A welcome email is the first email you send to a new subscriber or customer after they sign up. It's a great opportunity to make a good first impression, set expectations for future communication, and mention any actions you'd like the recipient to take, such as adding your email to their safe senders list.

Now, let's look at some ideas for creating effective welcome emails and share some of the best examples we found.

What is a welcome email

A welcome email is an automated email that's sent to a new email subscriber when they are added to your email list. It's an excellent opportunity to introduce your business and let the new sign-ups know what type of content they can expect from you. A welcome email can also contain elements of a marketing or sales email.

Why welcome emails matter:

• First impressions count: Welcome emails are one of the first interactions a contact has with your brand after subscribing or making a purchase. A well-crafted welcome email can leave a lasting impression and set the tone for future communication.
• They keep people engaged: Welcome emails allow you to connect with new subscribers, helping them get started, learn about products or services, and stay in touch with your brand. It's also a good place to ask them to add you to their contacts, which improves your chances of landing in the main inbox rather than spam. Asking them to reply works well too – replies signal to email providers that your messages are worth reading.
• They set expectations early: Welcome emails are a great way to inform new subscribers about what to expect. Let them know what type of content you'll be sending, such as updates, discount codes, and behind-the-scenes sneak peeks that will keep them engaged. Tell them how often you'll be in touch, too. People are less likely to disengage or mark you as spam when they know what to expect.

Ideas to make a great welcome email

There are no strict rules about what should or shouldn’t be in a welcome email. While many people prefer to stick to a simple welcome message, some do customise it according to their target audience and product.

Let's look at some welcome email ideas to find what works best for your email subscribers.

A simple welcome email

While common, a simple introductory welcome email is also a great welcome email especially for personal brand newsletter or businesses who like to keep things simple.

Though it’s a rather simple welcome email, it can still be interesting and attention-grabbing. Here are some ways to do it:

1. Using creative copy: Creative copy can transform a dull welcome email into something that delights readers. Be inventive with your words and include fun elements to make the email lively.
2. Illustrations: Creatives and images can easily transform a basic welcome email into something exciting. Though this can be challenging for non-designers, AI tools like Google’s Nano Banana make it as simple as writing a good email copy. All you need is creativity.

Welcome email with micro interactions

A welcome email with micro interactions is an enhanced version of a basic welcome email. It includes elements that encourage user interaction to strengthen the connection by prompting your subscriber to take action.

Here are a few example actions:

1. Ask them to add your email to their contact list (helps ensure your emails don't go to spam)
2. Pose a question to motivate them to reply to the welcome email (helps increase engagement)

A great example of this is an email from Maurizio Leo, the author of The Perfect Loaf. He keeps the message simple and asks a straightforward question about baking bread, which engages users as they are interested in the topic.

Welcome emails with micro-interactions work well for consumer SaaS products as well. Many apps are downloaded but never opened or used. By adding small interactions in these emails, you can get your subscribers to try your software right away.

This small nudge is important because it turns passive downloads into active users by helping them to get started.

Promotional welcome email

If you're writing a welcome email for an e-commerce or retail business, it's a good idea to treat it as a promotional activity.

Your email will focus on your products and include a discount code for new subscribers. This is a great way to encourage purchases and boost brand engagement.

Having a welcome email series

Sometimes, one welcome email isn't enough to share all the information without overwhelming a new subscriber. That's where a welcome email series is helpful.

A welcome series is a set of emails sent automatically over days or weeks. This helps you introduce your brand, products, and values step by step, building a connection with the subscriber over time.

Here's an easy structure for a welcome email series for SaaS:

• Email 1: Welcome
• Email 2: Highlight main feature
• Email 3: Introduce other features
• Email 4: Share case studies to build trust
• Email 5: Encourage action, like booking a meeting or starting a free trial

Best welcome email examples

There are thousands of great welcome emails to inspire you, but here are a few selected examples to show the variety of what a welcome email can be.

1. Dense Discovery – simple, effective welcome email

Dense Discovery's welcome email is a great example – simple, yet effective. It includes all the key elements of a good welcome email, such as introducing the newsletter and Kai (the author of Dense Discovery), and clearly stating what subscribers can expect and how often emails will be sent.

It's simple but highly effective, giving subscribers a clear overview of everything they need.

2. Marketing Examples – simple & elegant

Marketing Examples by Harry Dry is a marketing newsletter read by more than 130,000 marketers and founders.

Harry sends a simple welcome email with a clean copy, which primarily focuses on letting his subscribers know when to expect his next one. He’s also added micro-interactions, such as asking for a quick reply and requesting a LinkedIn connection, which helps build more personal and long-lasting connections.

3. Popsmith – getting users onboarded with a discount

Popsmith is a D2C brand selling quirky stovetop popcorn makers and ready-to-cook kits. Their email is a classic example of a welcome email that aims to sell the product by offering exclusive discounts.

The discount code “POPPERIOTTRSZXF4” is made to look like it’s a custom code, which makes the reader feel it’s a personalised offer. The code also has limited validity, which helps build urgency.

4. wildwonder – building one-on-one connection

wildwonder is also a D2C brand like Popsmith, and their welcome email also includes a discount code, but the twist here is the focus on building a relationship and achieving a sale at the same time.

The email starts with the product image along with a note from the founder, which helps wildwonder build a direct relationship with the subscriber. Apart from that, this welcome email does an impressive job of promoting their products and social channels.

5. Brilliant – explaining how to get started

Brilliant is an interactive learning platform for maths, data analysis, computer science, and programming. As it’s a digital platform, it uses its welcome email as an onboarding email to help people get started quickly.

The email also contains links to their mobile apps – this helps with product adoption.

6. Sundays – welcoming with a fun and quick benefit summary

Sundays is another D2C brand on this list, but its welcome email doesn’t include discount codes or coupons. Instead, it uses creative illustrations and clean messaging to discuss the brand and why it’s better than the closest alternative.

How to set up welcome emails using EmailOctopus

Now that you know what a welcome email should look like, you can set up your own for free using EmailOctopus.

Just go to the automations page in your EmailOctopus dashboard and click “Create.” Then, pick the list you want to use for the welcome email automation.

Next, choose an automation trigger. For a welcome email, select “Contact subscribed.” Click the plus icon to create your welcome email.

That's it. Click “Start,” and your welcome automation will be activated.

Conclusion

Welcome emails are probably the best way to start building a relationship with your new subscribers and customers. Not only do they drive engagement, but they also help build brand recognition in the long run. All you need to do is keep things simple and let your welcome email do its job.

If you’re looking for an affordable and easy-to-use email marketing tool, EmailOctopus is a great choice. It’s completely free for up to 2,500 subscribers and offers all the features you’ll need to get your email marketing journey started.