How to Write a Decent Email Sequence (Even if You’re Not a Writer)
If there’s one thing I hate, it’s a recipe where the writer literally writes a bible-length description about how they came up with the recipe before they actually tell you how to make the damn thing.
So, as much as I want to write a long intro about email sequences and how absolutely delectable they are…
I’m not gonna do that.
Let’s just get to the important stuff. Cool?
What is an email sequence?
An email sequence is a series of emails sent to accomplish a single goal.
Depending on the type of email sequence, the goal could be to get a reader to purchase a product, start using an app, or engage with a brand.
Often — but not always — email sequences are sent automatically based on a user’s behavior. (These can be referred to as “email autoresponders.”)
Abandoned Cart Email Sequences and Onboarding Email Sequences are a few types of email sequences that are sent based on user behavior. Whereas a Launch Email Sequence is often sent to all users, regardless of how they’ve interacted with a brand in the past.
Why are Email Sequences Important?
In a perfect world, people would immediately recognize how valuable our app, product, or brand is…
But we all know the type of world we live in — and it sure as heck ain’t perfect.
So, email sequences allow us to show our customers what’s great about our product…
They let us tell the story of how we got to where we are — and why we’re the best person to help them do the same…
And they allow us to directly connect with our customers at the most important parts of their customer journeys.
For businesses who make a significant amount of their money online, email sequences are one of the most important ways they generate revenue.
Beyond that, once you set up an email sequence…
It can run automatically.
So if you’re running a sequence that sells a product…
You can earn a passive income just by setting up an email sequence.
If you want your business to make money online, and you want to do it with minimal effort, an email sequence is a fantastic way to do that.
Types of Email Sequences
There are many different types of email sequences, and I won’t try to list them all here. I’ll let somebody write a book about that.
What I will do, however, is include basic descriptions of a few of the most common types.
Here they are.
Onboarding Email Sequence
This is the sequence you send when someone first signs up for your email list.
The goal of an Onboarding Email Sequence is to get someone to engage with your brand. By the end of it, you want them to know you, like you, and trust you.
And if you’re a SaaS company, the goal of your Onboarding Sequence is to get someone to regularly interact with your app by the time the sequence is complete.
Generally, an Onboarding Email Sequence will include a mix of personal stories (whether they’re stories about the company itself or its users) and promotions of free content or app features. A good Onboarding Sequence thrives on value.
Some people sell during their Onboarding Sequence — and there’s nothing wrong with that — however, you want to be certain you’re providing a ridiculous amount of value regardless of whether you’re selling or not.
First impressions last a long time, and you want people to have a good first impression of your brand.
Beyond that, consider this:
When you’re cleaning out your email inbox — what do you pay most attention to?
My guess is that it’s not the subject line. It’s the sender.
During your Onboarding Sequence, you’re proving that you are a valuable sender. So when people see your name in their inbox, they’ll associate it with valuable information, which means your email will be much less likely to end up in their trash.
This sequence can be as long as you want, but 5-7 emails over the course of 7 days is a safe bet.
Bonus: There are two Onboarding Email Sequence examples at the end of this post.
Launch Email Sequence
This is the money-maker. The sexiest email sequence of them all.
A Launch Email Sequence is designed to sell a product. And that might sound simple, but there’s a lot that goes into it.
Generally, your goal in a launch email sequence is to walk readers through a series of beliefs that they must see as “true” in order to buy your product.
For example, in order for someone to buy what you’re selling they’ll need to believe (at a very basic level) these things:
This product will solve my problem
The person selling it is qualified to solve my problem
I will actually get what I pay for
This is better/different than what I’ve tried in the past
So the goal of a launch email sequence isn’t just to say “Hey I have this thing for sale!” It’s to prove that your thing is better than the other person’s thing and that it’s the best solution to your reader’s problems.
In general, Launch Email Sequences follow a Value > Selling flow.
Meaning, the beginning of your sequence will just be valuable content. It will prove that you know about your reader’s problems and that you are qualified to solve them.
Once you’ve proven that and shown that you are likeable and trustworthy, you can move into the selling part.
That’s when you actually start talking about the product itself and highlighting why it’s the best solution to your reader’s issues.
Launch Email Sequences are HIGHLY variable.
At the low end, you could send 5 emails over the course of 5 days. And at the high end, you could send hundreds of emails over the course of a week or two to different segments of your email list.
Bottom line, while the overarching structure is the same (shifting beliefs, providing value, selling the product) — Launch Sequences can be complicated.
People much smarter than me have written books and created courses about launching products. Here are two:
Re-Engagement Email Sequence
It’s sad when customers leave.
A Re-Engagement Email Sequence is designed to get them to come back. Often, this type of email sequence will include a special offer like:
“If you come back now, we’ll give you 10% off your first order!”
There are two things you have to get right with a Re-Engagement Email Sequence:
First, the tone.
Specifically, don’t grovel. In my opinion, begging a previous customer to come back comes off as desperate and, if we’re being honest, a bit clingy.
Whenever possible, you want to sell from a place of power, a la “Hey, we have this really cool thing over here, and we’d love for you to be a part of it if you’re still interested.”
That comes off as much more approachable and much less sleazy.
The second thing you have to get right is the offer.
Offering someone 2% off a $20 product isn’t going to get them excited. But maybe free shipping, a significant discount, a limited-edition product, or a free gift will.
Acquiring new customers is hard. It’s worth keeping previous ones around. So make sure you offer them something they actually want.
VIP Email Sequence
This is for those special customers who make up a significant amount of your income.
Odds are, there’s a select group of your customers that spend significantly more money than others.
Maybe they’re the 20% of people who pay 80% of your income.
But regardless what the breakdown is, you should give them special attention. Not only can you add some more profit to your business, you can make people feel special in the process.
A VIP Email Sequence is an email sequence you send to your top tier of customers. Since these people already know you, like you, and trust you (like, a lot) — this sequence can be super simple.
Anywhere from 1 - 3 emails saying something like the following will work just fine.
“Hey, I’m doing this cool new thing with the most valuable members of my community...and you’re one of them! Here are the details. Want to join?”
As in the Re-Engagement Sequence, pay special attention to your tone and your offer.
You want people to feel like they’re part of a special, exclusive group (because they are!) and you want to give them something befitting that high level of status.
Abandoned Cart Email Sequence
An Abandoned Cart Email Sequence is an email sequence that encourages someone to complete their purchase if they have added an item to their cart without finishing the purchase.
If you don’t have an Abandoned Cart Sequence, you’re probably leaving money on the table.
The good news is that this is super simple to set up.
Anywhere from 1 - 3 emails along the lines of…
“Hey you forgot this! Do you still want it?”
...should work.
How to Write an Email Sequence in 3 Steps
With many things in life, “done” is better than “perfect.”
And email sequences are the same way.
I won’t promise that you’ll be able to write a world-class email sequence after reading this. But my goal is to help you write a functional email sequence that works better than having no email sequence at all.
Cool?
1. Determine Your Goal
First, ask yourself:
“What’s my goal?”
Do you want to sell a product? Onboard a new subscriber? Get reviews for your app or business?
Whatever it is, make sure you’re very clear about what you want people to do after they go through your email sequence.
2. Outline It
Now that you know the goal of your email sequence, it’s time to outline it.
An important thing to keep in mind is that each email in an email sequence should inch the reader closer to taking the action you want.
But that doesn’t mean that, if you’re writing a launch email sequence, every email should be pushing for a sale. It does mean, however, that every email in your sequence should give them information or tell them a story that makes it more likely they will buy when you decide to ask for the sale.
In Step 1, you determined the goal of your entire email sequence. Now, in Step 2, your goal is to determine the goal of each email and identify how you will achieve that goal.
Let’s say you’re working on a very basic launch email sequence for an info product you created about how to become a photographer. Here’s how that would break down:
Launch Email Sequence Example
Email 1
Goal: Show people you understand the problem
How to Achieve that Goal: Tell the story about when you were broke and needed a way to earn extra income, so you found freelance photography
Email 2
Goal: Tell people the course is open
How to Achieve that Goal: Send a very simple email that says “Hey my course is open! Here’s why I think it could help you, etc.”
Email 3
Goal: Prove that the course works
How to Achieve that Goal: Highlight a case study of a previous student who used the course to achieve success
Email 4
Goal: Overcome objections to purchasing
How to Achieve that Goal: Write a Frequently Asked Questions email that addressed the most common objections people have to buying the course
Email 5
Goal: Get people to buy before the deadline
How to Achieve that Goal: Tell people the course is closing and give them the most convincing argument you can for why they should buy it
3. Write It
Now that you’ve outlined your email sequence, you’re ready to write!
Don’t stress over this too much. You can break the writing down into 3 phases.
First, rough draft.
This is your braindump. Just write as much as you can as quickly as you can. Get all your thoughts onto the page.
Second, revising.
Go back and clean up your rough draft. Remove anything that doesn’t make sense and make sure your writing flows logically from beginning to end.
Third, polishing.
This is where you can get fancy and add a few direct response copywriting tactics or turns of phrase.
But here’s a guiding principle for your writing:
Write like you talk — make it as simple and clear as possible.
For more details on how to write a good email, check out my free ebook.
Onboarding Email Sequence Examples
As promised, here are those Onboarding Email Sequence examples I mentioned earlier.
Let’s say you’re an author or a public speaker who’s working to build an email list so you can sell digital products to them.
You’ve recorded a few podcast interviews, you’re putting out content on a regular basis, and you’re starting to build some momentum.
You have a lead magnet, so when people sign up for your email list, you send them a basic email that says something like:
“Hey here’s the lead magnet you wanted!”
And then?
Crickets.
They don’t hear from you until 6 months later when you decide “I guess I should start emailing my list, huh?”
And that’s a problem.
Because by that point, they’ve forgotten all about you and that awesome lead magnet you sent them.
An Onboarding Email Sequence can fix that.
Here’s what that could look like:
Personal Brand Onboarding Email Sequence Example
If you’re a personal brand, your goal is to get new subscribers to know you, like you, and trust you.
Because when that happens, people are more likely to buy from you.
Email 1: Welcome
This email should be very simple.
This is likely the delivery email of your lead magnet. So don’t get fancy here, just give people what they asked for and move on.
Something along the lines of…
“Hey here’s that thing you wanted!”
…works great.
Email 2: What to Expect
In an ideal world, someone will have given you the email address they actually use — not a throwaway they never check.
And that’s a big deal. It’s a lot of responsibility on your plate. That being the case, you should give people a heads up about what they should expect as a member of your email list.
How often will you email them?
What type of content will you send?Will you ever try to sell them anything? If so, why? If not, why?
Basically, you’re just setting expectations here. The unfortunate truth is that some people will get mad at you for showing up in their inbox no matter what.
The purpose of this email is three-fold.
First, it helps you sleep better at night. You’re being honest and direct with people about what you’re going to provide.
Two, when people get angry at you for trying to help them (God forbid!), you can tell them (nicely, of course) that you were honest about your intentions from the beginning.
Three, people who are not on-board with anything you mention in this email will unsubscribe. And that’s great! You want raving fans — not people looking for a handout.
Email 3: Personal Story
This isn’t your soapbox.
Why?
Because people don’t care about your story, UNLESS it relates to them in some way. So that’s key here:
Tell the story of how you ended up where you are — but remember, it HAS to relate to your audience.
If you quit your lucrative job as a dentist to follow your passion, don’t just talk about how scary it was for you and how Barb threatened to leave with the kids if you couldn’t replace your income by the end of the year.
Continually ask yourself:
Why does this matter to my readers?
And make sure you weave the answer into your story.
Email 4: Something for You
This is a straight value-driven email.
Remember, our goal with this Onboarding Email Sequence is to get people to know you, like you, and trust you.
You do that by giving them a TON of value. So, if you have a blog post that’s really good and helpful for your target audience, send them a link to it!
Or if you just want to share one of the most important lessons you’ve learned in your business, life, or whatever — share it in this email (as long as it relates to the reason they signed up for your email list in the first place).
Give people something that’s entertaining and helpful.
Email 5: Something for You #2
Same as Email 4.
Email 6: Biggest struggle?
This email is simple.
It should read something like:
“Hey [NAME], I was wondering — what’s your biggest challenge when it comes to [TOPIC]?”
This is a practice Ryan Levesque talks about in his book Ask. It’s called the Single Most Important Question…
And if you can give people a solution to it, they’ll give you money.
You can either link someone to a survey (which feels less personal, but is easier to record responses) or have them respond directly to the email (which can facilitate conversation, but makes it harder to record responses).
The overarching idea is that these responses help you understand your customers better and help you develop products that meet their needs.
Email 7: Random Story
This is the last email in your Onboarding Sequence.
The goal of it is to transition readers out of this sequence and into your standard broadcast email schedule.
This email should read like “Hey, this thing happened to me one time, I learned a lesson, and I want to share it with you…”
Because that’s what your regular broadcast emails should be doing as well.
Pro Tip: Don’t be afraid to include questions at the end of your emails. Ramit Sethi is great at this. It’s a simple way to learn more about your customers and get them to engage with your brand.
App Onboarding Email Sequence Example
If you’re an app company, your Onboarding Sequence would be a series of emails that give people details about your app and show them how to use the specific features that would benefit them the most.
The goal is to get them to engage with the app and start using it on a regular basis.
You can do that however you want, but here’s an example that might provide some inspiration or a good starting point.
Email 1: Welcome!
This email would welcome users to the app and set the tone for the brand’s voice.
You would want to be personal, friendly, exciting, maybe even a little quirky.
This email should be short and simple. Feel free to include a testimonial for some social proof, but brevity is key here.
Think about it like this:
If your friend texts and asks for a link to an article, you don’t send them a 5-paragraph explanation of why you’re so excited they finally asked you for the link…
You just send them the damn link and move on.
The concept here is similar.
Give people a first step to take (“sign into the app and do this”), and then end the email.
This is not the place to take an “everything and the kitchen sink” approach. Just get people to do one thing in the app and then move on.
Email 2: Case Study
Someone downloaded your app because they believe it can help them. Now is your chance to prove that it can.
Pick a user story and share it in this email.
The idea is to show users that your product HAS worked for people just like them.
This ties into the idea of aspirational identity — we all buy products because we believe (whether consciously or unconsciously) that they will help us become the person we want to be.
In this email, you want to show people that they can become closer to the ideal version of themselves with your app.
So, tell a story and inspire them. Highlight the specific feature that the person in your case study used to succeed.
Then, include a call-to-action (CTA) and end the email.
Email 3: Highlight a Feature
What’s one of the most important features of your app?
Why is that feature important?
How will it change users’ lives?
In this email, highlight that feature, show people why it’s important, and show them how it will make their lives better.
Then, include a CTA and end the email.
Email 4: Case Study #2
This is the exact same as Email 2. Tell a user story, highlight a feature (different than the one you highlighted in Email 2), include a CTA, and end the email.
Email 5: “What do you think?”
One of the reasons internet marketing is great is because it allows you to speak directly with your customers.
That’s what you’re doing in this email.
It should be short. Very short.
“Hey [NAME], what do you love about [APP]? What would you change?”
This email should feel as if it was sent personally to them from someone on the team.
Like in the Personal Brand Onboarding Email Sequence example, you can either do this via survey or directly through email.
Email 6: Highlight a Feature
Same as Email 3 — but with a different feature, obvi.
Email 7: Case Study #3
Same as Emails 2 and 4.
Email 8: Vision and Close
This will be the last email in your series.
(Ideally, you’ll have anywhere from 7 - 14 emails in your sequence. It takes time for people to build up trust in a brand, and staying top-of-mind and providing valuable content is key. That’s why I’ve included multiple case studies and feature highlights in this email sequence.)
In this email, you’ll point back to the day someone downloaded your app. They downloaded it for a reason — and you want to remind them of that reason.
We all know what it’s like to be hyper-motivated about something one week and then not care about it at all a week later.
Your goal with this email is to remind them on the reason they downloaded your app in the first place.
What did they want to accomplish? Who did they want to be? And how can your app help them become that person?
Remind them of those things in this email and include a CTA to take some sort of action in the app.
Writing an Email Sequence Doesn’t Have to be Overwhelming
I hope this has de-mystified the process of writing an email sequence for you.
And if you have questions, you can find me at robert@robertlucas.co.