What’s the difference between a funnel email and a newsletter?
I’ve always hated that the marketing gods ever decided to call something a “funnel.”
I just picture a bunch of miniature humans — Willy Wonka-style — sliding down a plastic kitchen tool. It’s rather grim, actually.
… There are no handholds on the inside of the funnel …
… It’s totally smooth … like an old grandma’s leg …
… It’s like you’re sliding down El Capitan, helplessly, and to your death …
(If you were wondering, that last paragraph is a part of the reason why Lexapro is a longtime friend of mine.)
BUT … I can’t deny the funnel analogy. It IS hella accurate.
Your job as a marketer* is to:
*and if you’re a solo business owner, you ARE a marketer.
… Take a shit ton of people (the top of the funnel) through a clever and compelling journey in order to get a percentage of them to buy your thing (the bottom of the funnel).
We take that concept over to emails.
But not EVERY email you send should try to funnel your audience toward a purchase (which, btw, is why audience segmentation is suuuuper important).
There are two types of emails you’re likely to send for your business.
FUNNEL EMAILS and NEWSLETTER EMAILS.
And they have different goals.
A funnel email’s goal is to:
💰 Get your subscriber to convert (i.e. buy something).
A newsletter’s goal is to:
👫 Build a relationship with your subscriber (and generally ask nothing).
If you subscribe to my email list (and you totally should), you get a mix of both.
HERE’S HOW I STRUCTURE MY EMAILS
My welcome sequence — the automatic set of emails that I send to every new subscriber — is a funnel sequence.
I strategically wrote it to do two things:
introduce myself to new subscribers
tell them why they should buy The Writer’s Room (my bomb writing course)
My Monday newsletter — the one I usually write at the last minute because … hey procrastination — are nurture emails.
You’ll often see me include a link to my services in some cheeky way, but these emails are for pure entertainment. You get to know ME via my most favorite format (I adore email).
My readers open them because they know they’re gonna hear a relatable story and watch me tell it in a way that makes them laugh.
Good emailers use funnel emails AND a regular newsletter.
Your newsletter is a regular piece of content that your best subscribers come to love.
Your welcome sequence should funnel your new subscribers toward an action.
Then — into perpetuity — you’ll create new funnel emails to support your marketing objectives.
Launching a new offer? Set up a new funnel sequence.
Revamped your freebie? Set up a new funnel sequence.
Hosting a masterclass? Set up a new funnel sequence.
If you want me to write yours, holler at me here!
Or if you just want to peep an awesome welcome sequence, gimme your email address here. (I write emails that *don’t* make you feel like you’re sliding off El Cap.)
Need help starting an email list?