Podcast Summary: SALES EMAIL SUMMIT – Beth Barany on Last Minute Signups

Podcast: The Email Sound Booth with Liz Wilcox
Host: Liz Wilcox
Guest: Beth Barany
Date: August 20, 2025
Episode Theme: Leveraging last-minute sales emails and affiliate collaborations for effective email marketing—especially for audiences with procrastination tendencies.

Episode Overview

This episode spotlights Beth Barany, an expert in helping science fiction and fantasy writers publish their novels, as she breaks down a particularly successful sales email campaign. Host Liz Wilcox and Beth discuss the anatomy of an email that drives late signups, insights into audience behavior, and the power of affiliate marketing when promoting industry-adjacent events or products.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Beth's Most Successful Recent Sales Email

• [01:06] Beth Barany introduces herself and describes her noteworthy sales email promoting a colleague’s writing workshop.

• Email details:

  • Purpose: Promote a 90-minute workshop in a series (where Beth also participated).
  • Subject Line: Time sensitive invite, unlock your hero's heart.
  • Stats:
    • 37.33% open rate
    • 3.75% click-through rate
  • Audience: Fiction writers, primarily those interested in craft improvement.

• Beth’s insight:

  • Email was successful because it was direct, emotionally resonant, and aligned with her audience’s interests.
  • She knew at least two signups came directly from her list—a strong outcome for a niche workshop.
  • Quote:
    • “It got right to the heart of the matter, no pun intended... For those reasons, I consider it a very successful email.” [01:52]

• Enthusiasm matters:

  • Beth attributes part of the email’s success to her and her colleague’s evident excitement.
  • Quote:
    • “That energy of excitement and enthusiasm I think came through in the email.” [02:57]

2. The Power of Affiliate Collaboration

• [03:25] Liz Wilcox: Celebrates the collaboration and strong click rate. Emphasizes the value of promoting colleagues’ offers.
• [04:08] Beth Barany: Details her approach:
  • Uses multiple emails in a campaign for time-sensitive events.
  • Specifically notes her audience’s tendency to delay action; therefore, reminder and “last chance” emails are vital.
  • Quote:
    • “I am not shy about sending reminders like ‘hey, this is starting tomorrow’ or ‘hey, registration closes tonight’ ... a lot of writers on my list I noticed are last minute deciders.” [04:55]
  • Affiliate marketing is now central to her business—she promotes only products she truly believes in, benefiting both her audience and colleagues.

3. Understanding (and Leaning Into) Audience Behavior

• Both host and guest notice audiences often take action at the last minute:
  • [06:28] Liz: Shares her similar experience with affiliate webinars:
    • “I told her...I will not start promoting this until like 48 hours before because my people tend to just open the email and ‘Oh, this is in 20 minutes? Great.’...I get so many last-minute signups like 20 minutes before.”
  • This behavior informs their email strategy: send multiple reminders, especially close to the event’s start time.

4. Beth’s List-Building & Community

• [07:53] Beth: Offers her email list signup to listeners, emphasizing community and ongoing support beyond just a welcome gift.
  • Free 5-day writer’s motivation mini course
  • Regular writing sprints, Facebook group, weekly newsletter, event news
  • Signup link: BethBarany.com/newsletter
  • Quote:
    • “You'll get our weekly newsletter and all the things about our events that I share.”

5. Takeaway for Listeners: Email Strategy for Collaboration & Affiliate Success

• [08:46] Liz:
  • Encourages all listeners—writers or not—to try Beth’s approach when promoting others' products:
    • “You do not have to be an author or aspiring author to steal this email. This email is great for those of us who want to promote our friends...collaboration over competition.”
  • Announces the summit's Steal These Sales Emails template pack, helping listeners replicate summitted emails for their own affiliate campaigns.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Beth Barany ([01:52]): “It got right to the heart of the matter, no pun intended... For those reasons, I consider it a very successful email.”
• Beth Barany ([02:57]): “That energy of excitement and enthusiasm I think came through in the email.”
• Beth Barany ([04:55]): “I am not shy about sending reminders like ‘hey, this is starting tomorrow’ or ‘hey, registration closes tonight’ ... a lot of writers on my list I noticed are last minute deciders.”
• Liz Wilcox ([06:28]): “I get so many last-minute signups like 20 minutes before. And so I just give them like 48 hours of ‘hey, this is coming’... ‘It's happening today’ type of thing.”
• Beth Barany ([07:53]): “You'll get our weekly newsletter and all the things about our events that I share.”
• Liz Wilcox ([08:46]): “This email is great for those of us who want to promote our friends...collaboration over competition.”

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 01:06 — Beth introduces her sales email campaign (overview, subject line, performance)
• 02:57 — The role of enthusiasm and energy in sales emails
• 04:08 — Frequency and structure of reminder emails; importance of audience behavior
• 06:28 — Audience procrastination and collaborative affiliate strategies
• 07:53 — Beth’s email list pitch and ongoing community resources
• 08:46 — Broader application of the email approach; summit resource promotion

Summary Takeaway

Beth Barany’s successful sales email exemplifies the impact of:

• Emotional, direct subject lines
• Understanding and leaning into audience behaviors (especially last-minute signups)
• Leveraging collaboration and affiliate marketing with integrity
• Sending multiple, well-timed reminder emails

Listeners are encouraged to adapt similar tactics—whether for their own workshops or when promoting others' offerings—as well as to check out resources like the summit's email template pack for hands-on support.