WordPress Autoresponder Campaigns - Nurture Your Leads More Effectively
Editorial Team
June 16, 2022
Are you looking for an effective way to capture leads and turn them into customers?
A Form on your WordPress website to capture leads and an autoresponder email campaign to nurture those leads could be just the right combination for you.
According to 99Firms, 80% of new leads never convert into customers, but companies that triumph in lead nurturing generate 50% more sales-ready leads at a 33% lower cost.
In this post, you will discover how to integrate your forms with a marketing automation platform, and then convert your leads into customers with effective lead-nurturing emails.
All of this without leaving the comfort and familiarity of WordPress!
Contents
An email autoresponder is a tool that allows you to interact and engage with a select group of subscribers, for example, subscribers of a given email list.
The subscribers who opted in via your embedded form can be compiled into a list, and this list will be used by your autoresponder tool to shoot your emails.
An autoresponder campaign can be triggered by any event, such as when somebody fills out a form, abandons their shopping cart, downloads your eBook, or even signs up for your upcoming webinar.
The autoresponders have two primary purposes:
Autoresponder emails are highly effective in bonding with your new subscribers, building stronger relationships, and converting them into customers.
An automated email sequence can not only add immense value to your lead nurturing process but also can help you generate 320% more revenue.
In fact, HubSpot - one of the most popular CRM platforms - claims to have generated $100,000 in 30 days with an automated follow-up email sequence.
Simply by setting up a WordPress autoresponder campaign!
Now we will show you how you can collect leads via an opt-in form and then trigger an autoresponder campaign to engage with them and sell more products.
1. Building the Form
You need an email list to feed to your autoresponder tool, this email subscribers will be the ones targeted through your autoresponder emails.
But before that, you need to build that email list.
FunnelKit Automations allows you to create beautiful forms with any of your favorite form builders - Elementor Forms, Gravity Forms, Ninja Forms, and more.
In our illustration, we are going to create a simple and quick form using WPForms.
On a side note, if you are looking to create a full-fledged opt-in page instead of an opt-in form, we have a complete guide for that too.
Let’s understand this with an example.
2. Configuring the Form
Let’s say you run a skincare business. Using WPForms, you can build a form and collect leads and their details.
Navigate to WPForms and click on Add New >> Blank Form
Now, using the drag-and-drop functionality, you can build a Form just like the one below.
With WPForms, you can simply drag the fields you need, and then drop them into your form.
For the skin types, you can use a dropdown field.
Once you are all set, Save the form; it will be reflected in the WPForms dashboard.
3. Embed the Form
WPForms allows you to either directly place this form on one of your existing website pages or create a new page.
You can also manually embed this form on a specific area of your website with the help of a shortcode.
Creating a lead capture form is the first step of a successful lead generation funnel, but the key lies in how you nurture those leads and turn them into customers.
For that, we have FunnelKit Automations - the most powerful WordPress marketing automation tool.
Now that you have created the form, you need to integrate it with FunnelKit Automations to trigger your autoresponder emails.
But first, you need to do a little additional step to map the user fields in the form you just created with the form integration you’re about to do in the FunnelKit Automations.
You can already find the common fields like name, email, phone, address, etc; but custom fields - like skin types for our form - need to be created anew.
Since our form field is a dropdown, we need to select the same while creating the custom field in FunnelKit Automations
1. Add a Custom Field
FunnelKit Automations already has basic fields for name, email, address, and more. But if you've added any custom field then you've got to create that in FunnelKit Automations.
Just as we added a custom field in our form, we will add a custom field for skin type in FunnelKit Automations as well.
In FunnelKit Automations's dashboard, go to Contacts and move to the Fields tab.
Click on Add New.
Adding this custom field in the Contacts will help you map it easily with your automation in the next step.
2. Select the Form
Now, go to FunnelKit Automations >> Tools >> Forms >> Add New
A pop-up will open up where you can assign a suitable name to the form.
3. Map the Form Fields with FunnelKit Automations Fields
Now, we will map the form fields with FunnelKit Automations fields.
This will sync the data the moment it is captured and store it accurately in the database.
Additionally, you can either automatically tag the lead the moment they fill our skin type form, or add them to a particular list, for example, your WordPress newsletter email list.
if you wish to trigger an automation that you’ve already set when the tag gets added then turn on the Trigger Automation toggle.
Once you map the fields, you are ready to set up your WordPress autoresponder.
If you want to know more about how to integrate WPForms with FunnelKit Automations, then watch this video.
4. Customize Lead Notifications
Enable Email Notifications
Turn the toggle on to customize the email copy and the settings of the autoresponder email.
Turn the toggle on and set up the name and email address, the email from which the subscriber will receive your email, and they will reply to it.
Once you do the basic settings, you can draft your email. You can use our sample copy as your starting point.
Use merge tags and link triggers to make your email more effective.
You can either write a simple text email or use the in-built drag-and-drop builder to craft an aesthetic email that will increase your click-through rate.
Note: If you want to send a double opt-in email - to filter out the spam and users who are not genuinely interested in your products - then you can use {{contact_confirmation_link}} tag in your email copy.
See below.
If this tag is not used, no double opt-in email will be sent.
You can use customize the email copy to welcome your new subscribers before you send them the email with product recommendations for their skin type.
You can also redirect users to a particular URL. It can be an ebook, a cheat sheet, or even your bestselling product's landing page.
This can be perfect for a static welcome email strategy, but not for a dynamic autoresponder.
Auto-confirm Contacts
If this toggle is on, the lead will directly be confirmed as a Subscriber.
However, this will lead to more spammy emails and customers who are not serious about your products.
In our skincare products example, we need to assign a distinct email sequence to each distinct option.
Email Sequence 'A' shall be sent when the user selects “Dry Skin” skin type, email sequence 'B' shall be sent when the user selects “Oily Skin” skin, and so on.
For this, a simple Lead Notification Email won’t do any good.
You need to create personalized email autoresponders using FunnelKit Automations’s conditional logic.
Let’s see how to do that.
1. Create a Workflow from Scratch
First, navigate to the FunnelKit Automations dashboard.
Now go to Campaigns >> Automation >> Add New
Select Start from Scratch, and add a suitable name.
Once you have done that, select the event that triggers the automation. In our case, we will be selecting Form Submits from the Forms tab.
You can now create a WordPress autoresponder for the contacts that come through the skin type form.
2. Sync the Form Fields
Click on the Event to configure your form settings.
In the settings, select the form that you’ve created and map the respective fields according to the form’s fields.
When the ‘Mark Contact as Subscribed' check is on, the lead will directly become your subscriber instead of them receiving a confirmation email.
3. Add Conditions
Now, using FunnelKit Automations’s intuitive and minimalist Canvas builder, you can build your workflow step by step.
Click on the (+) icon and insert a Condition.
Click on Add a New Condition, select WPForms, then click on Form Field, and Save it.
4. Configure Conditions
Now, you need to configure your first Condition.
Choose the correct form field - this is the field that will trigger your WordPress autoresponder - and input a value from the options you’ve given in the form.
Form field - What Is Your Skin Type?
Value - Dry Skin
The next conditions will depend on this condition.
If the user selects Dry Skin, then this condition will be proven true, and the email sequence set up for this condition will be triggered.
If the condition is true, add an Action to send the corresponding email.
You can draft the perfect email here. Using FunnelKit Automations’s drag-and-drop email builder, you can create beautiful emails.
With drag and drop email builder, you can add your products into content blocks, and make your email look power-packed and aesthetic at the same time.
You can create an email body like the one mentioned below.
However, if the user selects one of the other two options, the email sequence will not be triggered, and the automation will move to the next step.
5. Additional Conditions
If the user does not select Dry, you need to click (+) below the ‘No’ and add a Condition. Follow the same steps as shown above.
Condition >> Add New Condition >> WPForms >> Form Field
Select the relevant Form Field i.e. What Is Your Skin Type?
And now, put the value as Oily Skin. Save it.
Now, when this condition is met, you can add an Action - Messaging - Send Email.
This email and its contents (products recommended) will be drafted keeping Oily skin in mind.
Save the action.
This email sequence will be sent if the user selects "Oily skin".
If the user does not select Oily Skin, then you need to add another Condition below the No and select:
Condition >> Add New Condition >> WPForms >> Form Field
Select the relevant Form Field i.e. What Is Your Skin Type?
And now, put the value as Combination. Save it.
Add an Action, and set up your email with product recommendations for Combination skin type users.
This is what your final WordPress autoresponder email campaign will look like.
WordPress autoresponders can add immense value to your lead nurturing process and keep you in constant touch with your subscribers and customers.
You can set up a well-spaced email sequence with FunnelKit Automations’s automation builder. This will not only skyrocket your email statistics (open rates, click-through rates, etc) but also boost your sales.
Autoresponder emails can also be a sign of professionalism and an engaging brand.
When you actively engage with your leads right when they join your audience list, there is a high chance they will buy your products in the future.
Follow-up emails always boast the highest engagement rate and you are most likely to convert that new lead into a customer if your follow-up email is relevant and valuable to the user.
FunnelKit Automations is a powerful tool that can help you take your WordPress marketing automation game to the next level.
With its easy-to-use Canvas mode, you can create engaging autoresponders with ease.
You can add actions, condition-based steps, and create coupons without leaving the workflow. Create your autoresponder campaign just the way you want it.
You can import pre-built workflows with one click.
Or, you can build beautiful emails using the in-built drag-and-drop email builder.
And, this is just the tip of the iceberg.
There is so much more you can do with FunnelKit Automations.