After they give you their email address, how do you make the sale? Below are 2 email sequences that help put your sales on autopilot.

Can you still make money if you walk away from your laptop for a week?

Most people don’t think that a week is long time, but let’s do some math: Sarah created an online course and priced it at $47 Her funnel has been running for a week and she is averaging 3 sales a day with email marketing.

That’s $141 a day. $987 a week. So if I didn’t have any systems in place and I disappeared for 1 week, what do you think will happen? Will I lose it? Will my customers forget about me? If I have my automated email sequence set up correctly, then it’s working to warm up my new lead, and nurturing them into my sales funnel on autopilot.

This is why email marketing is so important. Do you have an effective email sequence?

If Sarah didn’t have one set up, she would be out $987, and I don’t know about you, but that’s a lot of money to lose in my opinion. Since we set up the top of our funnel with an opt-in and thank you page, the front end is solid but what about the back end?. Your ideal clients now have your lead magnet and just need to start the ascension through your funnel.

You might be thinking at this point: What’s the big deal? It’s just a little opt-in, not a REAL funnel. …..WRONG

Once they opt-in, it’s your email marketing’s job to introduce yourself, let people know what they can expect since they have subscribed and develop a relationship built on trust. Have you ever been to a party or an event and met a new person that is easy to connect with? Well, have you noticed how well that conversation flows once the “ME TOO!” chord is struck? The conversation started out friendly enough, but this new person said something that resonated with you and you turn and say “Me too!” and all of a sudden you start creating a bond and the first thing you do is tell this person your experience.

Sound familiar? You’ve heard other marketers say to tell a story and try to make a connection. That’s what your email sequence does – nurtures that new relationship.

Action Items: Today, we are going to create a short email sequence for your opt-in funnel. Sequence #1 is a short 3 email strategy that uses the “Me Too” tactic and #2 is called a Soap Opera sequence. Remember – they have already gotten an email from you when the lead magnet was delivered. Now we just have to earn the right to stay in their inbox. How do we do that? By nurturing the relationship and providing value at every corner.

For the first email sequence, we will write 3 emails and you can see the format below:

The Me Too Sequence

EMAIL #1: THE INTRODUCTION

Introduce yourself and let them know what your business is about. Thank them for signing up and for letting you into their inbox. Let them know that since they have subscribed, it will be like Christmas because you giving them a free gift. Or 2 free gifts, whatever you have. Those gifts are the other lead magnets that this person did not sign up for, but will provide them value. Set up their excitement about the surprise coming into their inbox tomorrow.

EMAIL #2: THE STORY

This is the “Me too!” conversation. Tell a story about how you had this specific problem that your lead magnet solves and how doing X Y or Z made a difference for you. Let them know that you have had the exact problem and you have a valuable solution. Don’t forget to give them the extra lead magnet. Promise another goodie the next day to keep them on the edge of their seats.

EMAIL #3: THE NEXT MOVE

There is a lot of debate between marketers over this one – do you introduce your product in this email or just provide value to get them deeper into your funnel that will lead them to the solution they seek? This is your call, but I would do some testing and see what email works best for you – one introducing the product and asking for the sale or one giving additional value. Test it out. Now that we have our 3 emails, we are going to close each one with a call to action. If you have a group, ask them to join. Ask them to follow you on Twitter or white list your email address. Why? Because you are asking them to take a specific action, and those who perform that action clearly show a behavior of being interested in what you are offering. I’m not saying that if they do not click that they will never buy – research has shown that you must “touch” them 5 to 8 times before they feel safe enough to buy from you. No one will buy from someone they don’t know, like or trust. Let these 3 emails build your authority and nurture the relationship.

For the second email sequence, we will write 5 emails using the format below:

Now that I’ve showed you a simple 3 step email sequence, let’s talk about the sequence that I use personally. If you’ve read DotCom Secrets by Russell Brunson, you are familiar with what’s called the Soap Opera Sequence, if not, click here to grab your free copy, it’s not only worth the read, but it will definitely change your business and your life.

Engaging new people through email marketing is a an opportunity to introduce and start developing the “know, like and trust” factor. I see so many people who try to put a sale in front of their ideal buyers without taking the time to build trust or authority and to be honest, this is why it doesn’t work. No one buys from someone they don’t know and if they are in the awareness stage of the sales cycle, they have just realized that they have a problem and aren’t even sure if a solution is available, and here you are throwing a sale in front of them. This is not great strategy for long-term marketing success.

The SOAP Opera Sequence

This is an amazingly effective series of 5 emails that will warm up your brand new leads and list and helps to build a relationship that builds that “know, like and trust” needed for business success.

Let’s face it, Days of Our Lives and Jerry Springer rule daytime TV.

Every day, you’re hooked. Is Simon the real father? Who is coming clean on Jerry? Whatever your poison, you know you’re tuning into the next episode because they’ve got you. You just know that the next one is going to be better than the first, so you set your DVR and wait with excitement. Wouldn’t it be cool if your list felt that way about your emails and if they were waiting to see what you have to offer? Credit cards in hand, ready to learn how to solve their problems?

EMAIL 1: SET THE STAGE

This is the first email and is the one they get when they give you their email address. A thank you for opting in and the delivery of the resource is not just the purpose of this email, this is also where you let them know what to expect. Will you be sending emails every day and be including additional value? Let them know immediately get them excited about what’s to come.

EMAIL 2: OPEN WITH HIGH DRAMA

If you’ve gotten them excited, then they are waiting for this next email. This is the start of your story “selling” and all good stories start with drama, because drama captures attention. Start with the backstory that leads to the drama, this should be the kind of story that your readers relate to, a situation that lead to them hitting a wall. If your lead magnet is created properly, it’s the situation that they are in right now and you are telling a story about how you overcame and went on to solve the same problem. Don’t give them the solution just yet, just get them into your loop and promise to tell them your solution in the next email. Secrets work great here: let them know that you were once in their shoes but you found the secret that changed it all!

EMAIL 3: THE EPIPHANY

You hit a wall, you felt stuck and then you had an epiphany that turned it all around. By now they’re hooked and want to know what you realized and what turned it around for you. Enter your course, program or product. The epiphany tied to the solution you’re selling.

EMAIL 4: THE HIDDEN BENEFITS

In this email, you’re closing in on your buyer persona. You’ve told them that your solution works, so now it’s time to shower them with the hidden benefits of the solution. Using an example of another customer and how they reaped the reward of these hidden benefits will really help to move them closer to the sale. We all know that testimonials work, so this is like a testimonial with an example of how your solution worked in a way the reader didn’t consider.

EMAIL 5: URGENCY AND THE CALL TO ACTION

Although this is the last email in the sequence, it isn’t going to be the last email you send them hopefully. This is where you give them one last push to take action. Using a statement of urgency that let’s them know that this deal isn’t going to last, or the bonuses are going away is how to really get them excited, but make sure it’s real. Ever seen a countdown on a sales page that starts all over when you refresh the page? Make yours real. Let them know what will happen if they don’t take you up on this awesome offer.

Using the Me Too or Soap Opera sequence is a great way to introduce and warm up your new list, but don’t stop there. This is just the end of the indoctrination. After completion, move them to your next sequence so that you stay in contact and keep providing value. Keep up with your authority building and the know, like and trust will naturally build in your favor. Been seen as the go-to expert in your field and remember: you can never give too much away.