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The Anatomy of a Welcome Email

 

The Anatomy of Your Welcome Email

 
We have been talking about collecting email addresses and building your biggest asset (your list) for some time now. Now we are going to dive a little bit into the nitty gritty. You may be asking yourself…
 
Once I have the email address, what the heck do I send them?
 
I admit when I started my first email list I had collected almost 25 subscribers before I sent them anything! Email marketing is a specific topic, that has specific strategies involved.
 
No need to be afraid though…we’re here to help.
 
The most important email you will ever want to send a prospect will be the first one. A Welcome email is the message that is sent after someone signs up for your list. Typically you will deliver what was promised from your optin form, and then follow up with new subscribers with a Welcome email. Moreover, over 50% of Welcome emails are opened, compared to 15% of the rest of your emails.
 
This means that the Welcome email is very important! The Welcome email is more than just a simple email: This is the email that will set the tone for how you will be communicating with your list, delivers your first impression, and will most importantly communicate what they can expect from you.
 
welcome-email
 
Here are the 4 things that every Welcome email should include:
 

  1. The Introduction

For the people who signed up for your list, they are going to want to know that they made a good decision. The introduction will let your new subscribers know who you are as a person, a company, your values and reasons why they should choose your business over the competitors. Even if you think your new subscribers may already know you, you should go ahead and introduce yourself, anyway.
 
Do not be afraid to showcase your success! Let them know they are part of a community of X number of subscribers. This is a good way to reaffirm their decision to join your list.
 
Finally, make them feel safe by letting them know you will protect their email address and never sell their information.
 

  1. Set Expectations

 
In your Welcome email you should always set the expectations for your subscriber s in terms of what being on your list means to them. Tell them how many emails you send per week, or that you send emails on Wednesdays that include your latest blog posts. This way when they receive your email on Wednesday, they won’t be thinking “why are you sending me this”?
 
It goes without saying that it is important that what you tell your subscriber in the Welcome email should be what you actually do. Do not offer coupons and freebies and then just send blog posts or informational newsletters.
 

  1. Next Steps

 
This depends on the nature of your business, but in our Welcome email we like to ask our readers to:
 

  • Join our Facebook group

Our Facebook group is a way for our subscribers to join us on a deeper, more personal level. Once they join our Facebook group, they are exposed to more value that we have to offer our group members.

  • White list our emails

Most people are using free email providers like Hotmail or Gmail. Sadly, even the most experienced or well-known company emails will fall into the SPAM filters.
 
To avoid this, you can ask your email readers to “white list” your email address, or add your business to their list of “Trusted Contacts”. This way your emails will end up in the Inbox, and also be recognized by your reader.
 

  1. An Open Ended Conversation

 
The whole reason you started a list is so you could communicate with your prospective customers, right? Your Welcome email should get your readers looking forward to what is coming next so the chances that they open your next email increases.
 
In our case, we want to lead with value. This means we want to deliver and plan to deliver more freebies than are expected! This way, when it comes time to offer a product, you have provided SO much for free, the paid content can’t help but be astonishing!
 

Conclusion

This is your chance to introduce your email marketing and reintroduce your business to your audience. Make sure you have written this to reflect who you and your business are personally. You will be providing an experience that will shape the way your customers and potential customers think of your brand.
 

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14 comments

  1. I have GOT to start doing this, Anne. I'm just terrible at keeping up with my subscribers! I know, I know--my SEO person is all over me as well. But thanks for the reminder, and the great tips! Reply
  2. Great advice on welcome email. I have a welcome email setup but am in the process of revamping my whole strategy for my newsletter for both of my blogs. I will revisit this when I decide to revamp the welcome email. Thanks for sharing. Reply
  3. A great article and I am signing up to see the results this article brings to help my business but have to get a few other details in order first. Reply
  4. Great tips in this post, Anne and like others, I am inspired to re-look at my welcome email, even though I know when we created it, we were very conscious of the message and how it looked. Reply
  5. Hi Anne, This is great! As email marketers, we should be sending out a "welcome email" so our subscribers will know what to expect. I have been doing this for a while now and have to say it is one of the best things I ever done! Great tips! Thanks for sharing the benefits as well!! Reply
  6. My first email to my subscribers has always been a 'welcome' (after the sign-up confirmation, of course). You are right, it almost always gets opened and fortunately my welcome email open rate is roughly 75 percent. Great post! Reply
  7. Thanks, Anne for the great tips. It's been a while since I looked at my Welcome email series. This will make me go back and check if I'm meeting all the criteria and freshen up the content as well. Also, a good tip for those using free email services. It was recommended to me to use a professional service and it's turn up to be reliable and one less thing to worry about. Reply
  8. Just over the weekend I was really thinking about the welcome email that I currently have. I am seriously considering writing another one that is an in-between. Reply

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