You will undoubtedly agree when I tell you that I believe that autoresponders are the best tool when planning an email marketing strategy. However, do you know in which situations can we consider using an autoresponder?
An autoresponder is not just a tool that sends na email in response to another message, but a system to automate messages based on actions or events.
In fact, this is a question I was asked some time ago.
What types of autoresponders can we define or create?
I thought a little about it, and the truth is that I created some situations in which an autoresponder might be useful.
- 1 1) Welcome email
- 2 2) Educational autoresponder
- 3 3) Autoresponder after purchase
- 4 4) Autoresponder as a reminder
- 5 5) Autoresponder to launch a new product or service
- 6 6) Autoresponder on a special date (birthday, etc.)
- 7 7) Autoresponder with required action notice
- 8 8) Autoresponder as notice about available product
- 9 9) Autoresponder to recover inactive users
- 10 I just wanted to give you some examples.
1) Welcome email
This is the most classic autoresponder, used to send a welcome message to new subscribers. Generally, this message is scheduled with some kind of gift or relevant information for the new user to take full advantage of our website.
For example, if we offer a discount, an e-book, exclusive content,we could schedule an instant autoresponder to send this gift to our new subscribers.
Even if there is no reward, it is a way to greet the new subscriber and tell him/her that we are thankful he trusted in our proposal.
In my opinion, it is very nice to receive this type of greeting when you subscribe to a newsletter.
This message serves to confirm the opt-in and explain what the user will receive in the future.
It’s very strange when you sign up for an e-commerce and never get a confirmation email. It looks like you never signed up and you don’t know if something happened or if you should try to subscribe again.
We can see a good example of a welcome email in a newsletter sent by Sarenza.
2) Educational autoresponder
An educational autoresponder is a message we use to explain to a subscriber all the features of our product or service, so that he feels comfortable buying it.
It’s a series of emails where we show the subscriber the features and benefits of our product or service.
Each email will deliver a unique message that will explain another feature or give more information about our product or service.
This option is not only useful for very technological or complex products.
For example, comefruta.es uses an autoresponder to display to subscribers a seasonal fruit calendar, as well as its benefits:
3) Autoresponder after purchase
Once the customers confirm the purchase, we can’t forget them.
In these cases, the best option is to use an autoresponder to contact the new buyer, and open other possibilities:
- Cross-selling
- More sales in the future
- Increase his confidence
- Offer support and relevant information for taking advantage of the product or service
As you can see, the possibilities are almost endless:
Would you like to see an example?
The Charles Tyrwhitt T-Shirt Shop:
A few days after the first sale, they send another email to know if the customer would be interested in something else.
Maybe including a discount, free shipping, etc.
A very useful strategy, because a happy buyer will be prone to buy again and recommend your store.
4) Autoresponder as a reminder
Similar to the previous one, but in this case, we would have to wait longer before sending the email.
It could be a week, a month, etc.
I found an example in an autoresponder created by Mumumio:
That was sent one week after I purchased a product from them.
Why a week later?
This store works with food products. So a week is a reasonable period for the customer to consume the products he purchased. Therefore, this autoresponder will act as a reminder, telling the customer that he can buy the products he needs again.
If your product lasts, say, two months, you should schedule this autoresponder for four months after purchase.
5) Autoresponder to launch a new product or service
You don’t have to schedule emails for new subscribers only.
Imagine that you are developing a new range of products or services. You would need to schedule at least one email to notify your customers about the features and release date of the product.
For example, I recently received an email from a company called planeta huerto:
Where they presented a new category of products.
In my opinion, instead of just an email, I think it would be better to send several messages, talking about different products of the category.
Or even from the various subcategories.
For subscribers to discover all options slowly, without having to read a very long message.
Maybe adding in the first email the option of not receiving more emails from this category if the subscriber is not interested.
6) Autoresponder on a special date (birthday, etc.)
Autoresponders are a fantastic option for this type of email.
If we have some information about subscribers, such as their date of birth, we can use that date to send you a more personalized message, taking the opportunity to thank him and congratulate him.
For example: if we have the birthday of all our subscribers, we will use an autoresponder to send that email on the same day, or a few days before, if we want to send them a discount or a special offering.
I received a custom autoresponder from Imaginarium:
7) Autoresponder with required action notice
An example related to the previous one. However, this autoresponder would be sent on a specific date but to warn the user that it should act.
He may need to make a payment or renew a service.
An example of this would be in the license renewal email I received from AVG.
It is a very suitable use for an autoresponder, as this message will be vital for subscribers as a reminder.
8) Autoresponder as notice about available product
We can use autoresponders to warn users interested in na unavailable product, creating a list with these clients who will receive the message in the future when we have the product on our store.
For example: if we are going to launch a new product, users interested can register on a waiting list to be notified through an autoresponder when the product is finally available.
It also helps us in the case of products similar to the products acquired, as in the case of an email I received from cyberdark:
9) Autoresponder to recover inactive users
Finally, an example that I find very useful as well.
In some situations, we have to prepare a series of emails, with the intention of contacting inactive users, to try to recover them.
We are not just talking about inactive subscribers who didn’t Interact with our newsletters in recent months, but about users who bought one of our products and never contacted us again. We can prepare a series of emails to encourage them to buy again.
Including special offers, discounts, free shipping.
It pays to try to get them back before they are completely lost, and for that, using an autoresponder can be a success.
I just wanted to give you some examples.
I thought a lot about it. However, the most critical point is the fact that autoresponders can be used to automate any task, and send emails automatically at essential dates, to keep your subscribers engaged without you having to do all the work manually.
I hope these examples will help you!
Would you like to contribute with other ideas?