It’s widely accepted that about 5% of prospects are in market and ready to buy at any given time. Many B2B marketers fixate on that 5%, building campaigns to prompt immediate sales. This is understandable knowing the pressure marketing teams are under to deliver measurable ROI, but it’s also wildly shortsighted to ignore the 95% of prospects who will generate most of the company’s future revenue.
Email nurture campaigns are called so for a reason: because their whole purpose is to nurture prospects, by building credibility and trust over time so when they eventually join the ‘ready to buy’ five percent, they’ve got you near the top of your list.
This blog takes a look at how to build nurture campaigns that actually pay off — specifically the three kinds of email relationships you need to create.
The email nurture blindspot
Some marketing teams don’t do any email nurture at all. Others run webinars and send nurture sequences to attendees. Others might exhibit at a trade show and follow up with leads for a couple of weeks. Then they stop.
Usually, they’re trying to snag anyone in those post-event cohorts who might be in that coveted 5%. If they can’t convert after a few emails, they drop the thread.
But anyone who attends a webinar or stops by your booth or downloads your content should still be considered a warm prospect. They’re doing research — on their timeline, not yours. They’re not ready to buy… yet. Maybe they have bigger priorities or don’t have budget right now.
If you stop emailing them after a couple of contacts, they’re pretty likely to move on. So when they do enter their buying window six months from now, you’re not even in the consideration set.
The real opportunity with email nurture is to create ongoing engagements with anyone and everyone who’s shown interest in you, so that when they are eventually in market, you’re top of mind.
The real opportunity with email nurture is to create ongoing engagements… so that when they are eventually in market, you’re top of mind.
The three email relationships you need
Of course, email isn’t the only tactic you should be using to keep people engaged, but it’s an important one. And it’s not just about ongoing engagement: it’s also very much about targeted engagement, tailoring content based on people’s needs.
Your emails should connect back to how prospects engaged with you in the first place, factoring in where they’re at on their journey so you can keep moving them forward. If someone’s consumed detailed product content, sending them introductory content is a waste. Context matters.
Now that we have this key point addressed, let’s look at the three distinct email relationships you want to foster:
1. The Trusted Advisor
Prospects who are early in their thinking and not yet sure what solution they need want someone who helps them understand their problem better, not someone trying to sell them something.
That’s why monthly emails with industry insights, trend analyses and practical advice without product pitches work really well. The goal is to provide genuine value so when your prospects think about your space, they think of you first.
Trusted Advisor emails go to everyone who’s ever engaged with you. Webinar attendees from last year. Trade show leads from six months ago. Blog subscribers. Demo requests who didn’t convert. Just remove any leads that become customers or sales is actively engaged with right now.
Trusted Advisor emails keep you in the conversation without being pushy. They build credibility over time. And when someone from the 95% enters their buying window, you’re already the expert they trust.
Trusted Advisor emails keep you in the conversation without being pushy. They build credibility over time.
2. The Helpful Colleague
If someone is actively researching and comparing options, they will appreciate anyone who makes their job easier by pointing them to exactly the right information at exactly the right time.
Emails that are triggered by specific behaviors will be helpful at this stage. If someone downloads a white paper on a particular topic, send them a related case study three days later. If they attend a webinar, follow up with the slides and some additional resources.
Helpful Colleague emails are contextual and timely. They respond to what prospects are actively researching right now. These convert better than generic nurture emails because they’re relevant to where the buyer is in their journey.
Helpful Colleague emails are contextual and timely. They respond to what prospects are actively researching right now.
3. The Patient Partner
Many prospects who are farther along in the process but still not in a position to act want someone to stay in touch without pressuring them. That way, when they’re finally ready, they know who to call.
What works here are re-engagement emails for the silent 95%. No pressure. No aggressive CTAs. Just valuable content and an acknowledgement that time has passed.
Instead of, “We noticed you haven’t engaged in a while,” try something that adds value: “A few months ago, you downloaded our guide on [topic]. We thought you might be interested to hear how the technology landscape has changed since then.” Or, “Based on the webinar you attended last quarter, thought you’d find this new research relevant.”
Patient Partner emails respect the prospect’s timeline. They acknowledge that buying decisions take time. And they keep the door open without being annoying.
Patient Partner emails respect the prospect’s timeline. They acknowledge that buying decisions take time.
Measurement that matters
People have been declaring the death of email marketing for a decade. But it’s still one of the most effective ways of keeping in touch with an audience that wants to hear from you. While there are other, shinier marketing tactics available — and while nurturing, by definition, can be a slow burn — you can get better results for less money if you cultivate the three kinds of relationships outlined above.
To know that it’s working, make sure you’re measuring the right stuff. That means not just isolated open rates and click-through rates. Those are vanity metrics. What you really want to know is if your nurtured leads are converting and becoming part of the sales pipeline.
How many opportunities came from prospects who received your monthly Trusted Advisor emails versus those who didn’t? What’s the time-to-opportunity for engaged prospects versus cold outreach?
Connect your email engagement to revenue, not just activity. The goal isn’t to send more emails. It’s to send better emails that ultimately lead to revenue.
Connect your email engagement to revenue, not just activity.
Stop leaving money on the table
Marketers need to adjust their email nurture campaigns to focus on the 95% and not just the 5%. That quiet majority isn’t made up of lost leads. They’re future opportunities. But only if you stay in the conversation.
You don’t need a massive email program with dozens of sequences and complex automation. You need three distinct relationships built on providing value, being helpful, and respecting your buyer’s timeline.
Start with a monthly newsletter that goes to everyone who’s ever engaged with you. Build in triggered emails for specific actions. And every quarter, re-engage the silent majority with something useful.
The companies winning with email aren’t the ones sending the most. They’re the ones building the right relationships with the right prospects at the right time.
Your best leads are hiding in the 95%. Stop ignoring them.
Want to learn more about building integrated marketing campaigns that drive results? Check out our Get Found series or reach out to see how Zinc Marketing can help you build email programs that actually work.
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