The first email in your sequence is crucial because it overcomes skepticism.
The skepticism is natural to someone who’s just opted into your email list. After all, they don’t know yet whether you’re actually going to deliver on what you promised.
Which makes total sense.
It’s kind of like meeting someone in person for the first time. Think of how odd it would be if, after talking about some things that were bothering you, they asked you for your basic contact information, promising to send you something that would help.
You’d probably have second thoughts about giving up personal information in exchange for the unknown.
Yet that’s exactly what we do with our email marketing.
The challenge is this: to ensure that the first email in your onboarding sequence not only eliminates that uncertainty but impresses and captivates your subscribers at the same time.
With that in mind – let’s take a look at a few of the key elements that go into how to write a stellar onboarding email.
Be Bold & Be You
Email list building is not a time for holding back the real you.
Be bold enough to establish a sense of mutual trust by showing off your own unique personality.
By proving that you’re a legitimate person (and giving them something to look forward to), you’ll increase of the chances of them staying around for the long haul. And the longer they stay on, the better your chances of really getting them onboard with your mission.
Give your followers enough context to help them understand why they should listen to you… And once you’ve captured their attention, you’ll have the opportunity to keep giving them more snapshots of your story in future emails.
Take the time to introduce yourself properly. People care about YOU!
The bottom line is that first impressions really matter.
Set The Tone
As you’re writing your onboarding email, think about what kind of a tone you want to set for your entire email sequence.
Maybe you’re planning on an entire onboarding sequence. If that’s the case, tell your readers how many they can expect, and when the emails are going to arrive.
Let’s say you have a weekly newsletter. In that very first onboarding email, you’d let them know, “Hey, you can expect to hear from me every Wednesday, and these are the types of things that I send.”
Or you might have a specific sequence that they’re enrolled in – say it’s a 6-week sequence. In this case, you’d introduce it to your new readers by saying something like: “Over the next 6 weeks, I’ll be sending you amazing tips about X, Y, and Z every Monday and Thursday.”
Essentially, once people know what to expect, they become much less likely to unsubscribe from you when future emails start rolling in.
Deliver On What You Promised
Right away in that first email, it’s so, so important to include that link to your free gift or download. Make it super easy for them to grab and consume.
It is, after all, why they signed up in the first place.
One thing that’s worth asking yourself before you even offer this gift is: would someone pay good money for this free optin?
If the answer is yes, then it’s worth giving away for free…simply because your audience will know that they can expect a high value from your products. Future sales will be made much easier as a result.
You Might Even Make A Sale Or Two!
Now, depending on the price point of the different products that you offer, it might actually be a good idea to immediately connect your opt-ins with a low-priced product…
…and by low priced I mean something that’s gonna be really easy for them to say yes to – something around the $3 – $10 mark.
Why is it effective?
Because those first few days (or hours) are when people are the most excited and empowered and pumped up about you and your mission.
Take advantage of that enthusiasm!
Ask Them To Write Back
Have you ever been stuck in a conversation where the other person talks nonstop…without even pausing to hear what you have to say?
Not cool.
Don’t be that person, especially when it comes to your email list subscribers!
If you have a smaller list, aren’t super booked out yet or crazy busy, you can start a really valuable conversation by asking people to reply to your newsletter.
Of course, this requires you to spend an adequate amount of time communicating with the people who are bold enough to strike up this conversation.
But it’s well worth it!
Even if your goal is to create some solid passive income, the personal touch really gets people off the fence. It’s what gets people to actually sign up for your products…because they feel like you care about them.
As your list continues to grow, you probably won’t have the time to answer every single email that you get…But I really feel like using this interactivity when it comes to email is huge. It’s one of the major touchpoints that will help your business to grow, especially if you’re just starting out.
Are Your Emails Making It?
You never want your emails to feel like they’re marketing or sales emails.
Instead, you want to bring everything down to the human level.
I love that.
What do you have to do to make people feel when they read your email? Whatever it is…it’s those types of things that can really make or break your email.
So I definitely want to know: what do you hope to communicate to your tribe through your onboarding emails?
