Day 18: The Unconventional Welcome Email
Most welcome emails try to do 10 things—and convert no one. This one does two things extremely well, and it works like magic.
Welcome to Day 18 of the 30 Days of Growth. This is a pop-up newsletter put together by Chenell from Growth In Reverse. I've pulled 30 creators together to help give one short, actionable way you can either grow or improve your email list.
Tom Alder runs Strategy Breakdowns, a newsletter packed with high-signal case studies.
But his original welcome email? It was doing too much – links to socials, lead magnets, a guide to whitelist his emails, and more.
So he decided to experiment by deleting everything and starting fresh – with just one goal: get new subscribers to engage meaningfully right away.
🔍 How Tom Does It
Tom rewrote his welcome email, focusing on just two clear goals:
Get the subscriber to reply (to boost deliverability)
Get them to click (to show they were really interested in his content)
He stripped out all the fluff – no social links, no lead magnet pitch, no nudge to follow him on LinkedIn.
Instead, he added:
A smiley GIF of himself waving (“Hey from Sydney!” energy)
A clean animated wordmark for visual polish
One clear sentence about what to expect
One inline CTA:
“Click here to confirm your email and get tomorrow’s case study”
The magic part of this is the subtle nudge that if you want to get tomorrow’s case study, you need to click that link.
It looks and feels like a double opt-in confirmation, but just like Kristin’s button from the other day, everyone stays subscribed regardless.
The click just trains inboxes and readers to expect something valuable next.
📊 Results
47.4% total CTR on the welcome email
45.1% of clicks go to a full-length case study (value-first, not self-promo)
Prior version: 23% CTR, but split across multiple “asks”
Only 6% of clicks previously went to his top link (LinkedIn)
🧠 Why It Works
Creates early micro-commitments → Builds a click habit right away
Feels urgent and relevant → “Confirm your email” framing boosts perceived importance
Massive clarity = more action → One ask, one click, one great experience
Delivers real value immediately → A full case study, not just a thank-you
Warms inboxes fast → More replies and clicks = better deliverability for future sends
💡 How You Can Implement It
Cut the clutter. Focus your welcome email on one action, not ten. There are future emails where you can send more information.
Ask for a reply. It’s still the strongest signal for keeping your emails out of spam.
Add a single, high-value CTA. Link to a post, case study, or guide that shows your best work.
Frame the click like a confirmation. Use inline copy like: “Click here to confirm and get tomorrow’s email.”
💡 If you’re enjoying this series, would you mind taking a second to let me know? 🙂
🛠️ Tools
Nothing new 🙂 Whatever you already send emails with!
My favorite part of this is that it’s something you can test.
Some people have loads of content in their welcome email, some don’t. But different audiences respond to different things, so try this out and see how it works.
See you tomorrow,
Chenell
P.S. You should check out Tom’s newsletter, Strategy Breakdowns, to get more insightful breakdowns and case studies.
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Custom newsletter audits
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