5 Tips for Building Effective Automated Emails

Meet your new superpower: the power to be everywhere. With automated email campaigns, you can deliver a targeted sequence of emails to be sent automatically on a schedule of your choosing – which makes it possible to build relationships with subscribers no matter where you are! You can keep your readers engaged by delivering targeted automated campaigns, like a welcome series, product launch series, customer onboarding sequence, or even an online email course. But how do you get started? Read on for five tips on building an effective and high converting automated email marketing strategy.

1. Keep the subject line short and sweet

Your subject line should be influenced by your email content and the segment of subscribers you’re sending to. The subject line is your chance to grab readers’ attention and get them to read on. It only takes subscribers a few seconds to scan their inbox and decide if your email is worth reading. So, keep the subject line short, sweet and persuasive. It’s also important to note that engagement rates typically decline over the course of an automated email campaign. As a result, you'll want to spend extra time creating eye-catching subject lines to keep subscribers reading. Try adding a sense of urgency by using phrases like “Last Chance” or “Ends Now” to encourage subscribers to take advantage of your offers while they still can. Personalizing the subject line can also boost open rates and engagement. Adding a person’s name and saying things like “You need this” or “You’ve got to check out these deals!” makes for a more personal experience. Also, stay away from misleading subject lines. They can cause your subscribers lose trust in you, and give them a reason to delete your email and unsubscribe from your list.

2. Send valuable content

In case you haven't heard, the email blast is dead. Email marketing isn't just a matter of blasting every email address on your list, in the hope that someone will click a link and purchase immediately. It's about delivering value and helping people. The fastest way to get marked as spam is by sending emails based on whatever ideas pop into your head. Instead, you should strive to send emails your audience cares about. Emails that bring value to their lives in some way. The best way to do this is by focusing on your audience's needs and challenges. How does your business help to solve them? Add it to your email. Whether this takes the form of a new blog post you recently published that addresses a common customer question, a story of someone who uses your product or service, or an email that highlights the benefits of your product, this is the kind of information your subscribers want. Not sure what to send? Try interviewing a “celebrity” in your industry, featuring a customer testimonial or offering targeted bonus content. This is the kind of valuable content that will motivate them to open your emails, click links you've provided and become loyal customers. Want more tips on what to write in your emails? Check out our What to Write in Your Emails guide – which includes over 30 email copy templates – and course!

3. Set up a welcome series

A welcome email is the first message subscribers receive when they sign up for an email list – if you have one set up. And you should! A welcome series is a simple campaign to create, and it's one that everyone who sends email should have. Why? Because it sets the tone for your email list and brand. It's also your opportunity to thank subscribers for joining your list and set expectations as to what they will receive from you in the future. Whether your automated email campaign has one email or six, it should be informative and helpful. To create a welcome series, focus on one email at a time. The most basic email should welcome subscribers, thank them and include other ways to stay connected. Including links to your social media profiles and contact information are just some of the ways you can encourage interaction outside of the inbox. Either in a different paragraph or a different email, try sharing your best content or products. Your new subscribers won’t necessarily be familiar with you, so repurposing older content and giving them guidance is a great way to help them get situated. In the next paragraph or next email in the series, learn more about your audience and start to develop a relationship. Prompt direct engagement with a question like “What’s your biggest challenge?” and ask them to reply to the email. Or, encourage them to participate in another recurring event, such as a pre-scheduled webinar. Be sure to go through this process again with tailored content for your remaining campaigns. Your targeted automated welcome campaigns will be all set up and ready to go in no time.

4. Segment your list

Email segmentation allows you to sort subscribers into different groups, and serve them email content that's most relevant to them. The goal of segmentation is getting a better idea of who your customers are and best serving them with content they want to see. And by sending the right messages to the right people, you can help drive higher open and click-through rates. So, how do you segment your subscribers? Subscribers can be grouped based on demographics like job position or location (by asking subscribers to select an option when they sign up to your list or linking out in your welcome email) or responsiveness, like opens or clicks in previous emails. There are no right or wrong segments, but there are a few that are more effective than others, depending on your business. For example, if you run an online shop, you may want to segment subscribers based on their purchases. This way, you can send them emails highlighting upcoming deals on similar items.

5. Measure and record the results

Check your open rates, your click-through rates, unsubscribes and any other key metrics that are relevant to your strategy. See a drop in engagement? Take a closer look at the email. Many factors affect how subscribers interact with your emails, so test out a few changes to see what’s wrong and what you need to do to fix it. Your email analytics can tell you different stories about subscriber engagement and the kind of content they like most. This can help you understand where you need to make improvements, deliver more value and increase the success of your emails.

Build better automated emails

Creating an effective automated email campaign can be tough, but that’s why we’re here to help! Now you know how to build your emails ― so, what do you write? We can answer that! Download our free What to Write in Your Emails course and guide and get 30+ fill-in-the-blank email templates today.