Have you ever started watching a TV show in the middle of a season, without having watched it from the very beginning? It’s confusing, right? Who are these people, what’s their backstory, why is there so much drama, and what is even going on right now?

Those first few episodes are important in introducing the main characters, setting up the story, giving you a feel for the plot, and the general vibe of the show. It’s usually during those first 3-5 episodes that you decide whether or not this is going to be your next obsession.

That’s how your email subscribers can feel if you don’t have this one super important sequence in place in your business. And the amazing news is, you can create it once, set it, forget it and reap the rewards of it every single day.

You may have already guessed it, but I’m talking about your welcome sequence. If you don’t have one yet, believe me, you are not alone.

In fact, according to Active Campaign:

  • 41% of brands don’t send a welcome email within the first 48 hours
  • 27% sent zero emails in the first three weeks

I myself was guilty of this for the first 3 years of my business. Now, a sequence that I wrote almost 2-3 years ago is still running in the background, welcoming new people into my world on a daily basis. There is some serious magic to that! It’s a powerful tool in building the know, like, and trust factor that ultimately, gets you more leads and sales in your business, whether you’re a service-based business or you have small group programs.

In this episode, we’re going to break down exactly what a welcome sequence is, why you need one, and we’ll also talk about some possible goals for your welcome sequence.

Let’s start with WTF.

WTF is a welcome sequence or nurture sequence. It goes by many names, and I’m just going to refer to it as a welcome sequence.

  • A welcome sequence is a series of emails that are set up to be automatically sent or dripped to your newest email subscribers.
  • The overall goal of your welcome sequence is really to build know, like and trust.
  • Over the course of these emails, you are introducing people to you and your brand, giving them a little tour of what you offer, explaining how you can help them, and showing them why you’re qualified or why you’re the right person for them.

Why you need a Welcome Sequence
There are several reasons a welcome sequence is such a powerful and strategic tool. For starters…

  • It’s a powerful way to remind people about the freebie they downloaded and encourage people to actually USE IT.
  • It gets people used to seeing your name and brand in their inbox so they remember who you are 3 months down the road.
  • On the flip side, it can also help people know if you are not the best fit for them, because remember, we want to attract our ideal clients and repel the wrong ones.
  • These emails can serve to move your potential clients through the stages of awareness.
  • A welcome sequence helps you to start to understand my audience, who’s joining my list and what questions they have.
  • And lastly, this is something I don’t think people talk about a lot, but a welcome sequence can help you deliver a high touch customer experience.

Frequently Asked Questions:

How many emails should you send? As with everything in marketing, there is no hard and fast rule and it’s all about testing. However, I like the number 7 because it falls into the rule of 7, which is that it takes people around 7 interactions or 7 times to see something before they are ready to take action.

How far apart? Again, there’s just not a hard and fast rule with this. Generally, you want your entire welcome sequence to be tight because one of the main goals is getting people used to seeing and opening your emails so you can avoid getting sent to spam, but also you want to establish a rapport early on. I use the Fibonacci sequence to start with, and adjust as needed based on the analytics, and if you’re not familiar with the fibonacci sequence, it’s 1,1, 2, 3, 5, 8 so gradually you start to space out each email.

Should you sell or make a pitch in your welcome sequence? This is probably the most common question I get asked. I wish that my answer was a bit more black and white, but here is what I will tell you.

The answer is yes you CAN make a pitch or sell something in your welcome sequence, absofreakinlutely you can and you should not feel bad or sleazy about it in the slightest.

As for whether you *should* sell in your welcome sequence, it really depends on your comfort level and in some cases, it may depend on your audience and your industry. The strategy here is not to sell too soon or overly aggressively.

I would encourage you to try it and test it.

How often should you update it?
I look at mine every 90 days or so and I adjust it based on my offerings, what’s happening in the world, etc.

Links mentioned in the episode:
If you want to see my welcome sequence in action, there are a couple different ways you can do that:

Go to www.erikaholmes.com/quiz and take my quiz on bringing your Brand’s IT factor OR you can go to www.erikaholmes.com/secretsauce and download my totally free workbook that is designed to help you communicate what makes your business stand out. Either way, you will be put into my welcome sequence and you can see mine in action.

PSSSST … MY WELCOME SEQUENCE MINI-COURSE, YOU’VE GOT EMAIL IS NOW AVAILABLE
Click here to get all the details here. 

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