The Power of First Impressions: The Case for Sending Welcome Emails

If you met someone at a party and she gave you her business card, would you simply take it and walk away? You might, say, if the host just opened up a fresh bag of Cheetos in the other room (who could blame you?) but chances are that person’s going to be much less inclined to return your phone call the next day if you do.

People put a lot of pressure on first impressions, and that pressure is even higher when it comes to digital communications. With the constant onslaught of emails and text messages that flood people’s inboxes and phones each day, it’s more important than ever for organizations to take full advantage of every opportunity to connect. Just as collecting business cards shouldn’t be the end goal of a party or networking event, collecting phone numbers and email addresses shouldn’t be the end goal of a good communications plan. If you really want to engage with your stakeholders newly subscribing to your content and keep them coming back for more, you need to hook them from the very beginning.

Sending a welcome email to new subscribers is a great way to do exactly that. If a stakeholder is interested enough to give you her email address, that means she’s likely interested enough to sign up for more topics and engage with you more often. Sending a welcome email with that information is a great way to solidify the initial relationship. Bring opportunities for further engagement to your stakeholders right off the bat, don’t wait for them to come to you.

Still not convinced that welcome emails are worth your time? Take a look at the numbers from MarketingProfs. On average, subscribers are four times more likely to open a welcome email and five times as likely to click through it. Considering the payoff, it’s incredible how little extra effort this takes. Simply setting up an automated welcome email to every new subscriber is enough to see amazing results. There’s never been a better time to make a better first impression.

Do you currently send your new subscribers welcome emails? Let us know in the comments below!