Auto-responders do exactly what they say on the tin – they respond to an event or trigger automatically. They’re different from your usual email campaign because they’re not sent to an entire list all at once; instead the auto-responder is only sent when the subscriber adheres to your pre-determined conditions e.g. completes an enquiry form on your website. There are a wide variety of conditions you can set an auto-responder to follow, giving a large amount of flexibility.
Tip 1: When to use them
An auto-responder is great when you have pre-written content that doesn’t have to be specific to one individual. As I mentioned earlier, this could be when a subscriber signs up to a mailing list by completing a form on your website. This auto-responder could include a welcome message, coupon or further information.
An auto-responder is also handy when you have a lot of information that you need to spread out, to save bombarding the subscriber with too much information.
Campaigns sometimes need to be sent annually: for example, a birthday or anniversary email can be set up for subscribers in which case this is very easily set up using an auto-responder.
Tips 2: Keep them interesting
It goes without saying, but some businesses forget that they need to keep their audience interested and engaged. Try and supply them with something that’s worth knowing or having; you’ve done the hard work by getting the subscriber in the first place, so don’t let them regret their decision by sending them dull content. Using nice graphics with useful information is a great start.
Tip 3: Keep it relevant
Even though an auto-responder is, on the whole, quite generic, you must make sure that they are targeting the correct people. If a subscriber signs up to a mailing list regarding a particular service that you offer, you need to make sure that the auto-responder corresponds with their request. Failing to do this will result in unsubscribes, which is not what you want.
I suggest if you offer a variety of products or services with separate contact forms then you should have separate auto-responders, which will mean that you can segment your subscribers easily and market your products/services more efficiently!
If you need any more advice of auto-responders or email campaigns, don’t hesitate to get in touch via our website or call 0161 848 9008.
