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First impressions are lasting impressions. According to a study, after a first impression is formed, people are most likely to ignore all the information that disproves it. So, it’s safe to say that your very first email (or welcome emails) to your subscribers may be your only chance to engage and connect with them.
In a split second, after you’re lucky enough to get subscribers to open your welcome emails, they’ll decide whether or not they need to keep reading it or just throw it away to the trash folder. And as a savvy marketer yourself, you must know that you don’t spend a lot of time and effort in crafting the first email just to end up in the trash folder, right?
Making a great first impression with emails isn’t a walk in the park, indeed. Unlike a phone conversation or explainer video campaigns, emails can’t showcase your tone of voice and facial expressions. All your customers have to go on is your writing, so you want to make sure your words represent your brand well.
Luckily, there are some handy ways to make your welcome emails much more memorable so you can cement the relationship you have with your contacts from the very start.
Let’s dive in!
Why Do You Need to Create a Great Impression Through Welcome Emails?
Before we get into the nitty-gritty, we have to make sure that we understand why you need to pay more attention to your welcome emails in the first place. We’ve mentioned it slightly before. We’ll get more in-depth about it now.
As a savvy marketer yourself, you must know that your subscribers submitted their email addresses voluntarily and joined your mailing list because they’re interested in what you offer, and they expect that interest to be fulfilled.
You want them to be a lead generation and increase your conversion rate. You also need to remember that your subscribers may receive hundreds of emails daily, making it super easy for your emails to get buried.
In this case, you need to have a meaningful interaction with them and convince them that they’ll get what they look for from the get-go. Therefore, a warm welcome and display of gratitude on welcome emails can help you with that.
With welcome emails, you won’t only be able to reach out to those raised hands but also create a strong first and lasting impression that colors your future interactions with your subscribers.
A great first impression makes it much easier for you to stay in the memory of your subscribers. Once you formed a great impression, your subscribers are most likely to stick around as they can’t wait to open your next emails. And that’s how you can develop customer relationships, build customer loyalty, and make sales in no time.
On the other hand, if your first impression was negative, subscribers won’t even bother to open your next emails — let alone sign up for your next offerings. At this point, it’s safe to say that not only does a great impression make your brand more likable, but it also adds ‘trustworthy’ to your brand inventory.
How to Make a Better Impression with Welcome Emails
Now that you understand why you need to create a great first impression with your welcome emails, it’s time to craft an on-boarding email sequence to make a good first impression with customers. Below are some actionable, handy ways to help you with it:
#1. Use a Professional Email Address
One of the first elements that your subscribers see after they receive an email from you is your email address. If your online look like website design is already professional, in this situation, it’s always better to use a domain that represents your brand.
Not only does an own-custom domain email address help subscribers understand more about your brand, but it also makes your emails more professional and authoritative — which can help you create a great, lasting impression.
So, instead of using a free domain like Gmail or Yahoo, you should consider investing in a custom domain email address. It’s key for your brand to feel legitimate and showcase that your emails are worth reading.
#2. Write a Catchy Subject Line
A great first impression over emails can start with your subject line. After a subscriber knows who the email is from, the next thing they do is read the subject line. That is what makes the subject line the most crucial facet of an email, next to your email address. It’s the deciding factor whether or not a subscriber will open your email or not.
Make sure you write clickable, thought-provoking subject lines to spark subscribers’ curiosity and encourage them to take action. It’s crucial to come up with original and memorable ones that most competitors couldn’t even think of.
You need to also describe your message in your subject line. It helps the subscribers to understand what your email is all about in the first place.
Here’s an example from Elf Cosmetics emails who nailed their subject lines:
#3. Use Friendly Greetings
While a catchy subject line may get the subscribers to open your email, what you say next is extremely critical. If you don’t appear friendly and respectful from the first few sentences of your email, subscribers won’t waste their time reading your email or care enough to respond to it.
Edward Mellett, Founder at WikiJob says “Greetings in your email can set the tone for all your future interactions with your subscribers. Generic and overused greetings won’t take you anywhere, and it can make you seem lazy.”
One thing to bear in mind here: you can make your greeting more personal by mentioning the subscribers’ names. It won’t only help you create a more meaningful first impression but also help subscribers build a better emotional connection so that they’re convinced to read the rest of your email.
#4. Use Appropriate Tone
Michael Hess, ECommerce Strategy Lead at Code Signing Store says “Your email tone tells subscribers your brand image and what kind of relationship your brand expects to build.” Here, you need to understand your subscribers in the first place, from their demographics to their values. Once you define your subscribers, you can set the right tone to communicate with them effectively.
Using an appropriate tone makes it more convenient for subscribers to engage with you in a better manner through friendly conversations. This also depends on what content you create on your newsletter, does it promote a virtual event, new blog post, or giveaway.
Even though an appropriate tone can help you to get more personal with your subscribers, make sure you don’t go overboard with it. It’s essential to know your limits, so you don’t sound immature and unprofessional that can make your subscribers run away.
#5. Reward Your New Subscribers
Finn Cardiff, Founder of BeachFix says “Don’t forget to always thank the new subscribers for signing up to your email list. It’s a big deal that they’ve invited you into their crowded inboxes. In return, you can prepare an incentive or unexpected reward for them with your welcome email. It won’t only make a great impression of your brand but also showcase that you value each and every new subscriber.”
The incentives or rewards you offer are a warm welcome that will leave a meaningful impression for new subscribers. That way, it’d be much easier for your brand to get subscribers to respond positively to your next emails.
More than just creating a great first impression, though, a reward for new subscribers also helps you to prompt them to convert after the very first day, or at least check out the special offerings right after they receive your email. They also might share a free testimonial of your company and make it a social media content.
Look how Birchbox created an impressive welcome email below:
#6. Be Concise
There’s something that can make your new subscribers consider unsubscribing your emails in no time: when you welcome them with long-winded email copies. You need to remember that subscribers are inundated with emails; therefore, they scan them quickly.
Don’t waffle too much. No subscribers have enough time to read long, bulky paragraphs on their inboxes. Make sure you deliver your message quickly and straightforwardly. You don’t need to start a new blog, only include compelling content that your subscribers find interesting and helpful.
#7. Proofread. Proofread. Proofread!
Those little typos and grammatical errors in your email copies make a big impression more than you know –that’s why embedding a presentation video might help. Because they don’t just read, but also watch.
Jon Lynn, Founder of My Office Pod says “Small mistakes in your writing can make subscribers assume that you’re less conscientious, less desirable, less intelligent, and even less trustworthy.” Not a good thing to create a meaningful first impression, right?
Read over the whole thing and double-check your grammar, spelling, even punctuation. To make it easier, you can utilize writing tools to auto-check writing errors on your email copies before you send them. This way, there’s never a reason to send an error-riddled email that can make your subscribers misinterpreted your message or make them cringe.
Wrapping Up
Just like any regular everyday interaction, first impressions are huge in the email marketing world. And as a marketer yourself, you can use welcome emails to create a strong first impression. Thus, your subscribers’ first impression of your brand determines how they feel in future encounters. It’s key in forming a strong customer relationship.
In a market as saturated as email, you must note that there’s no second chance to make a first impression. So, make sure you take all those seven actionable tips for creating your next welcome message and making good first impressions so that you can engage new subscribers from the get-go.
Author
Andre Oentoro is the founder of Breadnbeyond, the award-winning explainer video services. He helps businesses increase conversion rates, close more sales, and get positive ROI from explainer videos (in that order).
Twitter: @breadnbeyond
Email: [email protected]
LinkedIn: Andre Oentoro
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