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Previously, we gave an overview of how to approach email marketing in three simple steps. Now we’re diving deeper into the process of nurturing leads through sustainable email marketing campaigns.

When putting together an email marketing plan, it is important to know what you want to share with your recipients. It is natural to start by introducing yourself and your offerings. But what comes next?

Lead Segmentation

To determine what needs to be sent to whom and when, try organizing each lead and email type into categories that align with your customer’s journey, which begins when they encounter your brand, product, or service. For example, you can use these three categories as a starting point:

Cold:

• These leads are often unreceptive to any form of outreach, so their transition from cold to qualified is often time-consuming but eventually worth it. This relationship often starts with the Advisor “cold-calling” a list of potential prospects with little to no knowledge of their needs. Valuable cold leads are often those who have revealed a bit of information about themselves, such as their name, job title, and email address. Listening to them at a networking event or skimming their social media profiles can usually reveal an angle that could be the driver in a tailored introductory message. Remember to align with CASL when reaching out to cold leads.

Warm:

• These prospects have shown interest in your business either through some online activity, such as signing up to your newsletter, following you on social media, or sending you an email for more information. They could also be referrals through other people you know. A good starting point with this type of lead is an introductory message that provides clarity around your brand and offerings. If they reach out to you for more information on your products, respond with the details they are looking for.

Hot:

• This is a qualified lead who is ready to get off the stove. They often know exactly what they want and come ready to close the sale. With this lead, it is best to provide detailed information about the products they require and the next steps to make the purchase.

Once you have the types of leads mapped out, you can create email templates with placeholders that make it easy to plug in specific information that speaks to your recipients’ needs. That way, no matter when the client connects with you, you can promptly respond to keep the conversation moving forward.

Demographic Segmentation

The learning and segmenting don’t end here. As your email recipient list grows, leads become clients, and you continue to collect more information about them. You can then use this data to further segment your audience to ensure your messages are tailored to meet specific customer needs and deliver value. One approach is to create categories based on the products your customers have purchased. The content of value to a young individual purchasing term life insurance may not be as valuable to a couple seeking final expense insurance. Grouping your clients by product needs will make it easier for you to create communication for each category. Taking it one step further, you can create a matrix by age group, life stage, and products:

• Life stage:
  • Single
  • Married (with children)
  • Income-earning years
  • Retirement
• Age group:
  • Child
  • Young adult
  • Adult
  • Mature adult
• Product:
  • Term life insurance
  • Whole life insurance
  • Universal life insurance
  • Final expense insurance
  • Health insurance

Campaign Categories

Once you have categorized your audience by lead type and demographic segmentation, you can now go ahead and create email categories to inform campaign strategies. Below are examples that you can tailor to your business and audience:

• Introduction:
  • Showcase your business and offerings.
• Informational:
  • Sales:
    • Information about specific products
    • Promotion/discount opportunities
  • Content:
    • Tips about finance, investment, health, lifestyle, and other topics that could add value to the customer
• Transactional:
  • Provide details of the selected products, contracts, and all other terms.
• Follow-up:
  • Keep the relationship going by sharing valuable content and requesting post-sales feedback, such as customer service surveys.
• Reminders:
  • Remind clients about upcoming renewals, events, etc.

Remember to place your call to action in each email. What action would you like your audience to take after reading it? Remember that their actions will likely vary depending on where they are in their customer lifecycle and what products match their needs at that time.

Keep this quick checklist in mind for each email campaign:

• Increase the open rate of your emails by having a strong subject line.
• Make your content easy to understand, whether it is product-related or otherwise.
• Call attention to your key message by clearly emphasizing it.
• Wrap it all up with a simple call to action (CTA).