How to Engage Association Members with an Email Welcome Sequence
We are huge fans of quickly following up with inbound leads and sending new member welcome emails. But if you really want your association’s new members to feel even more a part of your community, creating a new member welcome email sequence will take your relationship with them steps further.
Welcome email campaigns range from standard, with about 3 emails, or more complex, with up to 7 or more emails. The length of your email sequence depends on your goal that you want to accomplish at the end of the sequence.
Because this is targeting new members, your goal for this email sequence should be to get them more involved in your organization. This could include getting to know your members better, encouraging them to sign up for a conference, or even complimenting any phone efforts to reach association members.
Email 1
When to Send: Immediately after sign-up
What to Send: Welcome and important information regarding their membership
You want to send a welcome email to any new member immediately. We’re in a day in this technological age when people expect something immediately. We dive even deeper in this post on how to craft the perfect welcome email.
In this first email, it’s also a great idea to encourage members to add your email to their contacts to ensure they never miss any important information.
Email 2
When to Send: 1-2 days after Email 1
What to Send: Additional information and membership benefits.
Now is the time to really explain membership benefits and what’s in it for them. Some ideas to include in your second email include:
Restating important information from Email 1
Inviting them to join your online community, such as Facebook group or other place online where you bring members together
Information on special discounts/freebies that come with their membership
Linking to most popular blog posts or articles
Email 3
When to Send: 3-4 days after Email 2
What to Send: Get to know your members
One thing email automation is great for is personalizing your emails. Within your CRM, you can tag your email subscribers based on actions they take in your emails. In this email, you can ask specific questions so that future emails are more relevant to them and therefore are more engaged with your association!
This can easily be done in a short in-email survey asking about various demographics that pertain to your association. For example, if you have regional chapters or events, you can segment by geographical location.
Don’t Stop There!
Your email communication with members shouldn’t stop at the last welcome email. If you really want to increase membership engagement, regular email updates are essential. Assuming that your members will remember (or have the time) to regularly check the association website for updates will leave you disappointed with an inactive membership base.
Download our email marketing guide to make sure you include everything that will make your new members excited that they joined and eager to get involved!
Download our guide to sending the best emails that delight your members!
When people sign up for your association, you need to have a plan in place to welcome and on-board them.
Using our expertise in lead generation, we’ve created this guide to help you cultivate a more engaged association.
In this download, you’ll receive:
The ultimate email sequence to welcome new members into your association
Information on WHEN to send and WHAT to include
Swipe-copy email templates to copy and past into your email sequence