Dear Emma,
I've heard about a magical feature that automatically sends emails to people when they sign up, have a birthday, attend an event, etc. And I like magic, Emma - card tricks, rabbits appearing in hats, people being sawed in half but not with actual saws, and so on. So tell me about this bit of trigger email magic and how I can start using it right away, won't you?
Thanks,
Magic Man in Milwaukee
Dear Magic Man,
Trigger emails really are a small wonder of email marketing. It's going to seem a little freaky-but-in-a-good-way when we tell you that triggers not only reach your recipients on their individual schedules - the moment they sign up, on their birthday, right after they click a particular link, or when they've submitted a survey - but that they also do it all automatically.
Best of all, with a little clever thinking, our trigger feature can do a lot of things you might not expect. For example, it can send a whole series of emails to new subscribers, remind people about an upcoming event, show people more products they might like and more. And did we mention it's automatic?
In fact, once you put triggers to work, it might actually seem like you hired the trigger feature as a part of your team, and you'll probably end up feeling obligated to invite the trigger feature to your year-end company picnic, which is kinda awkward because you know that means those obnoxious trigger kids are going to show up and puncture the inflatable castle again. Rascals. But without further ado, here are four ways to put our trigger feature to work...
Welcome new subscribers with an email, or send a whole series of 'em.
A lot of folks use our trigger feature to automatically welcome new subscribers with a copy of their latest newsletter or a thank-you coupon. It's a great idea - after all, your readers are most interested in what you have to say in the moments right after they join your list - and this is one of those account features we think everybody should try at least once. (Also on that list: frisbee golf, tiramisu and, ironically, the inflatable castle.)
But to continue the conversation, consider creating a series of emails that sends in succession, on the schedule you choose. Think of the content you've got that fits nicely in a short, regular format, and turn it into a whole welcome pack. Boutique, salon and spa owners might try a series of weekly style tips, while non-profits and schools might consider a group of campaigns showcasing their best case studies or student success stories. Whatever you choose for your welcome messages, you'll be building trust with your recipients from the start, making 'em more likely to look forward to your messages down the road.
Congratulate people on their big day, or follow up after your big event.
Our trigger feature can automatically send an email on someone's birthday, provided, of course, you know your recipients' birthdays. And, like most birthday-related things (cake, presents, the funny hats), it's a good idea. But Emma can also send email before or after any date you're storing about your members, which makes it perfect for automating pre-event reminders or post-event follow-ups.
For example, let's say you regularly offer seminars and classes. As long as you're storing the date each subscriber is registered for a class, you can also trigger a reminder email a few days ahead of time. Whether Bob is registered for your Oil Paintings class next week or next month, he'll get a reminder about it exactly three days ahead of time.
You can also trigger an email after an event. If you know the date Bob came to your concert, you can automatically have an email arrive in his inbox two days afterwards, with a link to download your album. Who knows - it may be just the thing Bob wants to listen to while he does all that oil painting.
Send follow-up information based on what people click.
When you're paying attention to the links people click in your campaigns, you're learning a lot about your subscribers. After all, each little click you see on your response page gives you a fair amount of insight into what someone finds interesting. Triggers let you follow up accordingly - and automatically - by sending more information that same someone might also like. It's the perfect way to show your customers products similar to the one they clicked on earlier.
For example, follow up with the people who click to see your latest mod office chair by triggering an email with that chair's must-have mod accessories. If you're in a specialized industry like technology or healthcare, try sending your recipients a whitepaper or report that corresponds with the service or product they first clicked to learn more about. When the follow-up email arrives - whether that's the next day or after a few weeks - is entirely up to you, amigo.
Follow up with people after they've taken your survey.
If you've been using surveys and forms (after all, they're free), you know that learning about your subscribers can make a good email marketing strategy better. That's why we've just made it even simpler to use emails and surveys together, with a feature that lets you send email automatically whenever an email subscriber completes an Emma survey or form.
The survey trigger is a powerful combination of two of Emma's finest features, joining the company of other powerful combinations of things -- the jackalope, the word staycation and whatever the heck a tangelo is.
You can use survey triggers to automatically thank people for taking a survey, to remind folks about an upcoming webinar or even to send some follow-up details or deals.
So there you have it - a few simple (dare we say magical) ways to put Emma's trigger features to use. If any of our ideas for triggers spurred some of your own, by all means, tell us all about it.
Cheers,
Emma
Emma is a member of the Email Sender & Provider Coalition and the Messaging Anti-Abuse Working Group.
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