Dec 10, 2021

How to Write a Welcome Email

There’s a quote by Will Rogers, “You never get a second chance to make a good first impression.”

This is especially true when it comes to email marketing. People are far savvier these days. They know that when they get on a marketer’s email list, they’re going to be pitched offers and receive constant promotional emails.

Unfortunately, while people love buying, they hate being sold to. This presents a problem for most marketers trying to build an email list.

Even if you offer an awesome bribe in the form of a lead magnet, you’ll often find that several subscribers will enter their emails, download your freebie, and unsubscribe right off that first welcome email you send them. Brush it off and keep going. It's not personal.

To prevent this from happening, or at the very least, reduce the number of unsubscribes you get right off the bat, your welcome email must make a good first impression and subconsciously persuade the subscriber to stay on your list.

If you can do that, it’s half the battle won – and you can gradually build a relationship with the subscriber so that they like and trust you.

Below, you’ll find several crucial pointers to abide by when creating your welcome email.

Follow them and you’ll make an excellent impression on your new subscribers…

  • Make it personal

People prefer engaging with other people, rather than faceless companies. When someone opts in to your list, your welcome email should have YOUR NAME on it – not a business name.

The email should come from a person, instead of a faceless entity. This will instantly increase your open rates. Do use your full name. It’s easy to be forgotten if you have a common name like John or Bill. You want the subscriber to remember you.

  • A simple subject line

Subject lines are a topic all on their own. However, in your welcome email, you’ll want to keep your subject line simple and ‘direct’.

For example, if someone joined your list to get your free report, your subject line can be, “Download Your Free Report!”.

That’s it. Simple and straightforward. The subscriber wants the freebie and is looking for an email that has their download. Tell them what they want to see and they’ll open your welcome email.

Aiming for a high open rate in your welcome email is crucial. Do use a reliable autoresponder so that your emails have a high deliverability rate.

  • To personalize or not to personalize?

If you’re asking for the lead’s name when they’re subscribing, you’ll be able to personalize the email.

However, many marketers only ask for the subscriber’s email so that they increase their opt in rates, because the less fields there are to fill out, the higher the conversions.

So it all depends on your preferences. You may wish to personalize your email… or you may choose not to.

The truth is that many people know that the emails are customized based on some code in the settings and are not really personal emails. As mentioned earlier, people are relatively tech savvy these days.

Whatever the case, do greet them with a ‘Hi!’ or “Hello!’ in your welcome email.

  • Give them what they want

Once the subscriber opens your welcome email, there’s only ONE thing they’re looking for – their freebie. GIVE IT TO THEM ASAP!

Ideally, within the first 2 sentences. Tell them they made a wise decision signing up for the freebie followed by…

“Click Here To Download!”

Easy peasy. You don’t ever want to make the subscriber jump through hoops just to get their download.

Don’t have 5 paragraphs about your company motto and irrelevant information before presenting them with the download link. They’re new to your list and most won’t have the patience to put up with any drivel.

  • Get their attention

Once they’ve clicked on the download link, the subscribers will usually scan the first few lines below the link. You may want to ask a question or mention something related to the freebie which grabs their attention… and keeps them reading.

  • Tell them what to expect

Next, tell them what to expect from being on your email list. The key here is to give them a sneak preview of what’s to come.

For example, if you’re in the ‘fiction writing’ niche and offered a lead magnet showing subscribers how to choose a fiction genre… they’ll definitely want to know more about this topic.

The best way to keep them on your list will be to mention that you’ll cover topics such as plot outlines, character development, increasing tension in the story and so on… IN UPCOMING EMAILS.

Your promise of what’s in store must have so much value that it makes them look forward to your next email and the next. That’s how you keep them hooked to your emails. Promise future value and they’ll stay on your list.

  • Share a bit about yourself

You’ll want to include one or two lines with some information about yourself. There are 2 reasons for this:

Firstly, it shows the subscriber that there’s a real person at the other end of the email. Secondly, it establishes your credibility.

If we follow the ‘fiction writing’ example above, you may say…

“After 3 years of self-publishing (with 12 novels making me 5-figures a month), I’m now passionate about helping others discover the joys and financial rewards of publishing their very own books. I hope you’ll join me on this awesome journey.”

With just a few lines, you’ve shown that you’re a proven entity and knowledgeable about the topic. You’ve baited the hook with your little ‘bio’

You can bet the subscribers will bite… because they need someone to show them the ropes, and they too want to make 5 figures or more a month with self-publishing.

  • Don't overdo it - Moderation!

Keep your welcome email as short and succinct as possible. Your greeting, download link, sneak preview content, bio, etc. should be interesting, memorable and within 250-300 words.

Remember, they want to go through the freebie too. Less is more in your welcome email.

  • Sell in the P.S.

Finally, after you sign off, you may wish to add a postscript at the end of the email with a link to something the subscriber can buy. This could be an affiliate product or your own product.

Curious subscribers will click on this link and a percentage of them will actually buy the offer you’re promoting/selling. If your freebie is good, you can bet that several subscribers will come back to the email just to check out what you’re selling.

Give them the option to buy something.

For example, “P.S. See how I published my first book in 7 days, click here.”

And that link takes them to a self-publishing course that you’re selling. If your sales page is good, you’ll get sales. Congrats. You just discovered why the money is in the list.

  • In conclusion…

Treat your welcome email as a virtual handshake. Keep it simple, short and interesting. You only have a few minutes to make a good impression.

Over the next 3-5 days, you may send an email daily to your subscribers offering more value. Once they get used to you and realize that it benefits them to stay on your list, they’ll be loyal and be on your list for years.

But it all starts with your first welcome email.

Follow the tips above and do it right.

Looking for an autoresponder/mail service that won't cost you an arm and a leg?  Check out Traffic Wave - it's a set monthly fee no matter how many mails or what list size you have and you can get 30 days free.  I use Traffic Wave for my WordPress sites.

I use Kajabi for this site as it's an all-in-one-platform.  And using this link you can get a 30 day free trial.  If you choose to try it, let me know and I'll help you in any way I can. I highly recommend them as I have had great experiences with their support, etc. 

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