate a multi-email series with AI, then set its name, sender and subject before sending.

A **campaign** is a one-time send to your audience: a newsletter, an announcement, a promotion. For sequences that run automatically when something happens (a welcome series, an abandoned cart), use [Automations](/guides/audience-and-campaigns/automations) instead.

You'll find all your campaigns under **Email → Campaigns**. Each card shows the campaign's status, how many emails it has and when it was created.

## Start a new campaign

Click **New campaign**. The dialog gives you two choices:

| Option                    | Best for                                | What happens                                                                                                                      |
| ------------------------- | --------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Start from a template** | A quick one-off send                    | Pick a design from the **Library** or **My Templates**. The campaign is created with that email and opens ready to edit and send. |
| **Generate with AI**      | A series of emails written from a brief | Opens **AI Studio**, where you describe the campaign and AI writes a series of on-brand emails.                                   |

### Generate a series with AI

<Steps>
  <Step title="Fill in the campaign details">
    In **AI Studio → AI Campaign**, enter a **Campaign Name** and a **Campaign Brief**: your goal, offers and key messages. Pick a **Campaign Type**: Welcome Series, Product Launch, Promotional, Re-engagement, Event, Newsletter or Custom.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Configure the series">
    Under **Series Configuration**, choose the **Number of Emails** (1 to 7) and a **Tone**: Professional, Casual, Friendly, Urgent, Luxury or Playful. Switch on **Deep Plan Mode** for a more carefully reasoned plan. It takes longer to generate.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Check your brand">
    The **Brand (Auto-applied)** panel shows the colours the emails will use. If you haven't set up a brand yet, click **Set up brand →** first.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Generate">
    Click **Generate Campaign**. Generation usually takes about a minute. When it's done, you'll see the [campaign plan](/guides/audience-and-campaigns/strategist) with the recommended audience, timing and follow-ups.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Note>
  The number of emails you can pick depends on how many template slots your plan has left. Any locked numbers show a padlock. Delete templates you no longer need, or upgrade, to unlock more.
</Note>

## Get a campaign ready to send

The campaign page has a two-step checklist. **Send campaign** stays disabled until both steps are done.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Name">
    Click **Edit** next to the name, change it and click **Save**.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Sender & Subject">
    Click **Edit**, then choose:

    * **Sender Profile**: leave it on **Use the policy's sender** or pick one of your verified sender profiles.
    * **Send policy**: leave it on **Marketing default** unless you've set up other [send policies](/guides/audience-and-campaigns/send-policies).
    * **Subject line** and an optional **Preheader**: the preview text that inboxes show.

    Click **Save**. All four fields are saved with the campaign, so they're still there the next time you open it, and the send wizard starts from them.
  </Step>
</Steps>

You only need to save each step once. After that, **Send campaign** stays enabled, even after you leave the page and come back. If you delete the sender profile or send policy a campaign uses, the campaign falls back to **Use the policy's sender** or **Marketing default**.

## Edit the emails

* **Design email**: opens the first email in the email builder. When you save, you return to the campaign.
* **Change template**: replaces the campaign's email with a different design. The name, sender and subject stay the same.
* **Email Series**: lists every email in a multi-email campaign. Click **Edit** to open one in the builder, or **Regenerate** to have AI rewrite that one email and leave the others unchanged.

If an email has never been saved in the builder, the page warns that it has no content. Open each email flagged in the warning, save it, and then send.

For campaigns built from a plan, emails 2 onwards are sent by a follow-up automation, not by the campaign. The series shows **Sent when the plan is approved** for email 1 and **Sent by the automation · +N days** for the others. Click **Open automation** to see the automation.

## Other actions

| Button        | What it does                                                                                                                     |
| ------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **View plan** | Opens the strategist's plan (for AI-generated campaigns that have one).                                                          |
| **Analytics** | Opens the campaign's performance report, including [A/B test results](/guides/audience-and-campaigns/ab-testing-and-scheduling). |
| **Export**    | Downloads all of the campaign's emails as a ZIP file.                                                                            |
| **Delete**    | Deletes the campaign. Its email templates stay in your Templates library.                                                        |

## Campaign statuses

| Status          | Meaning                                                                                                                                 |
| --------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Generating…** | AI is still writing the emails. The page updates by itself.                                                                             |
| **Active**      | Ready to send. It stays active after sending, so you can send it again to another audience. Each send is listed under **Send History**. |
| **Failed**      | Generation failed. Click **Retry** to run it again from the same brief.                                                                 |

## Troubleshooting

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Send campaign is greyed out">
    Hover over the button to see why. Either **The campaign is still generating**, or you need to **Save the sender and subject first**. You also need a role that's allowed to send campaigns.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="A campaign has been generating for a long time">
    If a campaign stays in **Generating…** for more than 10 minutes, its card shows **Retry**. Click it to restart generation.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Campaign limit reached">
    Your plan's monthly campaign allowance is used up. Upgrade under **Settings → Plan & Billing**, or wait for next month's allowance.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Next steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Send a campaign" href="/guides/audience-and-campaigns/send-campaign">Choose the audience, tracking and timing.</Card>
  <Card title="Campaign plan" href="/guides/audience-and-campaigns/strategist">Review and approve an AI-generated plan.</Card>
</CardGroup>