Email nurture campaigns are extremely effective ways to move casually interested prospects to customers. They consistently appear near the top of tactics marketers plan to use more of. So what’s the fuss about? We look at what email nurture campaigns are, what they do, and how you can make one work for your business.
What is an Email Nurture Campaign?
Email nurtures are multipart campaigns used in marketing to move a prospect from one marketing stage to another, most commonly from awareness to consideration. It’s a really good demonstration of the marketing funnel at work.
What Do Email Nurtures Look Like?
They vary widely by industry and brand but generally, they’re nicely designed emails in a set of 3-6. They often start casual and become more detailed over time. Brands with highly sophisticated email strategies will tailor the messages as you interact with their other emails.
For example, if the first email had two links – one that emphasized how well the product worked and one that talked more about price – a smart email nurture strategy would split that audience and tailor messaging to each group, based on assumptions about what their link clicks indicated about their motivations or constraints.
What’s the Difference Between a Nurture Campaign and a Welcome Campaign?
There is a big overlap for sure, since nurtures and welcomes often inhabit the same time period and sometimes the same audience (!) but they should be separate and you should plan your onboarding experience carefully.
Welcome campaigns are generally primers on the company and its work, and their role is to convince your prospects that you’re trustworthy.
Nurture campaigns are more educational and their job is to offer deep information about a particular product or service, explained over time or based on behavior.
Each email should play a part to move your would-be customer one step closer to purchase by doing one or more of the following:
- Show them relevant examples of the product or service in use
- Resolve their objections and concerns
- Demonstrate how it can help them meet their goals
How Can I Get Email Nurture Content?
Start by mapping your buyer journey and the reasons people usually become customers. Survey them if you have to, or start with a single “perfect customer” persona. Imagine them, interested but uncommitted, and think about their motivations, pain points, and objections? If they were in front of you, how would you show them how your offer will improve their lives? That’s the basis of your email nurture content plan.
It doesn’t have to be perfect – the important thing is to begin. You know your offer better than anyone. So start there.
Lyndal Cairns loves email. Like, really loves it. If you want more free email strategy and production resources, please drop us a line.