By the end of this tutorial, you'll have a 3-email welcome sequence that automatically goes out to every new subscriber, introducing your business, delivering value, and inviting them to book. Totally automatic, once and done.
Go to Mailchimp.com (free) and create an account. During setup, enter your business details, this is what appears in the "From" field of your emails. Use these settings for best results:
If you're completely new to email: use Mailchimp (free). If you have more than 300 contacts already or want automations that respond to customer behavior, use ActiveCampaign ($15/month). Both work for this tutorial, the steps are nearly identical.
Before your automation can run, people need to be on your list. You need a way for customers to sign up. The easiest option: Mailchimp and ActiveCampaign both give you a free signup form you can add to your website.
Add your signup form link to your Google Business Profile under "Add Update." Anyone who finds you on Google can join your list with one click. This is free traffic that most business owners miss.
Here's your sequence, 3 emails over 7 days. This is a proven structure that works for any service business. Copy these templates and fill in the [brackets] with your details:
Email 1 Template (copy & customise):
Write like you're talking to one person, not a crowd. "You" outperforms "our customers." Conversational language gets higher open rates than formal business-speak. Read it out loud, if it sounds like something you'd actually say, it's good.
Now we set up the automation, this is what makes the emails send themselves. In Mailchimp:
In ActiveCampaign: Go to "Automations" → "Create an automation" → "Start from scratch." Add a trigger: "Contact subscribes to list." Then add "Send email" actions with "Wait 3 days" and "Wait 4 days" between them. More powerful, slightly more steps.
Before going live, test your automation end-to-end:
That's it. Your automation is now live. Every single person who signs up going forward will receive all 3 emails automatically. You never have to touch it again (unless you want to update the content).
After your first month, look at your open rates and click rates. Industry average for small service businesses: 35–45% open rate for welcome emails. If yours are lower, try a more compelling subject line. If Email 3 (the offer email) has low clicks, make the offer stronger or more specific.
For most small businesses, a 3-email welcome sequence works best. Email 1 is sent immediately. Email 2 goes out 3 days later. Email 3 goes out 7 days later. You can expand to 5 emails later, but 3 is a great starting point that won't overwhelm new subscribers.
Most small businesses should aim for 1–2 emails per month for their regular newsletter. Too much often increases unsubscribes for local service businesses. The welcome sequence (3 emails in 7 days) is fine because subscribers just signed up and are expecting to hear from you.
Your first email should do three things: (1) thank them for signing up, (2) tell them what emails they'll receive and how often, and (3) deliver whatever you promised them. Keep it short, 150–200 words is plenty. Don't sell anything in the first email.
Unsubscribes are normal and healthy, they're just people who weren't the right fit for your business. Both Mailchimp and ActiveCampaign handle unsubscribes automatically (legally required). Your open rate actually improves when non-engaged subscribers leave your list.