We’re friendly people. Maybe too friendly, in fact.
Last November, we launched a “welcome” program – an automated way to say hello to new leads that were entering our database. MarketingSherpa says that the first 30 days of meeting someone is the best time to give and get information, and this effort was going to help us leverage that time-sensitive opportunity.
Turns out they were right. Initial click-through rates exceeded 20% in some instances. Wow. We began saying hello to everyone. Saying hi was like a shiny new toy that you want to play with all the time. Then … conversion rates plummeted.
Using a report to sort on lead source, I combined similar sources/channels and quickly realized that if we’re saying hello to acquired contacts who haven’t first expressed real interest must make us seem like crazy people. In hindsight it’s obvious. I liken it to walking down the street waving and smiling at every person who passes. Who’s that crazy lady?
| Source | Open Rate | CTR | Unsub |
| List build | 13.44% | 1.00% | 1.38% |
| Sales | 13.44% | 1.04% | 1.63% |
| Web | 30.89% | 7.69% | 1.26% |
| 3rd Party | 32.98% | 5.70% | 1.26% |
(List Build and Sales sources are contacts not previously “engaged”.)
Lesson learned. We’re getting more selective about who fits in our welcome program, and we’re trying not to get carried away when we find something that works.
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