Making a great first impression

Is there anything more annoying than signing up to an email newsletter then not hearing anything for a few weeks to only receive the generic monthly newsletter? The answer is probably not and 74% of consumers agree, stating that they expect a welcome email as soon as they subscribe. (WordStream)

If you haven’t got one in place, you’re missing out. Welcome email read rates are 42% higher than the average email. (Campaign Monitor), so what are you waiting for? Here’s your 101 guide to welcome series. 

What is an automation series?

A welcome email is an automated email series. Automation series are types of emails triggered by an event/action made by your customer, i.e. they sign up to your newsletter.  Automated emails are always relevant to your customers. This means you won’t be blasting messages to your customers without a reason – they will be contextual at the right time. You can read our full guide on automation email series here.

What is a welcome series?

Welcome automation is the most important automation, according to research, 74% of people* expect to receive a welcome email when they subscribe to a mailing list therefore you shouldn’t miss the chance to introduce yourself.

As mentioned above, users now expect a welcome email from you when they sign up to your emails. They are a crucial part of your marketing and are one of the first impressions your brand makes. Your welcome series should be an introduction to your business, providing clear, actionable information. 

What should your welcome series include?

Your welcome series is unique to you, when you come to plan your welcome emails you should think about:

• The number of emails you want to be in your welcome series – the average is between 3 – 5 
• How many days you want between your welcome emails, it’s important not to bombard customers but to also set the president for the future email volume they will receive from you
• The different entry points that users may sign up to your emails, for example if someone has signed up but not purchased, you may want to send them a different series of welcome emails to someone who has just made their first purchase and signed up to emails 
• When thinking about content for your welcome series, you should think about what you really want new users to know about your business, you could consider the following:
  • Setting out the benefits of using your business or use storytelling to introduce your brand and the story about your brand 
  • Giving a community feel, that the user has joined a community, make them feel part of something bigger
  • Profile your contacts by asking them to fill out a preference centre, this will help you send them the right content moving forward
  • Promote your social channels and why users should follow you on social media 
  • A welcome code or second order code if they have made a purchase
  • If they’ve made purchase you may want to introduce your referral scheme to them

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