If you’ve ever launched an email marketing campaign, you know: The first email you send to a new follower will not always immediately convert. Email list followers typically require a certain degree of “nurturing” before they become paying customers.
That’s why it’s important to set up an email marketing sales funnel. This is merely a step-by-step process that converts new prospects into sources of revenue. To better understand how to set one up, keep the following essential points in mind.
Start Your Email Sales Funnel with a Welcome Message
Don’t make the mistake of trying to make a sale the moment new followers subscribe to your email list. Someone didn’t become a subscriber because they wanted you to convince them to buy your product. They subscribed because they believe you’ll send valuable content. In fact, surveys consistently indicate today’s consumers dislike it when brands are too “salesly.”
You’re better off anticipating these sales objections and starting the funnel by sending an initial welcome email to new subscribers. This start to an email marketing sales funnel should thank them for subscribing, introduce them to your brand, and let them know what type of content they can expect to receive in their inboxes. You can try to make sales later.
Provide Value Through Your Email Funnel
A single welcome email isn’t enough to fully nurture a new lead. You still need to take time to develop a positive relationship with new followers.
Thus, the next five or so messages in your email marketing funnel should focus primarily on offering genuine value. Identify why someone would want to subscribe to your email list, and provide content accordingly.
For example, maybe you’re marketing a fitness app. People who subscribe to your list might do so because you promise to supply them with advice about workouts, nutrition, and similar topics. Your email sales funnel would thus begin with a series of messages providing this type of content.
After you’ve sent enough emails to generate and maintain engagement with your followers, you can start to bring up how your fitness app improves the workouts described. You simply need to develop trust via your email funnel before you can reach this stage.
Make Sure Your Email Marketing Funnel is Automated
It’s important to take certain essential steps to optimize your email funnel. First, you should take advantage of email automation tools. This doesn’t merely save you time; it also ensures the right messages are sent to the right subscribers.
For instance, an email sent to someone who has been subscribing to your list for a month won’t necessarily be relevant to someone who has been subscribing to your email list for a year. You want to automate your email marketing sales funnel so followers receive content based on what stage they are.
Verify the Emails On Your List
Another crucial component of an email funnel is to make sure the addresses on your list are valid. If you send too many emails to invalid addresses, your bounce rate will increase. This has a negative impact on deliverability in the future. It also impacts your open and conversion rates, as no one is actually on the other end of your emails. Save your email sales funnel from this obstacle by using an email address checker.
Of course, it’s also important to monitor the performance of your campaigns. Although these tips will help you create an effective email marketing funnel, as always, you still need to make sure your campaigns are delivering the best possible results.