Writing a welcome sequence to automatically send once someone has joined your email community takes time, effort and thought. So here’s my no-bull guide to getting you up and running with your very first email welcome sequence. The easy way.

But let’s kick off with the point of it all. Why bother writing a welcome sequence?

A welcome sequence begins as soon as someone subscribes to your free resource, newsletter, or email community.

You start by using your first email to welcome people to your email community and give them the free resource you promised.

But it shouldn’t stop there. Because otherwise the person you worked so hard to attract in the first place will fall into a black hole of silence.

And that’s hardly going to build your new relationship and win you any new fans or clients.

The purpose of a welcome sequence is to welcome your new email community member. To connect with them. To start building trust. To show them what a likable, knowledgeable person you are. So they get to know you and you get to know about them.

The best bit is, once it’s up and running it’ll keep going in the background, helping you to serve your new email community members with value. So even though it takes some up front work, it’s worth it.

Seize the moment

Did you know that the moment someone signs up to your email list is the moment they are most receptive to you? It’s the moment they are most interested in you and what you’ve got to say.

That means they are more likely to open your emails. To read your email. To take another action.

So you don’t want to let this time pass. Because each time someone clicks, reads, and engages with your emails, you are building a stronger connection.

If you miss this moment (usually the first 48 hours) it becomes far harder to re-engage them down the track.

No pressure then!

Keep your welcome sequence simple

If it’s your first go at an email sequence, keep it simple. Don’t overthink it. Just begin.

If you spend too much time overthinking it, you won’t ever get your welcome sequence out.

So instead of stressing about it, keep it simple.

What do I mean by that?

• Be yourself. Write your emails as if you are talking to a friend. Keep it conversational.
  
• Don’t try to do too much. Choose one aim/one point to get across in each email.
  
• Make sure each email has a purpose – provide value, not fluff.
• Keep them short to start – you don’t have to make them longer than my fortnightly shopping receipt (which BTW is looonnggg – my kids are huunggry).
  
• Think about the goal for the last email of your welcome sequence. This is where you typically highlight a specific service or product you would like your reader to consider. What do you want the reader to do? Book a call with you? Buy your course? Buy an eBook? Work back from there. What information and advice can you offer in the emails prior to show that you are the person to ‘buy’ from on this topic?
  
• Don’t fixate on timings. Set emails to go out every 1 – 3 days or so.  

It’s honestly better to get started, and begin connecting with your email community members, than to worry too much (to the point of not sending at all) about whether you’ve got the right content, in the right order, at the right time.

It’s never set in stone. You can (and should) go back and refine.

Give value in your welcome sequence and you won’t go wrong

I promise you. If you provide your readers with huge value, they will WANT to keep hearing from you.

If you show your genuine self, and provide a ton of value in the form of knowledge, tips, entertainment, inspiration… you won’t go wrong.

If you help your subscribers to get some quick wins… you won’t go wrong.

If you help your subscribers to build their business in some small way through the knowledge you provide… you won’t go wrong.

The only time you will go wrong is if you try to ‘sell, sell, sell’ in every email. Yes there’s a time to sell. And yes it is totally okay. But in a welcome sequence build trust, likability, and provide value first. Because this will help you to draw future clients to you.

Celebrate if you get unsubscribes!

Yes, that’s right. I want you to do a happy dance whenever you get an unsubscribe.

Because if someone unsubscribes from your list, they weren’t right for you. They weren’t likely to be your ideal client. And that’s totally okay. You won’t be for everyone. Just like I’m not for everyone.

So don’t let the fear of unsubscribes hold you back from getting your welcome sequence written.

Because if you are giving value (see point above) you’ve got nothing to fear.

QUICK + EASY WELCOME SEQUENCE PLAN

Here’s a super simple plan you can swipe to get your first welcome sequence written.

Like I say, there are many factors that influence the ‘success’ of welcome sequences. But once you’ve got one set up you can refine your content from there as you start to see the analytics and feedback coming through.

If you struggle with the technology side of setting up an email sequence, I encourage you to find a virtual assistant who can help you.

Email one – The welcome

Welcome your new email member and give them the download/freebie you offered.

Email two – Be helpful

Start building your likability and expert status. Give your reader a next-level quick tip that adds to the information in the freebie they originally signed up to get. 

Email three – Get social

Write a quick email that tells them your ‘why’. Why you got started – but make it all about your reader. Show them you understand their challenges. Introduce a specific service/offer that can help them to overcome these challenges.

Email four – Content selection

The last email in this sequence. Be of value – ask your reader what they most want to hear about from you. Tell them how often they will hear from you going forward.

My tip is to block out 1 hour a week and write/set-up 1 email a week in this time (or get a VA to set it up in your email marketing platform for you).

That means in 4 weeks from now you’ll have a basic welcome sequence locked, loaded and ready to go!

If you want to get more tips for writing your welcome sequence, grab my free 7 day welcome sequence challenge here. 

And if either of those sound like too much effort, check out my Nail your Nurture Sequence workshop and templates in my Copy Shop. It’s your plug and play solution to getting your welcome sequence ticked off your list.

– Six email templates for you to adapt. A workbook to help you plan, and videos to step you through what to include in each email.