Starting email marketing?
The top 3 e-comm flows you need to hit the ground running.
Email marketing can be a challenge to get off the ground. There are so many moving parts, so many things you could do. There’s also a ton of room for advanced strategy in the form of A/B testing - and then once you start sending emails, there’s so much data to analyze! My goal today is to get down to the basics so that, even if you’re totally new to email marketing, you have a clear starting point to work from. This guide will give you a three-step strategy to get the most essential e-comm flows up and running - and set you up for profit.
Flows are email sequences that are sent automatically based on a customer’s unique journey within your brand. Whether they’ve just signed up for email marketing, or have made several purchases in the last year but then stopped buying, those are all steps in a customer’s journey. We want to tailor your email messaging to them in the most efficient yet effective way possible. Let’s get into the specific priorities you should start with.
Priority #1: Welcome Series
I see many people make the mistake of thinking they can skip the Welcome email setup. After all, what’s the urgency? You’ve already gotten the subscriber onto the list, which is the biggest hurdle. But think of it like this: Welcome emails provide a great opportunity to gain new subscriber’s trust while they’re highly engaged (since, after all, they just made the effort to sign up for your list). Welcome emails also have far higher open rates than general marketing campaigns, which means any messaging you include here is more likely to be seen and acted on. So, how can you leverage that to your advantage?
Build trust by letting the customer get to know your brand, and setting expectations for future messaging. Now is not the time to be stuffy - thank the customer for being here, using your unique brand voice and perspective to show them why you’re different. Let them know when they can expect to hear from you - do you drop new products frequently? Will you send out a blast if one of your products is sighted on the red carpet? Help prepare them to be engaged going forward.
Explain what makes your products different (and maybe highlight some best-sellers). Do you have an amazing sustainability or carbon-neutralizing program? Spotlight it here! Want your customer to browse your top five bestselling products? The welcome email is a great place to do that.
If you want to get advanced, you can set up a second email in the welcome flow series with product highlights. Schedule it to deploy a couple of days after the initial welcome message.
Priority #2: Optimized Order Confirmation Email
The only email type that gets opened more than a Welcome email is an order receipt. I’m sure you intuitively open these when they land in your inbox. But have you considered what a great opportunity order confirmation emails provide to build brand loyalty?
You don’t want to go overboard with additional messaging here - keep the bulk of the email straightforward and to the point. But, consider including something like:
An invite to follow your brand on social, or subscribe to your newsletter
A bounce back discount for next time (like free shipping on their next order, within a certain time frame)
The inside scoop about an upcoming promotion
Keep it simple, but use your order confirmation emails to plant seeds that will encourage customers to come back for more.
Priority #3: Abandoned Cart Flow
Abandoned cart emails aren’t a magic bullet to recover lost sales, but they work in enough cases that it’s worth the time to set this flow up early on. You can use an abandoned cart flow to create urgency - say, by sending an email a day after the cart abandonment letting the customer know that inventory is running low for their product. Or, you can sweeten the deal by offering up a discount like free shipping or a small percentage off (after a couple of days, of coure). But I’d also suggest using your abandoned cart flow as a way to build trust with the customer, especially if you sell luxury or other big-ticket products. Ask them if there’s anything you can help them with, or if they have any questions. Show that you (or someone on your team) is available. You won’t recover every sale, but even if you only land 5-10% of abandoned carts back with this flow, it’ll be worth it.
Bonus! Winback Flow
Winback flows go out after a customer has made their first-ever purchase, encouraging them to come back and shop again. These are amazing for increasing revenue since repeat customers don’t require any additional acquisition costs (like ad spend). When building your winback flow content, consider: is there anything you sell that could be considered an “impulse buy”? Or, do you offer something complimentary to what the customer already ordered - for example, if you sell enamel clutches, could you invite the client to order a cuff in a matching color?
The timing of your winback flow will be highly dependent on the type of products you sell. For example, a fine jewelry brand might want to wait several months, even a year, before circling back to first-time customers, while a cosmetics brand might follow up within a week or two. Once you’re ready for it, winback flows are a prime opportunity to A/B test what timing works best.
I hope this guide helps to reduce decision fatigue and give you a clear action plan to start connecting with the right customers via email - and making more sales as a result. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to hit the reply button and reach out! I’m here to help.
Want to learn more? Interested in working together? Get in touch with me here.