Take Your Welcome Email Off Autopilot on Substack
And start building reader trust
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What Readers Had To Say
This is really, really good, Amanda. Excellent start to finish. - Jeannine Ouellette
I just learned a TON, it's amazing to see it broken down into simple examples like these… - Dr. Mariana Calleja Ross
So much of this is common sense, but us authors don’t think about it from the guest’s point of view. Need to go back to my own inbox and do some research on how my emails come across. - Tim Ebl
This is an amazingly thoughtful and comprehensive resource for planning or revising our welcome emails. Way to exceed expectations! - Tara Penry
These tips are gold. The templates are so generous and helpful. - Monika Kosmakova
Introducing yourself to new readers on Substack is more than just a formality; it’s the beginning of a relationship built on trust and mutual respect.
When someone subscribes to your newsletter, they've shown interest in your work (hooray!), but this is just the starting point. To turn that initial curiosity into a lasting connection, your welcome email (or welcoming sequence) must do more than just inform — it needs to engage and reassure.
Let’s build a Reader Persona for our welcome email frameworks
Before a reader joins your list, put yourself in their shoes. What have they likely encountered or learned about you before signing up through your first impressions?1 Readers might have seen a recommendation, read a captivating essay, encountered a viral Note, or heard you speak in an interview. Yet, their subscription doesn't mean they are fully invested in your work just yet. One of the best ways to establish trust, set expectations and inspire readers is in your welcome email.
This is a place to establish a personal connection and show a reader what they can expect to experience from your newsletter. While it's tempting to load this email with information and links, a focused approach is often more effective. (Focused emails are keeping readers’ needs top of mind!) To help us in our work today, let’s use these Reader Persona2 insights to set the stage for how we craft a trust-building welcome email:
Unfamiliar with You: They don't know who you are (and likely do not care… yet).
Unaware of Your Offerings: They don't know all the layers of what you create and offer (and likely do not care… yet).
Trust Formation Stage: They have just started to build trust in the newsletter experience you offer.
Expectation Validation: They are waiting to see if their expectations of you match the reality of your newsletter experience.
Evaluating Worth: They are assessing if signing up will be worth their time, energy and attention.
When someone signs up for your newsletter, this is an opportunity to demonstrate your value, to show you understand them and then use that foundation to build trust week after week.
As a benefit for my paid members3, I’m working on your behalf as an editorial strategist to:
Offer four different welcome email frameworks to consider.
Provide a list of do’s and don’ts in Substack welcome emails.
Explore some ways to test the efficacy of your welcome email (even if Substack doesn’t give us any data on them right now), plus a few ideas for what a “welcoming sequence” could look like.
OK, let’s get started!