From Sign-Up to Lifelong Loyalty: Building a Winning Email Welcome Journey

It's all about the Journey

by Alyssa Rice

Introduction

A customer’s first impression from your brand means everything. An email welcome journey is a productive way to formally introduce your new subscriber to your brand.

An email welcome journey is a multi-step, automated sequence of communications triggered when a new contact joins your list.

A well-designed, well-thought out email welcome journey can equip your customer with valuable information, build a relationship, and maximize engagement and conversion.

When writing your email welcome journey, the most important word you can use is the word “YOU.” This is about them, not you. You need to tell your new subscriber what they will get, what they can expect, how important they are to your brand, and how it’s going to be helpful for them.

Depending on your email service provider, you can create a welcome journey and craft how many touches there will be, what list segments to use, when a subscriber will exit the journey, and more. This is what a typical welcome journey can look like:

Now that we have a brief overview of what an email welcome journey is, here are some aspects to think about when creating your journey.

Email Welcome Journey Elements to Think About:

Timing

The sequence of your journey matters. If your journey will include three touches, you’ll need to determine how much time is in between the deliveries of each email.

One thing we recommend is to send the first touch of your journey almost immediately. You need to strike when the iron is hot, and most consumers in today’s world expect immediate contact and gratification. The next touches can come a few days after, but we recommend to send all of the touches in less than one week.

Safe Sender Messaging

You want to make sure your emails continuously hit the inbox. There are a couple ways to do this, but the most success comes with encouraging your subscriber to organize your emails in a certain folder or add your domain to their safe sender list.

After signing up for MarketingProfs’ newsletter, you are prompted with this blurb that explains what to expect:

The publication lets you know that you are about to receive a welcome email with more information so you can open the email, interact, and organize the email into your Promotions folder so you continue to receive every issue.

You can also include messaging such as, “To make sure our emails reach your inbox, please add exampleemail@gmail.com to your safe sender list.”

Personalization

In marketing, we all know how important personalization is. According to the American Marketing Association, emails with first name personalization are 26% more likely to be opened and can boost your sales by up to 20%.

By including First Name personalization into the welcome email subject line, or including it in the body of the email, it is a great way to make the welcome journey more personable.

Length

Most email welcome journeys have a minimum of 3 touches. You do not want to overwhelm your new subscriber with too many emails. Figure out what you want to convey in your journey, and figure out the least amount of touches it will take to get your point across, in order to prevent email fatigue.

Social Proof

If you have testimonials, product reviews, star ratings, or user-generated content, it will be beneficial to include those in one of the touches. You are showing new subscribers that other people have found value with your brand, which can reduce buyer hesitation and reinforce brand value.

Dynamic Content

Dynamic content are features in email marketing that will change based on subscriber preference, geographics, psychographics, demographics, and any other known data.

It can improve the customer experience, save time, and increase campaign engagement.

An example of dynamic content is sending different emails to Millennials vs. Baby Boomers, as each demographic has different needs and wants. You can send a digital coupon to a Millennial and they will appreciate it more than a Baby Boomer. You can send an email explaining your brand’s history and mission statement and that may resonate with a Baby Boomer more than a Millennial.

Most ESPs have ways of building this into your journey.

Monitor and Re-evaluate

Once your journey is set up, you’re going to need to monitor your customer behavior. Are people exiting the journey after the first touch? What is your bounce rate? Are three touches too much for your typical subscriber? You’ll need to review the email stats of the journey to understand what’s working and what’s not working. Bonus points if you AB test and refine.

Our Favorite Industry Examples

If you need inspiration for your email welcome journey, consider these.

B2C Examples

After signing up for UGG’s rewards program, you receive an email saying welcome, what to expect (discounts, giveaways, and birthday reward), and how to earn points for a purchase discount.

Thought Sanctuary sends a simple, yet effective email to their new subscribers: a 10% discount at checkout.

Primal Kitchen, a food and beverage company focused on healthier options, went with the brand story approach for their welcome email. It includes their mission statement, which explains their goal and informs their customers about the benefits of their products.

 

B2B Examples

Marketing Profs welcome email is a “Letter from the Editor” style. The email comes from the Chief Content Officer Ann Handley, which can make people feel more connected to the brand.

It explains what resources you will have access to, free events to attend, and when to expect emails from them. It’s a straight-forward approach, but succinct enough to not bore the subscriber. Expectations are set from the get-go so there won’t be any future surprises or unexpected email fatigue.

 

Asana, a project management tool, uses a GIF and action items to get the user started using their product.

It also uses personalized verbiage that you’ve “joined your team and ours”, emphasizing the community aspect of their brand.

This email from IMPACT Branding & Design off the bat gives you a free report to begin the email, then introduces their editorial team, and concludes with a push to schedule a free consultation. This both educates and engages your new subscriber by providing a personal touch and giving away two free things, all in one email.

Conclusion

By crafting a thoughtful series that reflects your brand voice, delivers relevant content, and anticipates customer needs, you lay the foundation for lasting relationships between your brand and your customer.
Whether your goal is nurturing leads, increasing conversions, or simply creating a memorable first impression, a well-crafted welcome journey can set the tone for the entire customer experience.

Resources

View Welcome Email Journey Templates: https://reallygoodemails.com/categories/welcome
Test Out Your Email Journey Subject Lines: http://emailsubjectlinegrader.com/
Get a Free Self-Paced Demo on NextMail, Your Next Email Marketing Platform: https://www.nextmail.email/
Create Graphics for Your Welcome Email Journey: https://www.canva.com/