Like most small companies, we at Feed. The Company used to get 90% of latest purchasers from referrals. If we had extra time, we would generate leads by inbound advertising and marketing. If we had extra money, we would buy $30,000+ in ads or sponsorships.
However we had restricted time AND cash. So, we needed to provide you with a special resolution — e mail sequences.
Because of this, we constructed a follow-up e mail sequence.
What’s an e mail sequence?
An e mail sequence is a sequence of emails that’s despatched robotically to a prospect, consumer, or buyer utilizing automation software program. The emails are despatched based mostly on predetermined standards corresponding to a time delay or motion being met.
In different phrases, in case you construct your emails out beforehand and set it up with e mail advertising and marketing automation, you’ll be able to comply with up with prospects at scale… with out being the one to click on the “Ship” button time and again.
At Feed. The Company, we constructed our personal follow-up e mail sequence — utilizing the free E mail Templates instrument from HubSpot Gross sales — that generated $100,000 in 30 days. Our complete income elevated by 215% since we began sending these templates in a sequence.
To create an efficient e mail sequence, you may want a couple of instruments to get began:
- Lead Technology Kind: Earlier than you contemplate your content material, the platform you may use, or how you may phase your lists, you may need to determine how you may gather the knowledge you obtain from these emails. Consider it as working backward from the top objective of sending the e-mail.
- E mail Builder: Selecting an e mail constructing instrument that has record segmenting capabilities, an intuitive design interface, and an affordable ship restrict on your pipeline would be the prime priorities you may need to look into.
- Topic Line Checker: The topic line is the primary a part of your e mail sequence that your readers will see — whether or not they open the e-mail or not. So, take a bit further time to get it excellent by utilizing a topic line testing instrument.
HubSpot’s E mail Advertising Instrument is a superb place to begin constructing personalised e mail sequences that focus on your prospects or prospects.
Strive HubSpot’s E mail Advertising Instrument Free
How lengthy ought to an e mail sequence be?
There isn’t any set size for an e mail sequence. The length of the sequence and variety of emails will rely fully on the customer persona, the customer’s journey stage, and the typical gross sales cycle size at your online business. It can additionally rely upon what you are hoping to perform with the sequence.
As an instance you might be making a nurturing e mail sequence to immediate a prospect to take motion. Such an e mail sequence ought to do a couple of issues:
- Educate them alongside their path to buy
- Deal with any objections they’ve alongside the way in which
- Set up your authority and credibility within the trade (and thus make you their supplier of selection after they’re prepared to purchase)
- Preserve you top-of-mind till they’re prepared to purchase
You do not need to do an excessive amount of in a single e mail, so every e mail have to be crafted to play an element as you get the prospect from the place they’re at to the place you need them to be.
However the variety of emails and length of time will rely upon a number of components. For instance, a first-time homebuyer might begin their path to buy years earlier than trying to safe a mortgage mortgage, whereas somebody who’s searching for an emergency HVAC restore is able to take motion instantly (and thus wouldn’t want a nurturing sequence in any respect).
Moreover, somebody who has downloaded an e-book for ” Put together My Credit score for Shopping for a Home” is far earlier within the course of than somebody who crammed out your contact kind and is not sales-ready.
In different phrases, how lengthy is your purchaser procuring round, the place are they at in that course of based mostly on what you already learn about them (actions they’ve already taken in your website), and what info do you want them to know throughout that point? Understanding these components will allow you to decide how lengthy a sequence needs to be.
Create an E mail Sequence
Now that you’ve got an thought of what e mail sequences are, the conditions during which you’d use one, and the way lengthy a sequence can/ought to final, let’s discuss how you can put one in place:
1. Decide the sequence’s goal.
Usually, most e mail sequences (particularly these created in a gross sales context) have the broader objective of incomes new enterprise. Nevertheless, there are a lot of methods of going about “incomes new enterprise,” and context issues for delivering the fitting message on the proper time. Honing in in your causes will assist as you construction your automation logic, craft your emails, and measure success.
For instance, as an example you need to construct a simple follow-up sequence designed to transform a dialog right into a demo. On this case, success would imply the prospect reserving a gathering by your scheduling software program.
Alternatively, you may want an automatic nurturing marketing campaign to set off after they obtain an e-book or content material supply. Success for this could imply turning them right into a gross sales certified lead (SQL), so that you’d present info and alternative for them to take motion and meet your SQL standards. As soon as they do, you’ll be able to have your system hand them off to gross sales.
The alternatives for focused experiences are infinite in case you’re strategic about it.
2. Establish the enrollment standards (or set off) for the sequence.
Automation software program cannot learn minds (but?); identical to any instrument, we have now to inform it when and how you can work.
That is the place enrollment standards is available in. Whenever you arrange your sequence, you may specify the circumstances that have to be met for the automation to set off. For a gross sales follow-up e mail sequence, it may be so simple as manually enrolling them utilizing your CRM or e mail advertising and marketing software program.
Alternatively, you should use extra superior standards in case your automation software program permits it. Examples of triggers embrace:
- When a contact fills out a kind
- When a contact visits a specific web page
- When a contact enters a brand new lifecycle stage
- When a contact books a gathering
And plenty of extra. In case your CRM information it, and if the information in your CRM is dependable, you could possibly automate round it. (In case you’re utilizing HubSpot, yow will discover extra details about HubSpot’s enrollment standards right here.)
3. Decide the length of the sequence and the variety of emails required.
As talked about beforehand, there is not any set timeframe or variety of emails. You may have to get strategic in regards to the touchpoints which are required and the frequency of these.
For instance, if I do know the typical gross sales cycle for my purchaser persona is 30 days and I need to have twice-a-week touchpoints, I might have to map out round 8 emails. This offers a framework to plan the messaging essential to get the prospect from A to B.
However, if it is a follow-up e mail sequence from a face-to-face dialog, you may contemplate fewer emails earlier than sending your self a reminder to achieve out by cellphone (sure, this may be automated too).
4. Write the emails for the sequence.
After you have your framework and you have outlined which emails are wanted, it is time to get pen to paper.
Listed here are some sources that can assist you out:
Remember that every e mail will probably be despatched to a number of prospects, doubtless at totally different occasions. Your emails needs to be evergreen, and the knowledge you embrace needs to be common sufficient to use to any prospect who matches the standards you set. Nevertheless, personalization tokens might be added to offer that customized contact.
The fragile stability between common and particular is how one can scale whereas nonetheless making every prospect really feel as if you are speaking on to them.
One extra tip: every e mail ought to have one goal. Do not water down the message by overloading every e mail with info. By maintaining it to at least one goal, one objective, and one call-to-action, you remove confusion and enhance the probability of success. You possibly can all the time add extra emails if one e mail is doing an excessive amount of heavy-lifting by itself.
5. Construct the emails utilizing e mail software program.
After you have all of your emails in textual content kind, it is time to put them within the system.
- With gross sales emails, it is usually higher to maintain issues easy as if a rep despatched the messages personally from their inbox.
- Advertising emails, although, have extra room for branding aptitude and crowd pleasing visuals.
No matter your strategy, you can copy and paste your textual content into your e mail builder. Placing them in your system permits you to have the ability to inform your automation software program what to ship.
6. Arrange the automation.
Take into account this a part of the method as instructing your automation software program, step-by-step, how you can execute the duties you need it to. This contains:
- Specifying the enrollment standards you selected
- Designating which actions (e.g. e mail sends) to carry out and when
- Establishing how a lot time ought to elapse between every motion and what to do when particular eventualities occur (if/then logic)
Automation software program is extraordinarily literal, so ensure you’re not taking something without any consideration or leaving stones unturned as you create these “directions.”
Listed here are some sources for working with HubSpot’s automation instrument:
7. Take a look at the sequence.
In case you’re in a position to, it helps to check the sequence earlier than launching to see if it behaves the way in which you anticipate it to. You are able to do this by setting it reside and enrolling your self.
Alternatively, you too can ship check emails. You may need to make sure the emails look good throughout gadgets and whether or not the personalization tokens are functioning appropriately.
Take it from me — testing helps save loads of heartache.
The success behind this sequence comes from its means to affect the psyche of your prospect. Delight, gratefulness, and remorse are highly effective emotions that may immediate folks in the direction of actionable steps. The next sequence attracts in prospects by catering to their pleasure, offers them with content material they are often grateful for, and leaves them with emotions of remorse in the event that they miss the chance.
Able to see this sequence in motion? Here is how we earned $100,000 in 30 days.
Step 1: Discover prospects who’re talked about within the information.
As a branding company within the healthcare trade, the vast majority of our purchasers are medical doctors or dentists. Step one we take on this sequence is to search out information tales that point out medical doctors. As soon as we will safe an inventory, we attain out to congratulate them. Not solely does this heat up the preliminary e mail and catch their consideration, nevertheless it additionally performs on their pleasure. Many equate a information point out with success, and chances are high, your prospects do too. They are going to doubtless be pleased with this point out, and congratulating them will open doorways to establishing a connection.
Google Alerts and Feedly are two sources for monitoring the information. Google Alerts lets you monitor the net and obtain e mail notifications for specific key phrases. Making a Google Alert is easy. Sort the key phrase and save the alert to ship it to your e mail deal with.
Within the instance under, we observe the key phrase “orthopedic surgical procedure.” After coming into the key phrase and my e mail deal with, I click on Create Alert. Now I’ll obtain an alert any time the information mentions an orthopedic surgical procedure or orthopedic surgeon.
Feedly is one other instrument to make use of when monitoring information matters. It’s a house the place you’ll be able to privately manage and analysis matters related to you. It’s an alternate instrument Feed the Company makes use of to find medical doctors talked about within the information. To make use of the platform, add web sites to your “feed.” When an internet site you’re monitoring publishes a brand new article, you’ll obtain an alert inside the platform.
For instance, an internet site we comply with in our trade is KevinMD.com. So as to add it to our feed, I:
- Click on +Add Content material
- Enter the URL within the search bar: KevinMD.com
- Click on the inexperienced +Feedly button
- Click on Add
In these 4 steps, we added KevinMD to our feed. TEDmed.com, AdWeek, and Promoting Age are different web sites we’ve used to amass new prospects. They’re examples of different web sites I’ve added to my Feedly account.
To view the content material from these web sites, I click on on the Well being tab the place all of the content material seems directly.
Step 2: Ship an e mail congratulating them on their information protection.
When you discover a prospect, ship the primary e mail utilizing the free e mail templates builder from Gross sales Hub.
Here is our best-performing preliminary e mail template:
Free to speak?
Dr. [Last name],
As a result of I work a lot with [targeted industry], I always comply with trade information. Lately I observed that you’ve got [insert company action].
Normally when that occurs, [insert business issue] turns into a precedence. That is why I believed you is perhaps curious about discovering out how we helped [similar firm] get going shortly of their new path — with none of the everyday cookie cutter approaches to advertising and marketing.
Try our affected person promoting and model campaigns right here. If you would like to be taught extra, let’s arrange a fast name. Schedule quarter-hour right here on my calendar.
Regards,
Matthew
P.S. In case you’re not the fitting individual to talk with, who do you advocate I speak to?
Usually, this e mail garners two reactions — a reply or time scheduled on my calendar. In case you I do not obtain a response in 24 hours, I comply with up with a second e mail.
Step 3: Ship a follow-up e mail with useful content material personalised to their trade.
In case you can add worth to somebody’s life or occupation, it can increase credibility and strengthen the connection. Due to that, this e mail template all the time drives a ton of responses.
For instance, I ship physicians a worthwhile branding survey instrument we use to assist purchasers differentiate themselves.
Here is what that may appear like:
Free doctor branding instrument
Whats up Dr. [Last name],
I am following up on my earlier e mail with a free instrument I feel you may love.
It is a model evaluation survey I created only for you (actually, your identify is on it), that may allow you to perceive how your follow is totally different from different medical doctors in [insert their city].
Click on right here [add hyperlink to survey] to start the model differentiation evaluation survey. After we converse, I will benchmark your responses in opposition to the highest doctor manufacturers across the nation.
I am sharing my calendar (click on right here) so we will schedule a handy time to debate.
Take pleasure in your weekend,
Matthew
Add names every time potential. Including a health care provider’s identify to the survey prompted our response charges to skyrocket. Though it was a small tweak, personalization is a strong instrument. If this e mail fails to drive prospects to answer or ebook time on my calendar, I’ll ship a second follow-up e mail utilizing the “Attempting to Join” e mail template.
Step 4: Ship the “Attempting to Join” e mail template.
For prospects who’ve but to reply, I’ll comply with up with this e mail template:
Attempting to attach
Hello Dr. [Last name],
I am sorry we’ve not been in a position to join. Once more, I understand how hectic issues can get at work and with household.
I’d be obtainable for a name throughout weekends or earlier than or after work hours if that is simpler for you? I do not imply to bug you, however I do need to allow you to handle your group so you’ll be able to exceed your objectives of [insert custom goals].
To schedule a time on my calendar, simply click on right here.
Greatest,
Matthew
This single e mail has the very best response price of all of the templates. Why? We will’t say for sure; nevertheless, providing prolonged hours may very well be the important thing. With out mentioning express hours, prospects may robotically assume that scheduling occasions could be throughout their enterprise hours. Providing occasions outdoors of standard “9 to five” hours can push prospects to motion.
Step 5: Ship the ultimate “Permission to shut your file?” follow-up e mail template.
When struck with silence, you need to ship a last e mail that prompts them to reply. We deal with this with our last follow-up the place we ask for permission to shut the file.
Permission to shut your file?
Hello Dr. [Last name],
I am writing to comply with up. We’re within the strategy of closing information this month.
Usually, once I have not heard again from somebody, it means they’re both actually busy or aren’t . In case you aren’t , do I’ve permission to shut your file?
In case you are nonetheless , what do you advocate as a subsequent step?
Thanks on your assist.
Regards,
Matthew
This e mail performs nicely. Why? I feel it’s a mixture of two issues. One, it may very well be FOMO or concern of lacking out. Nobody desires to really feel as in the event that they’re lacking a chance.
Two, some folks need what they will’t have. As soon as a chance feels prefer it’s about to slide away, some prospects may bounce on it. Frankly, I’m not fully certain. My assumption is that they notice, “Oh, I’m by no means going to listen to from this man once more. Perhaps I ought to look into the supply…”
When you’re in a position to drive a prospect’s response to answer or shut out the communication, the final step is measuring the efficiency of the e-mail templates.
Step 6: Enhance your e mail templates by measuring their efficiency.
HubSpot’s free e mail templates instrument lets you measure open charges and click on charges. At Feed. The Company, we always measure e mail efficiency and make enhancements as we see match.
Measuring e mail efficiency will allow you to perceive what templates are performing finest versus what wants enchancment. With out this instrument, it could be exceedingly tough to make choices as a result of lack of information.
The return on this sequence has been super, however we’re nonetheless early within the course of. We’ll proceed to check these templates till we uncover the “excellent” e mail.
We had been in a position to shut $100,000 in simply 30 days. These templates provide the potential to get related outcomes. Strive it out. Create a free HubSpot account, open the e mail templates instrument, and click on ship.
E mail Sequence Examples
Whereas we despatched a follow-up e mail sequence, there are a couple of forms of sequences you’ll be able to ship to interact your prospects.
1. Nurturing E mail Sequence
A nurturing sequence introduces the prospect to your organization. They might have downloaded an e-book or opted right into a content material supply, however they don’t seem to be sales-ready. A nurturing sequence is designed to get them there by offering social proof, dealing with objections, and establishing worth.
Instance of an e mail in a nurturing sequence from Second:
This e mail sequence is finest for corporations which have brief gross sales cycles like many shopper packaged items and even easy B2B digital applied sciences. To have the very best outcomes with a nurture e mail sequence, you may need to give attention to educating your prospects fairly than promoting to them. This builds belief and familiarity between your model and the recipient. Once they’re prepared to purchase, you may be prime of thoughts.
2. Engagement E mail Sequence
An engagement e mail sequence makes use of e mail to construct rapport with prospects. The concept is to get them engaged along with your content material to construct curiosity and preserve your group prime of thoughts. Any such sequence may allow you to establish engaged subscribers who open, click on, and take motion on emails as a way to enroll them in different sequences tailor-made to their particular journey.
Instance of an e mail in an engagement sequence from A Youngsters Ebook About:
The engagement e mail sequence works nicely for manufacturers which have frequent occasions. These emails are finest used as soon as the connection has been established and the recipient appears ahead to your emails. Ideally, an engagement e mail sequence needs to be despatched after there was significant engagement on previous e mail sequences.
3. Conversion E mail Sequence
This sequence is used once you’re asking one thing of your prospect (e.g., reserving a name or assembly, or scheduling a demo). Which means you may focus the complete copy round a single call-to-action, and you will use the sequence to get the recipient to take that motion.
Instance of an e mail in a conversion sequence from Yokel Native:
SaaS corporations and different service suppliers who depend on reserving calls and demos to shut offers will discover worth in a conversion e mail template. Any such e mail needs to be the ultimate one in your e mail sequence as a result of it now not educates or conjures up the prospect — as a substitute it asks for one thing, their time. So, make certain this e mail sequence is reserved for many who have opened, engaged, and even responded to previous emails.
4. Comply with-Up E mail Sequence
Simply because a prospect would not reply to a gross sales outreach e mail doesn’t suggest they don’t seem to be . They might want a couple of “impressions” earlier than noticing and taking motion. A follow-up e mail sequence loops again and touches base along with your prospect after a couple of outreach makes an attempt. That is so gross sales reps can cut back the variety of handbook emails they ship and admin work they should do.
Nearly each enterprise can profit from a follow-up e mail sequence. In case you discover your prospects have had in any other case nice engagement and open charges however nonetheless have not taken motion on a conversion e mail sequence you have already despatched, a follow-up message generally is a nudge in the fitting path. Any such e mail sequence works nicely when it is personalised and empathetic — assume optimistic intent and genuinely relate to the individual on the opposite facet of the inbox.
5. Reminder E mail Sequence
Whether or not a lead has booked a demo, signed up for a webinar, and even snagged a seat to an occasion, your group has an opportunity to please that particular person (and probably earn their enterprise). Nevertheless, you’ll be able to’t present that delight if the lead forgets to point out up. Little reminders can go a great distance in attendance price over time, rising the variety of alternatives you may have “at bat,” so to talk.
Reminder emails are a low-friction method to make sure that the lead would not neglect in regards to the occasion or appointment and likewise present them with any needed logistical particulars.
Instance of an e mail in a reminder sequence from Dyspatch:
Reminder emails are just like follow-up e mail sequences in that they are a finest follow when speaking with potential prospects. The important thing to creating these sequences work is to maintain the topic line easy, the copy simple, and the decision to motion outstanding. Bear in mind: the objective right here is to get the prospect on a name they’ve already agreed to.
6. Re-Engagement E mail Sequence
To get outcomes from e mail as a channel, you naturally want a wholesome database. Over time, nevertheless, e mail addresses change and prospects lose curiosity. The common e mail database loses contacts at round 25% per 12 months, so even in case you’re producing new leads at a speedy price, you may naturally get some information skew from uninterested or deprecated contacts.
As a last-ditch effort to win again a few of these contacts, you’ll be able to deploy a re-engagement sequence. Any such marketing campaign’s objective is to immediate the consumer to open emails and take some type of motion; in any other case, the result’s you eradicating them out of your database. It will allow you to preserve your e mail record wholesome and correct.
Instance of an e mail in a re-engagement sequence from Return Path:
In case your model sees a chance to nurture prospects with a nurture e mail sequence, then you definitely’ll need to make certain your messages aren’t going to the mistaken individual, or worse, bouncing. It might sound counter intuitive to deliberately ask folks to decide out of your e mail subscription, however it will possibly do wonders on your engagement metrics. Fairly than having a bloated record of contacts, you’ll be able to develop into laser targeted on the people who’re within the e mail content material they obtain out of your firm.
Create Your Personal E mail Sequence
E mail sequences can nurture your leads into turning into prospects with out the work of writing a brand new e mail on occasion. Take from the examples above and get began with your personal sequence to begin successful over prospects.
Editor’s observe: This publish was initially revealed in Could 2019 and has been up to date for comprehensiveness.