Setting up a welcome email sequence lets you be a skillful host (at scale) instead of dealing with an absolute sh*t show.
Let’s use a house party as an example:
Knock knock. Oh $&%* someone actually showed up on time?!
Oh phewph, it’s someone you like.
You invite them in, and since the appetizers just came out of the oven, you offer them one and a glass of Champagne. Almost like you had planned that.
No one else is here yet so you show them the bathroom reno. You end up trading a few tips you picked up from the contractor.
Ding dong.
You open the door to an awkward huddle of people trying to fit on the stoop out of the rain. Everyone squeezes through at once. You’re trying to say hi to each person when you hear the squidge of someone’s muddy boots walking down the hallway. Wait. What’s that person’s name?
Oh no.
No no no.
You see it from across the room.
The Grand Cru, that you’d been saving, that wasn’t out on the table, was just emptied between 2 glasses. And now it’s on the carpet, in a sloshy puddle.
---------
We want your customers to feel like they get the best version of you. And we want to make it easy.
So how do you do it?
When someone signs up for your email list, set up your email marketing platform so that the customer automatically gets entered into a series of emails (your welcome email sequence). There aren’t any hard-and-fast rules about the number of emails to have in this series, or whether this new customer should get your regularly scheduled emails along with the welcome email sequence or not. You can test things out and tweak whenever you want.
We need to make 1 more note: since you have different access points where someone could sign up for your email list, you’ll likely need more than 1 welcome sequence (or 1 welcome sequence that’s altered for the different sign up points). For instance, someone signs up for your newsletter on your website before they make a purchase. That same day, while someone is paying for their tasting, and the case they’re taking home, they’re asked if they’d like to receive the winery’s emails that’ll include the tech sheets and behind the scenes. In these 2 scenarios, the next steps the customer will take are different. Learning more about your brand before purchasing versus enjoying your wine, becoming even more familiar with your brand, and purchasing more. Having different welcome sequences allows for greater personalization, and ultimately, more purchases of what that person wants.
Here’s a general framework to get you going:
1. The welcome email
If you offered something (a pdf of recipes, a code for free shipping) in exchange for their email then this is where you’ll deliver that.
Tell them what to expect going forward (will you email every week, every month? Every month but a few extra emails when you have new releases?) Have them primary-list you (this is the big one and it’ll help your email open rates). Gmail will flag your emails as promotions so tell your subscribers to drag your email from promotions into their primary list tab. This way you’ll show up where their important emails go, and are seen, instead of slipping into the abyss with all the “10% Off Ends Tonight” emails.
1.5. “Sell” the lead magnet
That offer you made in exchange for their email is called a lead magnet, or an opt-in, or a freebie (it’s that pdf or free shipping we just talked about). We had a client who had loads of recipes on their website. We took those and turned them into a lead magnet. So in this example, we might highlight a particular recipe that’s great for a weeknight to show the customer the value in this pdf, and to remind them to open and use it. We’d provide the link to the recipes again so that the customer doesn’t have to go searching their emails for it.
*This is a 1.5 because if you didn’t offer anything for them to sign up then you can skip this step.
2. The get-to-know-you email
This is where you’ll share the origin/ founder’s story/ winemaker’s story. You could also add in some relatable fun facts that sneak in what makes your brand great.
3. Tell a story and/ or offer a tip…
… that directly shows why the customer should sign up for something (low barrier) of yours. Since this call to action is still fairly early on in the customer journey, we suggest refraining from asking for a sale that’s a large commitment. Think of larger commitments as being farther down your funnel. The welcome sequence is still near the top. Inviting the prospective customer to book a tasting with you is less commitment than joining your wine club. Get creative but keep in mind that these are still early days and you’re still building trust with the customer. Ideally, you want this product or service to be something that’s available throughout the year - unless you want to be editing your welcome sequence if something sells out.
Welcome sequences aren’t just about the first impression. They help your customer to build trust, and a connection with your brand. While that sounds warm and fluffy on the surface, the point of all of this is to help you remain competitive. Right now, the majority of wineries haven’t started doing this. What would happen to your sales if you did?
