Building Your Audience 2: First Impressions
".. you had me at hello"
You've heard that phrase before in a Jerry McGuire movie and, let this be a reminder, you only have one chance to make a first impression. When a new customer signs up, the first message they receive can go a long way in setting a solid foundation for a long-term, healthy relationship. Please use this information as a guide to onboarding new customers and keep your readership fresh and relevant.
Sign Up - Welcome Message
It starts with a welcome message.
This is the first message new customers will see, and capturing their attention is important to start off your relationship on the right foot.
Give them a little taste of the type of message you expect to send them.
Ask them to add your sending address to their safe sender list.
New customers can be forgetful. Although it may come off as a little redundant, reminding your customers where and when they signed up will help to reinforce why they got your mail.
This is also a good opportunity to set your customer's expectations on the frequency (daily/weekly/monthly) of mailings they will receive.
Branding
Brand your message accordingly and state who you are prominently in the beginning of every message. You want your customers to easily identify your messages as they skim the inbox, prioritizing their inbox while trying to determine which message to tackle first.
Consistency
Ensure new subscribers recognize your email when viewed from his/her inbox. Use the same From Name and From Address to build familiarity with you customers. If you send out a daily newsletter some companies like a consistent subject line as well, "Your Daily News MM/DD/YYYY"
Frequency
Learn your customer preferences on how often they want to receive your mailings. You set their expectation with the welcome message but now start identifying segments that want a monthly message instead of a daily or weekly message. Remember having an active subscription, even if they don't want to hear from you every day, is better than having that address unsubscribe or worse, complain.
Double Opt-In
Double opt-in is the gold standard for new subscriptions. If you find new subscribers are adding invalid or bogus addresses, and you are unable to reach them, consider using a confirmed opt-in process as a means of collecting only valid addresses. Here's how it works, when someone enters their email address on your webform and hits submit, a message, containing a confirmation link, is sent to that address. Only valid email addresses that receive the link, can click-through and confirm their subscription.
Please use these tips and good luck making that first impression.
