Just imagine, you are on your way to the first day of your new job. Of course, you do not really know what to expect. You arrive in the morning and … nothing! No one is coming to welcome you. Disappointing, is not it? Well, it’s the same thing when you apply this situation to new contacts in a business database.
Welcoming new subscribers is important especially when you want to make a good first impression. That’s why our topic of the day is: automated welcome emails.
Well, I know what you’re saying: it’s not new! I agree, but many companies are not yet taking advantage of this opportunity that is the first contact with a subscriber. That’s why we chose to elaborate on the subject.
What IS a Welcome Email ?
For those who have never heard of it, a welcome email is an automated message that is sent to everyone who subscribes to your mailing list. The fact that these people voluntarily give you their personal email address is a privilege. They let you access their precious mailboxes. That’s why you should create a welcome email: to thank them for giving you this opportunity. It is also the ideal opportunity to consolidate the relationship from the beginning.
Why Create a Welcome Email
The welcome email is probably the most important email you send to your contacts. Among other things, because it is sent when your contacts are the most receptive.
The goal of setting up a welcome campaign for a company is to make themselves known, to capture the interest of their new subscribers and to show their products. In general, a person who is newly subscribed to your mailing list has no specific expectation. It’s your opportunity to be creative and make a good first impression.
It’s time to show them how they can take advantage of your product or service and build brand loyalty quickly. This is one of the most read types of messages, but also the one that most influences the opening of your next emails. Indeed, welcome campaigns generate 4x more opening and 5 times more clicks, which greatly increases engagement.
And the most beautiful thing in all this? You can automate the sending, allowing you to send the right message to the right person at the right time. It saves you a lot of time and you will never lose an opportunity!
How Does It Work ?
The automated welcome email is triggered by an action performed by the contact. It can be a subscription to your communications, new participation in a loyalty program or simply new customers. This action triggers a series of communications that serve to introduce your business to your new contact.
Any automated scenario includes triggers, criteria, and the email content that will be sent to your contacts. The trigger parameters, the sending criteria and the delay between each communication will have to be determine from the beginning of the process.
Once the contact has triggered the automation by fulfilling one of the criteria initially determined, he will receive all other communications in that sequence. Unless it unsubscribes or is removed from the automation. Of course, your subscribers can only trigger this automation once.
By using the marketing automation module on the Dialog Insight platform, you will be able to set up a mailing scenario that targets your new subscribers. To learn how, see our online help.
Also, if you want to know more about automation marketing, feel free to download our whitepaper on the subject.
Some Good Practices
Basically, a good welcome message should make your contacts want to know more about your business. It should encourage the opening of your following messages and push your contacts to the next action.
Start by introducing your organization. Between the first contact with the person and a solid relationship with him, there are several stages. Talk about your story, invite your contact to visit your website, talk about your expertise, your products or services, your projects, and more. It is by talking with them that your contacts will feel even more attached to your brand.
Having a welcome program is a winning formula every time. The purpose of setting up a welcome program is to send a series of emails in order to convert your contacts into prospects and eventually into customers. To get there, you will need to follow these few tips:
1. Let Your Brand Identity Shine Trough
First, this email must exploit your brand identity to the fullest. We have to be immersed in your world, because that’s exactly why people subscribe to your communications: to find out who you are. Use this email to highlight what sets you apart and makes you unique. Here are two examples that exploit it quite well:
2. Be Friendly
Although this is the first time you are addressing your contacts, it may be appropriate to use a personal and friendly tone in your message. You want to create proximity with your subscriber and humanize your brand as much as possible. Show who is behind the brand by introducing a real person, et by personally signing the email (digitally, of course!).
You can also use email personalization to create this proximity and show your readers that you care about them. They will feel more special and important.
3. Please, Don’t Sell !
Let’s settle the question once and for all. The welcome email should not be used to sell. It should, on the contrary, be used so as not to make them regret their subscription.
Do not try at all costs to sell your products. Instead, you could instead describe your products or services and show them the benefits they provide. You may also include a promotional code, but this must not be the main purpose of your message.
Also, nothing prevents you from offering small gifts to thank your contacts for subscribing to your newsletter. Reward them by suggesting free personalized content or downloadable goodies such as music, e-books, templates, tips, etc. There is no limit! Your contacts will feel privileged.
4. Put the Odds on Your Side
According to a Return Path study, welcome emails are the type of email that has the worst placement rate in the inbox (84%). To make sure you always appear in the correct inbox of your subscribers, simply ask them, through this email, to add you as a contact.
People who subscribe to your emails want to hear from you. Therefore, if you explain to them that by adding you, no communication will be lost, there is a good chance that they will do it (especially if you send quality content). This simple gesture greatly increases your deliverability and also positively affects your opening rate.
Remember to always thank your contacts for subscribing and trusting you. You can also manage their expectations by telling them what you will send them through your communications.
Opportunities to Seize
If you lack inspiration, here is a list of what you can do in your welcome email.
- Demonstrate your expertise
- Customer success
- Pro tips
- Your team
- Improve your sales cycle
- Your best products
- Your high-performance promotions
- Your answers to frequently asked questions
- Inform your contacts
- Present the other tools (clearance center, application)
- Discuss with your contacts
- Promote your other communications platforms (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, phone, email address, etc.)
- Train
- Announce training tools (webinars, tips and tricks, online help)
- Discover
- Get more information (progressive profiling)
- Sell off
- Free shipping
- Discount
- Support your sales team
- Establish a follow-up scenario for your representatives
Of course, do not put them all in the same email, select one or two maximum. Also, you can separate them into several emails as they are automated. You have the option to create a longer or shorter sequence according to your needs. If you are doing a sequence longer than a simple message, make sure to slowly lead your contact to a specific action (the purchase).
Conclusion
Although this type of message is sometimes found in the spam box, their opening rate is often very high. So it’s worth betting on welcome messages in your marketing automation.
This email can take many forms; anything is possible. Take advantage of this special moment to show who you are as a brand and start the relationship on the right foot. Think outside the box to give the best first impression.
Now, you have no reason not to send a welcome email. It’s your turn to run with it and show what you are capable of!
