Episode 83: 2 Reasons You Need a Welcome Sequence - The Email Sound Booth with Liz Wilcox

Summary4 min read

Podcast Summary: Episode 83 - "2 Reasons You Need a Welcome Sequence"

Released on January 29, 2025

Podcast Information:

Title: The Email Sound Booth with Liz Wilcox
Host: Liz Wilcox
Description: For online businesses that need to remix their email marketing efforts, and finally build an email list that makes them money and feels good to do it.
Episode: Episode 83: 2 Reasons You Need a Welcome Sequence

Introduction

In Episode 83 of The Email Sound Booth, host Liz Wilcox delves into the critical importance of implementing a welcome sequence in email marketing strategies. Addressing common procrastinations and misconceptions, Liz provides actionable insights to motivate listeners to create effective welcome sequences that not only build relationships but also streamline their subscriber lists.

Reason 1: Building Relationships Through the Email Staircase

Understanding the Email Staircase

Liz introduces the concept of the "email staircase," a metaphorical framework for the customer journey in email marketing. This staircase comprises three levels:

Followers: Individuals who subscribe to your email list.
Friends: Subscribers who have developed a rapport with you through consistent and engaging communication.
Customers: Followers and friends who convert into paying customers based on the trust and relationship built.

Turning Followers into Friends

Liz emphasizes that when someone first joins your email list, they are not yet your friend; they're simply a follower interested in your content. The welcome sequence serves as the initial steps in transforming these followers into friends by establishing a connection and setting the tone for future interactions.

"The welcome sequence starts the friendship and sets expectations on what's to come."
— Liz Wilcox [00:03:20]

Setting Expectations

The welcome sequence allows you to introduce yourself, outline what subscribers can expect from your emails, and define the direction of your content. This foundational step is crucial in building a meaningful relationship with your audience.

"It gives you the opportunity to say, hey, my name's Liz... This is what you can expect, and this is the direction we're going."
— Liz Wilcox [00:05:45]

Reason 2: Filtering the Right Subscribers and Optimizing Your List

Ensuring List Quality

Liz points out that not everyone who opts into your email list may be the right fit for your content or offerings. A welcome sequence plays a pivotal role in filtering out those who may not be genuinely interested, allowing you to maintain a high-quality subscriber list.

Providing an Opt-Out Opportunity

By clearly communicating your value proposition and expectations, a welcome sequence gives subscribers the chance to self-select. Those who realize that your content isn't aligned with their needs can choose to unsubscribe, reducing the likelihood of inactive or disengaged members on your list.

"It gives those wrong people an opportunity to unsubscribe... So let it go."
— Liz Wilcox [00:10:15]

Cost-Effectiveness

Maintaining a clean and engaged email list is not only beneficial for engagement metrics but also cost-effective. Most Email Service Providers (ESPs) charge based on the number of subscribers, so having uninterested subscribers can lead to unnecessary expenses.

"You pay for your email list... The welcome sequence gives you and them an opportunity to make sure they should be on the list."
— Liz Wilcox [00:08:30]

Implementing Your Welcome Sequence

Resources and Support

Liz offers valuable resources to assist listeners in creating their welcome sequences. She mentions a free template available on her website, lizwilcox.com, accessible via the prominent "hot pink button." Additionally, she provides a paid workshop priced at $49, where participants can collaboratively write their welcome emails with her guidance.

"I have a workshop that is just $49 that will walk you through all four of those emails and we'll write them together."
— Liz Wilcox [00:02:30]

Guidance for Action

Listeners are encouraged to take immediate action by utilizing the free templates or enrolling in the workshop to craft a personalized and effective welcome sequence. This proactive approach ensures that their email marketing efforts are both efficient and impactful.

Conclusion

In this episode, Liz Wilcox effectively underscores the necessity of a welcome sequence in email marketing. By building relationships through the email staircase and ensuring a high-quality subscriber list, businesses can enhance their email marketing performance and achieve better engagement and conversion rates. Liz’s practical advice and readily available resources make it easier for listeners to implement these strategies and elevate their email marketing efforts.

"Hopefully that convinces you to get your email marketing act together. Get that welcome sequence done."
— Liz Wilcox [00:12:50]

Listeners are left with a clear understanding of why welcome sequences are indispensable and how to implement them successfully to foster meaningful connections and optimize their email lists.

Key Takeaways:

Email Staircase Framework: Transition subscribers from followers to friends to customers.
Relationship Building: Use welcome sequences to introduce yourself and set clear expectations.
List Optimization: Ensure your email list consists of engaged and interested subscribers.
Resource Utilization: Leverage available templates and workshops to create effective welcome sequences.
Cost Management: Maintain a clean list to manage costs associated with email service providers.

For more resources and to access the welcome sequence templates, visit lizwilcox.com or check the show notes for direct links to the workshop and additional materials.

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Transcript1 lines

[00:01]
A
What's up? What's up? Episode 83 of the Email Sound Booth podcast is here. That is what you're listening to. I am so blessed to have you here. Thank you so much. Let's just get into it. Two reasons why you need a welcome sequence. I know every email marketing guru, whatever, and their mother, they tell you you need a welcome sequence, but maybe you've been procrastinating. Maybe it's even been a while since you wrote one, and it just feels out of touch and you're just kind of digging your heels in not doing it, doing anything but right? Why is it so freaking important? Why does everyone go on and on about the welcome sequence? Well, this is going to be short and sweet for you, and I hope it motivates you to get that welcome sequence done. And if you need help with the welcome sequence, just remember that's my freebie. You can go directly to lizwilcox.com hit the hot pink button in the top right hand corner. You can't miss it. And I'll give you an entire welcome sequence already templatized for you. Or you can even. And I'll link to this in the show notes. I have a workshop that is just $49 that will walk you through all four of those emails and we'll write them together. Okay, so why have the welcome sequence? What is the point? Let's dig in. Number one, we are following something called the email staircase. And that's basically just my way of explaining the customer journey when it comes to email marketing. So first you've got a follower, then a friend, then a customer. So a follower is, you know, get them on your list. Those are followers, right? Then you turn them into a friend. And this is not, you know, the friend you share all your dirty laundry with, but with a friend, you have something in common, right? You're on my email list because you need to know more about email, and I can't stop talking about email. That's our. Our friendship is based on email marketing, right? And I'm on email lists for, like, NSync, right? And I want to know what all the NSYNC guys are doing. And guess what? There's a newsletter for that. Yes, it's actually a real thing. It's called Mission NSync. Check it out if you're into the Fab Five over there. But anyway, once you start emailing, you can turn them into a friend. And when you have a list full of friends, you can have a list full of customers, because you can just say you know, hey, I know you need xyz. I created xyz, right? And that's how you turn them into customers. But when they're first on your email list, when I opt in to hear more from you, you're not my friend yet. You're just somebody maybe I got a discount code from or a freebie, or I'm just kind of interested in learning more about your services. We're not friends yet. I don't feel like you know me yet. The welcome sequence starts the friendship, okay? And it gives you that opportunity to say, hey, my name's Liz. My name's Shahara. This is what I'm about. This is what you can expect, and this is the direction we're going. That's the welcome sequence. It starts something and sets expectations on what's to come. It starts that friendship. And then the second reason and maybe even more important reason to have a welcome sequence is it gives the wrong people that opted in a chance to either go cold, right? Stop opening your email so you can delete them. Or they unsubscribe. Right? It gives them the opportunity to unsubscribe. Remember, in the first reason, I told you this sets expectations. It tells them where they're going, who you are, what's on the table for them if they're the wrong person. Oh, snap. I got on the wrong bus. I actually don't care that much about email marketing, Liz. I'm overwhelmed over here. It gives that person an opportunity to. To opt out, either by manually unsubscribing or not opening any of the emails to signal to me, I can delete them. And we don't want people on our email list that don't vibe with us. Right? Or maybe they just wanted the freebie. Remember, you pay for your email list. And almost all email service providers, ESPs, including the one I use, kit.com make you pay per subscriber, right? It's like free up to a thousand, and then, you know, you have to pay from there. Or, you know, it's $29 for the first hundred or whatever, right? And so once you reach a certain level, you have to pay more. So the welcome sequence gives you and them an opportunity to make sure they should be on the list, right? Why let them hang out if they're not really that into us? So let it go. In the words of Queen Elsa, right? All right, so those are the two reasons, two main reasons why you need a welcome sequence. They're not our friends yet. We need to set those expectations. Tell them where we're going, what the email list is about and number two, it gives those wrong people a chance to get out of there. Okay, all right. I told you short and sweet. Hopefully that convinces you to get your email marketing act together. Get that welcome sequence done again. You can download my for email welcome sequence@lizwilcox.com Hot Pink Button or you can check the show name show notes and also if you are a member of email marketing membership, it is in there as well, right inside your dashboard, email library, etc. And of course if you want to walk through each email with me and write those emails in real time, I have a $49 welcome sequence workshop that I'm going to put in the show notes for you. Okay my friend, as always, I'm Liz Wilcox and you are awesome. Go get that welcome sequence done and I'll see you on the next episode.