🎙️ Opening & Housekeeping
[0:01] Vanessa: Everyone, Vanessa here — let me know if my audio and visual is working please. You should see my screen: “Campaign Success in ALP Partnership.” D. Davis hears me — that's fantastic. I've got Bethany here with me. I saw her check in. Bethany heads up our internal sales team, so she's here to hear everything I say to you guys, keep everything straight, and I might tap in with her because she is the beauty and the brains behind handling our email campaign that we're going to talk about today.
[0:38] Hey, everybody.
[0:39] Bethany: Hey, Bethany.
[0:42] Vanessa: So I want to start off by saying — oh my gosh — what an amazing past couple of weeks we've had. I am sorry I missed you guys last Thursday. We had an emergency client meeting come up and they pulled me in. But we have made incredible strides with some pretty big associations. So congratulations to Randy, to Scott Hall. The moves that we're making are very, very exciting, and I can't wait to share all the details and the success stories once we've got them.
📌 Wisconsin Tavern League Convention Update
[1:12] Vanessa: I do know that Tommy and Tim are flying out — right, Bethany — to participate in the Wisconsin Tavern League. It's not a trade show, but it's a convention. They're going to be boots on the ground helping the association set up new members — very, very exciting. We are — I'm a little nervous about them in the airport. I'm in the Atlanta Airport; had lines, people were lining up at midnight for 8 and 9 a.m. flights. So Godspeed to those better — okay, down now. So that's good news.
[1:54] Bethany: But yes, they are flying out on the 31st because the convention is the first and the second. So they will be there kind of just introducing everyone to our product, and then, like you said, kind of going over what we offer, who we are, that kind of stuff. And then they'll be directing them to me to move them through the next process. And hopefully maybe that gives us some more opportunities there for our agents as well.
[2:18] Vanessa: Absolutely fantastic. This is the chat, Elita — you're in the right place. So one of the things that we did for the Tavern League is we built a front-and-back one-page flyer, very tailored, very specific to their industry. And we added QR codes specifically tracked to connect with Bethany, with the connection that it came from this association, right? So because we have representatives there in person, able to have the sale right there and connect with Bethany, it's an augment to the standard agent tracking link. So while we are also obviously giving the association tracking link, because of these special circumstances, we were able to provide this additional support — which was direct access in a trackable fashion to Bethany — so we can onboard members.
[3:16] So if you have an association that is willing to take things to that level, just know that we will match that energy, right? And so I will be sharing the flyer that we created — the flyer design, front and back. It's very information-dense, it's not as graphical, but I'll be sharing what we did for them — not today. We have to — I want that to be packaged with the success story, right, after they're at the show together.
[3:47] Kenneth, they are going to the Wisconsin Tavern League. They're not throwing the convention — Tavern League is participating at the convention, and Tommy and Tim are going to be in their booth.
📌 Commission Payouts & Relay Setup
[4:01] Vanessa: All right. So if there are any questions, I just wanted to give a big shout-out to everybody that's working towards great success with the associations — congratulations. Can't wait to be rolling out those commission paydays, right? If you feel like you should have received a commission and you haven't gotten it yet, please check your email. Once a week I go through and I send a reminder to everybody we owe money to and say, “Hey, you've got to set up your account. You've got to do it — it's the only way we can pay you.” It's through a service called Relay — R-E-L-A-Y — and you have to provide a W-9 executed for tax purposes. If you're international, come let me know — we can work something out. But if you are in the US, we absolutely have to have that W-9 and your ACH set up for Relay. It's the only way we can pay you. So if you have any questions, please come to me at getsupport.biz — I will help you out.
📌 NALP Email Campaign Overview — Background & Premise
[4:57] Vanessa: So are there any questions before we get started? Because what I'm going to talk about today — I've kind of teased it for about a month while we were doing it. We started this project March 6 — Friday, March 6. We sent our first email that was focused on — oh, I lost it — I lost my picture, I'm sorry, not as visually stimulating. The email campaign that we sent was different from just sending out your agent referral URL. Okay, I want to preface this entire conversation by saying: if you just want to do cold email, I understand — this is an option. We do not ever want to gatekeep successful methodology, just like we do not require that you go attend a convention, we don't require that you do phone calls, we don't require that you do walk-ins, we don't require that you take this methodology of email and use it. But it is working very, very well for us. So I want to share it with you and you can choose to use it or not. Totally up to you. The content of this email will be published in the Small Business Advantage members area, and we are going to review word-for-word the emails that we sent and review the results today.
[6:28] The difference between just sending out your agent landing page and this is that these emails do not have a link, and the call to action is a reply. So it is to start a conversation via email, not just sending a link. So I just want to preface that so you know going in, but that's the difference.
[6:51] All right, so the premise of the campaign — we started with a strategic partnership. Illusional, the business, partnered with an organization called the National Association of Landscape Professionals. We partnered with them — they're an association. They gave us direct authorized access to their entire member mailing list. We've discussed that concept in the past, right? So they are providing us a highly qualified audience. We performed standard data hygiene, which means — while they did give us their member list — we wanted to protect our deliverability because they had not opted into our system. We did have permission from NALP to partner with them and represent that we had partnered with them, but these contacts still hadn't opted into us. So we don't want to burn our domain, get blacklisted, etc., so we took their list of members and we ran it through a tool called My Email Verifier, which checks for hard bounces, full email accounts, spam traps, etc., and we just took those out. Not worth the risk for what we were doing, right?
[8:00] Then we crafted a three-touch email campaign that went out to these members with the sole goal of having them hit reply and type us back a message.
📌 Campaign Results — Stunning Numbers
[8:16] Vanessa: I want to tell you these numbers are stunning. If you have never sent a cold email campaign, trust me when I tell you — this is gold level. If you have sent a cold email, then you know what we're talking about, right? So we started with 998 contacts, and after they were cleaned, we had 741 clean emails. So the campaign was sent starting on a Friday, March 6, to 741 people. Okay, positive responses. Now, when you're talking email, a lot of times mentally we're thinking of opens and clicks — we got clicks, let me take that one step further for you. Not only did they open, not only did they read — they hit reply and then used their physical hands to type a message back, and it came back to us.
[9:13] So direct replies requesting more information or a meeting — that is a 7.7% response rate, significantly outperforming standard cold outreach benchmarks. Right. So a standard run-of-the-mill cold email would have sent the email with a link to a page where they could either buy or set an appointment, right? Or opt in and get triggered for Bethany and the inside sales team to make a phone call, right? What we're talking about with a reply is a live fish on the hook.
📌 Step 1 — The Hook (Email One)
[9:51] Vanessa: So step one was the hook. This was the first email — word for word. This is word for word what we said. There was no personalization, no customization — just, “Hey, we put together an exclusive benefits package for NALP members.” Let me stop right there and say: instant authority. These people pay a premium to be a part of this group. They pay attention when you evoke, invoke the name. Okay, this matters to me, right? I'm spending my money to hear from people. Okay, so we're borrowing that authority — Tommy talks about that a lot. We've put together an exclusive benefits package for NALP members. Okay, let's jump into it: telehealth for the whole family, identity protection, accident coverage included. Okay, we're hitting three high-value benefits. And then we say, “Dozens of members are already using it — want me to send over the details?”
[10:52] Okay, now the reason we're able to say this — we have the early adopter program, right? The first step when we work with associations is to have them choose 10 to 20 high-ranking officials in the association and enroll them, right? Because the best endorsement is using it yourself, right? We want to build that social proof. “Do you want me to send over the details?” Name, benefits advisor, landscape industry specialist. That's it. Simple, direct to the point.
[11:22] Mentions the members immediately. “Dozens of members” creates FOMO and validates the offer — fear of missing out. People are already doing it, you don't want to be left out, right? Quickly lists high-impact, easy-to-understand benefits. We don't get into the weeds. We don't talk about savings plans and business versus health plans and virtual private networks — no. Boom, boom, boom — things you know what they are, you know they're a benefit, you know they're great. High level, right? And low-friction call to action. There's no link. It doesn't feel like spam. It doesn't really feel like I'm trying to sell you anything. Do you just want more information about what we put together for members of this group?
[12:11] Okay, so the cadence of this email campaign was: we sent on Friday, we skipped the weekend, and the next email was sent on Monday. If you started on Monday, the cadence will be Monday, Wednesday, Friday — just depends. But we do want a break in between, and then we're coming back, right? So we want to get all of the emails that we can get initially. Now, if they reply to the first email, don't send them the second — you don't need to. You have branched off into a private conversation if they sent you an email, right? So you don't want to follow up — then you'll look like you don't know what you're doing. So keep track of who replies; don't send them the second email. If you have a CRM or an automated email service, there are ways to do this automatically. If you are sending these emails by hand, by yourself, or with a mail merge process, make sure you remove the people who reply.
[13:10] And Bethany will tell you — the most replies we got were from that first email. So be vigilant.
📌 Step 2 — The Follow-Up (Email Two)
[13:17] Vanessa: Okay, so step two is the follow-up. The strategic intent: we want to re-engage. Maybe you caught their attention with the first email but, you know, “Oh, I'll reply later,” “Oh, that's interesting.” Okay, this is following up. And maybe they didn't see it at all, right? People are busy, emails get filtered out, emails get ignored. So this could be the first time they see you or the second. So prospects who missed the first email — we want to expand on the value. We specifically mentioned coverage that we didn't talk about in the first email, because going back to — maybe they saw the first email, it didn't work. If they didn't reply to the first email, what we said wasn't enough, it wasn't the right thing. So with the second email, we have another opportunity to just say something different. Maybe that's what grabs them. So here we expand it to mentioning the family and the zero-dollar co-pays — again, huge value but very easy to understand. Then we're reinforcing the exclusivity: “Built exclusively for NALP members.” It's kind of — it was built exclusively for Illusional and Illusional is partnering with the NALP, but it's an effective sentence that is not untrue. How about that?
[14:35] And so the email copy is just circling back — okay, this is reminding them that we've had contact before, this is not my first outreach. “The benefits package covers employees, spouses, and up to six kids.” Okay, so there's a little bit of intrigue there. You're following up — did I miss something? Did I forget something? The benefits package — six kids, right? So it's interesting and it's not laying everything out for them, so it's like, well, recycled run-of-the-mill garbage, right? So you're like, “Oh, the benefits package — what are we talking about? Spouses and up to six kids, no co-pays, identity theft protection, the works.” Okay, so that implies there's more. “Built exclusively for NALP members and dozens already on it” — again, that exclusivity. “Happy to share more if you're curious.” Low pressure, kind of a take-it-or-leave-it blasé attitude. When you start sounding like you're desperate for someone to want what you have, it diminishes the value of what you have. This is very much like, “Hey, we're doing this, and if you're interested, let me know, right? No pressure.”
[15:41] Alita asks: did you track which of the emails generated the most replies? The first email — the interest and response was immediate. Most of our replies came from the very first email. Now I will never, ever, ever endorse a one-blast, one-and-done email campaign — never — because we did catch stragglers with the subsequent emails. But the good news is with this approach, it was very highly effective on the first email. So you don't have to wait, you know — I hope the next one does well like the first one did best for us. But we definitely did follow through with the rest of the campaign because every single email did get some replies. I'll say that.
📌 Step 3 — The Pivot (Email Three)
[16:10] Vanessa: All right, so step three — the pivot. This is the last email we sent, and it was simple. No pressure, no scarcity, no threats of “you can never have this again.” We simply said, “I might not be reaching the right person for this — do you know who handles benefit decisions for your team?” This allows for a handoff. It asks a different question while still addressing the benefits and the fact that we've talked before. It serves as a trigger to ask, “What are you talking about?” Any response is a good response.
[17:05] We did have some that were, “Stop emailing me, I'm not interested” — like, that does happen. Okay, but if it's, “For what? What do you need? What are we doing?” And it lowers the defenses. This is still psychology — by asking for help rather than making a direct pitch. Okay, so there are psychological studies that show the best way to ingratiate yourself and make a friend and forge a relationship is to ask for help, ask for a favor, allow them to be of service to you. There's a lot of science behind it, but allowing someone to see a vulnerability and provide support or assistance — it builds relationships. So it's really taking it down to bare bones, but that's the psychology behind this email.
[18:02] Right, we want to find the authority. Maybe you are talking to the wrong person. Maybe the NALP — National Association of Landscape Professionals — member list had a secretary's email listed instead of the president of the company. Maybe you truly are sending to the wrong person and this person just wants to get it off their desk. Maybe they forward the email to the right person. Maybe they reply back and say, “You're supposed to be talking to Julie.” It's still a reply. You have cracked the seal. So — short and direct, extremely brief, making it easy to read on mobile, quick to reply. All of these emails were definitely — the vision was, especially since we're working with landscapers, these are in-their-truck mobile people, right? We wanted it to look great on their phone and be easy to manage. Again, no click link, no calendar setup — just hit a reply and let's get to work.
📌 Q&A — Done-For-You Email & Small Batch System
[18:57] Vanessa: Let me jump into some questions. Is your DFY service set up so that the three-email sequence terminates once there is a response to one of the emails? Brian, I believe you're talking about the Small Batch System done-for-you service — that is a different product and a different service. You can set up campaigns to trigger with a reply, but if you'll send in a ticket or let's talk about it in that training on Monday, we can dig into it. Because remember, the Small Business Advantage — we don't have a done-for-you service for sending emails here.
[19:42] If everybody here — if you're not aware of the Small Batch System service — it is a service that Brian offers that is for cold email marketing. It's a great partnership. If you're interested in that, we can take it offline. I can help you. But that's what Brian was asking about, and I just didn't want to ignore Brian.
📌 Association Campaign Clarification & Branching Referrals
[20:02] Just for clarity — this is for recruiting members after their association has already signed up on our program, correct, Donald? Yes. That is the case here. We had partnered with the association and we got their list. But we've covered the emails. Now I want to tell you about — I'm really glad you asked this question because let me fork off from that real quick if you don't mind.
[20:16] Bethany: Before you fork off, I want — Donald, I had a call with someone from the email campaign, and he's actually discussing with us the possibility of bringing on an association from his church. So just keep in mind that every single person that you've talked to may know someone else, so there's always that branch. He's looking at getting the product personally, but also, you know, we might be able to get another association from that.
[20:53] Vanessa: Bethany, that's amazing. That is so cool. Yeah, definitely good information to have. And like, we don't always think about it that way. We look at it like a tunnel, but you need to look at it more like a tree.
[21:03] Bethany: Oh, I love it.
[21:04] Vanessa: No, I had no idea. That's — congratulations. Very cool.
📌 Using This Email Approach WITHOUT an Association
[21:08] Vanessa: Okay, so what I was going to say is — you are not limited to using this approach if you don't have an association partner yet. Let me tell you how to use this today. Go on Facebook, find a group of professionals. Okay, you can craft your message. Let me jump back. Let's read this again: “We put together an exclusive benefits package for members.” We did not say that we had partnered with that group. Okay? You can use this approach with a lot of the same messaging to any group, whether you have signed up their association or not. You are just using publicly available information. They are members of a Facebook group or any group that you find, that you source, and you are saying, “We've got a benefits package for people in this group.” You see — you're still borrowing authority, you're still identifying yourself as a team member, right?
[22:13] I recommend it — join the group, right? Our sources for lists — like the lists that we give you — are not group-specific, right? So you're not limited to marketing to lists that can be provided through SBA. So if you have a source for any kind of group, if you create that list yourself, if you are going into a Facebook group and sending these messages to people on Facebook through DMs — “Hey, I'm a member of this group with you, and we've put together this offer” — non-obtrusive, non-salesy. Remember, you're not limited to email and you're not limited to lists that we give you. Like, let's get creative here. So do not feel like the only way you can use this approach is if you've already, quote, landed an association. It's fantastic if you have and they're giving you their member list and all of that partnership happens and they're endorsing you directly and you're backing them up. All of that is fantastic. We've talked about it ad nauseam. This is a new way to market to a cold list with or without the endorsement of the actual group. Does that make sense?
[23:57] See, would these types of emails work if I ordered a list from you for XYZ-type businesses that are not within an association that is signed up? Kenneth — perfect follow-up question. Absolutely, yes, yes, yes, yes. Instead of saying, “We've put together an exclusive benefits package for NALP members,” find another way to identify them as a group, right? “I'm working with plumbers in the metro Atlanta area.” “I have a special package I've developed for roofers in southeast Boston.” Find a way to personalize it just to give the impression of — or to convey, to communicate — that this is not a blast-and-spray-and-pray, blast-and-run-away mass email. “I want to work with you. I have identified you as someone I want to work with. I put this together for you.” The personalization is the difference-maker, right? And as you can see, we had great results with it.
📌 Live Response Examples from the NALP Campaign
[25:06] Vanessa: The responses are pretty quick, almost instantaneous, and this is what they are. These are actual screenshots Bethany gave me from the replies that she got, because again, this was an internal campaign, so the replies came to us. If you are sending these emails, the replies will go to you — that's a very important differentiator. Okay, you have to be aware of that. This was an internal communication, so when I say Bethany got these emails, it's because we sent the emails, right?
[25:33] So the very first response — March 6, Friday, March 6, when we started sending the emails at about 11 a.m. — we got this one at 12 p.m. Okay, that was local time. It's a different time zone. We started our campaign, we started sending it at 11 a.m. Maybe she got it in the central time zone — oh, that's p.m., okay, that makes sense. All right. But anyway, it's real. And all she said was, “Yeah, please send me more details.” Oh, she wrote it back to Elena — that was the sender account — and then Greg Strong was the owner. So Greg responded, “Elena, please send me more details.” Right.
[26:11] This one was 7:27 p.m. the same day — Friday, March 6 — “Send info so we can review it. Thanks, John Ryman, President/General Manager.” Okay. March 6, 1 a.m. — that's definitely a time zone weirdness. “Please do. Eric from Trinity Lawn & Landscape.” Friday, March 6, same day, 8:19 p.m. It looks like these folks are getting responses after work hours. That's interesting. That's a good mental note.
[26:44] “I'm interested in what you have to offer for myself and my team of 12 to 15.” How interested does that person sound? Not just “yes” — but I'm proactively giving you details about myself. Right? And my team. And 12 to 15 members — not a bad land, right? So quick wins. Even more: “Yes, please send over details.” “Yes, please do.” Etc., etc., etc.
📌 Why It Worked — Key Takeaways
[27:12] Vanessa: So why did it work? We leveraged the NALP name, which provided instant credibility. Again, you can borrow this credibility even if you're not endorsed and not given a list, right? Bypassing the skepticism associated with cold outreach — this works on different levels for any kind of personalization you are able to provide, right? Base level: merge the name of their business in the subject line, mention the city, absolutely talk about the industry. Those are the basics, but don't do that at least. If you are able to identify a group that they are a part of, definitely tap into that power.
[27:55] Concise copy — short, punchy, easy to read on mobile. These are guys and ladies in their vehicles usually, after work, scrolling. Respect the busy schedule of business owners. Don't send them a wall of text. Nobody's gonna read it, right? Get their information, earn the opportunity to talk about the benefits. And clear value — there is such abundant, easy-to-understand value in this. We all know how deep the benefits go, but it's almost like drinking from a fire hose. It's so good. We want to tell everything all at once, right? Oh, but they need to know — oh, oh, oh — let's hook them first and then give it to them at a pace they can consume it so that they can truly appreciate the value. What hits them first? Telehealth, ID protection, zero co-pays, covering the family. You saw the email campaign — that's exactly what we said. Easy to understand, highly relevant to their needs.
📌 Pivoting When They Say “We Already Have Healthcare”
[29:01] Vanessa: Thank you, Alina and Donald, appreciate it. Brian Wade says, “That branched referral is cool when it happens” — yes it is. The more you can build a relationship and rapport with your customers, with your referrals, and they trust you — yeah, of course they're going to want to share it.
[29:22] Tommy loves to say, you know, we're in the business of helping people. Like, our mission here is to give this kind of support to people who need it, right? If someone is working for a big corporation and they have this amazing insurance that includes telehealth and includes all these benefits and blah, blah, blah — like, they're taken care of. But there's a massive number of Americans who need this. This is not like we're selling a luxury item. This is something that is absolutely beneficial and can immediately improve quality of life for individuals. And when you are able to forge that relationship and give them this benefit, people who love people — they want to share that. And it can benefit them, obviously, with the financial aspect of partnering with you.
[30:21] Can you please give the example again of what you would say to a cold list with no link to an association in place of NALP? Kenneth, so you mean like if you just were able to obtain an email list of people in a Facebook group, right? I actually would love to do that. So what I'm going to do is I'm going to show you how this email was created. I'm going to jump into a free AI tool called Gemini. It comes free with Google.
[30:56] I'm just going to ask — I've encountered a lot of people that tell me, “We already have healthcare benefits.” And that's a great opportunity for you to pivot to the other benefits that we offer and focus on the legal services, focused on the data protection, all of those different things, because it's a whole package. So I think instead of focusing solely on telehealth when they're like, “Oh, we already have benefits” — that's not the end of the conversation. So keep it going if you can, you know, try to pivot to “Well, we offer all of this,” and I've noticed that tends to get a little more traction.
[31:37] Bethany: Absolutely. When we — and I hope everybody has seen the January 29th training with Deb — she went through, she's with our vendor partner. And she went through every single benefit. And honestly, telehealth was a spec on the whole call. The things she showed us are very frequently not explored because telehealth does seem to be such a hook. She actually gave us data on, as the provider as a whole, legal services are actually the most used — more than telehealth — with the greatest return on investment for the business owner, right? If you think about it, a lawyer can charge $500 to $1,000 an hour for the services that are included for $40 a month when that business uses the lawyer through this service.
[32:36] Vanessa: So yes, Bethany is absolutely right.
📌 Live AI Workshop — Building a 3-Email Campaign with Gemini
[32:56] Vanessa: Okay, so everybody sees on my screen. Okay, so I'm in Gemini, and I'm going to write a prompt to give me an email campaign. So imagine that you are starting completely from scratch. Let's work together — think of it as a working session. Let's build a brand-new campaign, okay. I want to write a three-email campaign to — what kind of industry? Somebody give me an industry — we're going to treat this like Mad Libs.
[33:54] Okay, we're going to go with Kenneth — Kenneth said roofers. Business owners who run roofing companies. Okay, about my ability to share with them an exclusive benefits package for themselves and their employees. The benefits are detailed at Illusional.com. I want to keep the emails under five sentences. I want the call to action to be for them to reply to me. I want to emphasize value and the core most impactful benefits. I want subject lines for each email. And then let's talk about tone — do not sound salesy. Be personal and personable with a business-casual tone.
[36:41] All right, so this is my prompt. And then I just scooted down and pasted in — I just copy-and-pasted the benefits comparison. Can you share this prompt? Absolutely, Randy. I'm going to put together all of this document — it'll be in the SBA membership area along with this video, for sure.
[37:00] All right, so let's see. This is a free option, so fast and free. I haven't upgraded, so everybody without spending a penny can get exactly this.
📌 Reviewing Campaign V1 — AI's First Draft
[38:21] Vanessa: So let's look and see what they've got. So running a roofing crew is tough work — high risk, long hours, and constant motion. These emails are designed to respect a business owner's time while offering peace of mind for their team. Okay, so it feels like Gemini gets it right. So email one is the peace-of-mind intro — “Protecting your crew and your bottom line.” Okay, what I like is that they're already speaking the language of a roofer, right? “Crew” and “bottom line” — business owner, right? So: “Between job safety and managing a crew, I know you've got a lot on your plate. I'm working with roofing owners to provide a unique benefits package that includes telehealth for the whole family, identity protection, and accident coverage — just $39.95. It's a simple way to look after your team without the massive overhead of traditional insurance.” Did I say it was $39.95? Oh, it did — okay. The comparison chart did include it. I didn't know if it went and did deep research on Illusional.com, but it took what I told it, and that's great. “Drop me a reply if you'd like to see how we can set this up for your crew.”
[39:23] Wait, that was email two — I jumped ahead, sorry. Focus on value. So the second follow-up — remember, wait a day or over the weekend and hit them. Let's call this the Wednesday email: “A quick way to boost employee retention.” Interesting — we've talked a lot about retention, and I didn't mention that, but Gemini thought of it. “Finding reliable roofers is harder than ever, so I wanted to share a benefit that actually helps keep them around. For less than 40 bucks a month, your employees get full family telehealth and $10K in accident coverage, which is a huge weight off their shoulders. It also includes identity theft protection to keep their personal lives secure while they're on the clock. Drop me a reply.” Okay.
[40:04] And owner-specific benefits: “I want to follow up because our business plan also includes specific perks for you, the owner, like cell phone protection and legal data breach solutions. You get the same family telehealth and accident coverage as your team, but with added security for your business operations. It's a comprehensive safety net that fits a roofer's budget. If you're interested, reply.” Okay.
[40:24] So this is my take. You saw it happen live. This is my impression: these are fine emails. I think they're too wordy. I think they're too much. It doesn't fit with the approach we took on the campaign that we know worked.
📌 Fine-Tuning — Campaign V2 (Simplified)
[40:51] Vanessa: So what I'm going to do is I'm going to share this with you in that document. I'm going to copy this — Campaign V1, no adjustments. But let's go back and see if we can fine-tune, right? So let's see — this is a good start, but it's too wordy. Simplify the messaging by 50%, all right? Let's make it, you know, “explain it like you're talking to a five-year-old” kind of stuff. Don't get too technical or too detailed about the benefits. Keep it light and try to sound casual.
[42:03] Okay, so let's do away with the sales speak and get right to the point. Okay, so we had asked it to not be salesy but now we're reiterating that in fine-tuning. If you ever hear me talk about AI, I think AI can write 80% of it but humans have to take that 20%, and that doesn't mean rewriting — it does mean fine-tuning those prompts, right?
[42:56] Vanessa: “Quick question about your crew. I'm helping roofing owners set up a simple benefits package that covers the basics — family telehealth, accident coverage, and identity protection. It's only 40 bucks a month and covers the employee's entire family. Think your team would find value in that? Let me know if you want the details.” I already like this a thousand times better. Who's with me? Give me a 13 if you think this is infinitely better than the first.
[43:18] Thank you, Alita — first to bat, agree with me. I appreciate you. Yep, all right, thanks, Donald. Right. But like, it just took one adjustment. This is how easy it is.
[43:26] Okay, so the value prop — this is the follow-up email: “Keeping the guys happy.” Maybe, maybe the gals — okay, Gemini, I see you, we can always make adjustments. “Finding good help is tough, so I wanted to share a low-cost way to look after your crew. For less than the cost of a tank of gas — especially these days — they get 24/7 doctor access and injury coverage for their whole house. Shoot me a reply if you're open to a quick chat about it.” I like it. I like it.
[44:06] And the owner perks: “One less thing to worry about — just a final follow-up on those benefits. The plan also includes cell phone protection and legal help specifically for you as the owner. It's a solid safety net for both your personal life and the business. If you're interested in checking it out, please let me know.”
[44:20] Now, I will say — I'm realizing we're not doing the pivot where we're asking for authority, right? So let's try that with another adjustment.
📌 Fine-Tuning — Campaign V3 (Adding the Pivot)
[44:31] Vanessa: Last email should include a pivot to find the correct contact, such as — how do we word it — “I might not be reaching the right person for this. Do you know who handles benefits for your business?”
[46:18] Vanessa: All right, so heads up. Okay, so this didn't change — “I'm helping roofing owners set up a benefits package that covers the basics.” And right here, where it says “roofing owners” — of course, if you are sourcing this to a group, however you obtained that group's contact information, you can further specify. This is how we customize it to roofers: “Roofing owners in Metro Atlanta” — that's another way to add further customization.
[46:48] Okay, and the follow-up — “Finding good help is tough” — so we're tapping into that retention aspect that we've been talking about. And then it did update the pivot: “One last thing to worry about, just a final follow-up on those benefits. So reminding them what we're talking about. The plan also includes cell phone protection and legal help specifically for you, the owner.” Okay, so we are still tapping the owner-benefit side. Flip of it: “And I might not be reaching the right person for this — do you know who handles benefits for your business?” Exactly what I asked them to say.
📌 Fine-Tuning — Campaign V4 (Adding Group, Association & Location)
[47:39] Vanessa: Let's say — update all emails to reflect that I am working with the NARP, National Association of Roofing Professionals, and targeting Georgia roofers through NARP. It makes the outreach feel more like a member benefit than a random pitch. That's how easy it is. Now you don't have to take this formatting with the bold, right? And I think Gemini is showing us the customizations that it's making.
[48:53] So really, what you can do is once you find an email campaign that you like, you can just go in and customize — making these changes, right? Adjustment 3: Adding Group, Association, Identity, and Location — and we're going to call that V4.
[49:36] Okay, “NARP specifically here in Georgia to help roofing owners set up a simple benefits package.” Okay. Second: “We're focusing on Georgia roofing crews through NARP, and wanted to share.” Just a final follow-up on these NARP benefits — the plan also includes, etc. Subtle but effective.
📌 Document Recap & Sharing the Resource
[50:00] Vanessa: All right, so let me jump over here. This is the document I put together for you. So: Prompt → Campaign V1. Adjustment One → Campaign V2. Pivot → Campaign V3. Adjustment Three → Campaign V4.
[50:47] Any questions about whipping up a three-touch email campaign that drives replies to you? Okay, Randy says — sorry for my confusion — and once an association is on board, does Illusional do email and/or phone call outreach to their members if the association agrees? Randy, absolutely yes. Yes, we do. This is the kind of thing that we did for the NALP that we would do for associations once they give us the members list. This is a way for you to generate businesses through going through a group — per chance, maybe if they haven't signed on yet and haven't shared their member list, like we talked about. This is a way for you to use cold email outreach to start conversations with individuals.
[51:37] Alita, I'm very glad you think this overview is helpful. I'm very, very glad. Thanks, Guy. And Randy, you're very, very welcome.
📌 How to Send These Emails — Tools & Cold Email Course
[51:43] Vanessa: Kenneth asks, “How are you physically sending these emails? What system? How many emails can you safely send per day if you are new?” Kenneth, all of these questions are fantastic. As Small Business Advantage is not a cold emailing course, I can't really teach it here. It is — if you've never sent a cold email — an entire process. Brian has a course and membership that teaches you how to do it and has a done-for-you aspect for sending the emails. We had a couple of questions about it at the top of the hour. As a Small Business Advantage member, I can give you the course and offer you a discounted done-for-you process to help you do this marketing. Just send me a ticket so I can get you the information, right? It's called the Small Batch System. Like I said, I can give you the course — it teaches you everything that you're asking. But it's not really something I can just bop-bop go over. But the crux of the answer is: we use the Small Batch System methodology on a Go High Level email CRM. But there's a lot of nuance to cold email that — to help you be really successful — I would like to give you that course so that you know what you're doing, right, and not just send you out into the wild and say, “Yeah, send 10,000 emails, nothing bad will happen” — because that's a lie. That domain sender will get blacklisted if you try sending 10,000 cold emails in a day, for sure. And that applies to everybody. If you are brand new to cold email marketing and you want that help, Small Business Advantage members — I'll give you that course for free. Just send me a ticket and I can get you set up.
📌 Closing Remarks, Homework & Next Week's Preview
[53:35] Vanessa: Okay, everybody, that's our hour. Thank you for hanging out with me at this interactive workshop. Bethany, thank you for your help and for telling us about that awesome tree-branching association referral situation. That's so awesome to hear about.
[53:51] Let me share this link — anyone with the link can view. I'm copying the link. Okay, so in your chat right now is this document. Feel free to make a copy for yourself and then you can make any edits that you want. But this is a view-only document so that nobody can edit the master, right? And I will share this link with the replay of this video in your members area.
[54:15] Kenneth is asking, “Do you think this would work with cold associations or work better with businesses?” So Kenneth, you're talking about sending emails to associations to get them to pay attention to you — sharing the opportunity with them. Absolutely. The beauty of this, of email, is that you can use it to initiate a conversation with anyone about anything, right? When you tailor it to direct messaging, obvious value, a more personal approach, and simplifying to just “give me a reply” — everything else is: “I'm working with associations to help deliver benefits to their members in a way that serves to generate non-dues revenue for the association. Can I send you more information?”
[55:33] And you know what? That's what we'll do next week. We're going to do the exact same thing — we're going to workshop emailing associations. How about that? And homework: everybody jumps on a free Gemini, a free Claude, a free Manus — whatever free AI, if you don't already have one — try these prompts but play with it. Try different industries, try different adjustments, see what you can create in a simple three-email campaign, no more than five sentences, with a prompt to reply to you. Okay, that's your homework and we can talk about it in the Facebook group. I would love to see the campaigns you come up with.
[56:11] And then what we will work on next week is crafting a series of emails that we will share — the exact same way we did this — for contacting different kinds of associations: chambers, professionals, contractors, realtors, right? We'll put together a list and we will make the emails together. What do we think? Awesome.
[56:32] All right, thank you again, Bethany. I'm not sure if you can still hear me. I hope you have a great day. I want to wish everybody a fantastic week, weekend, etc. We'll see you next week. I look forward to working with you again on the emails, and I'm going to get this posted for you. Thank you so, so much, everybody. Bye-bye.
[56:49] Bethany: Thanks for having us today. Y'all have a good day. Oh, there you are. Hey, okay. Bye, Bethany. Bye, y'all.
From Cold List to Live Replies: The 3-Touch Email Campaign That Got a 7.7% Response Rate
Live Webinar with Vanessa Roberts
(Raw transcription; not proofed for grammar or spelling.)
Click here for Google Doc of the transcript.
🎙️ Opening & Housekeeping
[0:01] Vanessa: Everyone, Vanessa here — let me know if my audio and visual is working please. You should see my screen: “Campaign Success in ALP Partnership.” D. Davis hears me — that's fantastic. I've got Bethany here with me. I saw her check in. Bethany heads up our internal sales team, so she's here to hear everything I say to you guys, keep everything straight, and I might tap in with her because she is the beauty and the brains behind handling our email campaign that we're going to talk about today.
[0:38] Hey, everybody.
[0:39] Bethany: Hey, Bethany.
[0:42] Vanessa: So I want to start off by saying — oh my gosh — what an amazing past couple of weeks we've had. I am sorry I missed you guys last Thursday. We had an emergency client meeting come up and they pulled me in. But we have made incredible strides with some pretty big associations. So congratulations to Randy, to Scott Hall. The moves that we're making are very, very exciting, and I can't wait to share all the details and the success stories once we've got them.
📌 Wisconsin Tavern League Convention Update
[1:12] Vanessa: I do know that Tommy and Tim are flying out — right, Bethany — to participate in the Wisconsin Tavern League. It's not a trade show, but it's a convention. They're going to be boots on the ground helping the association set up new members — very, very exciting. We are — I'm a little nervous about them in the airport. I'm in the Atlanta Airport; had lines, people were lining up at midnight for 8 and 9 a.m. flights. So Godspeed to those better — okay, down now. So that's good news.
[1:54] Bethany: But yes, they are flying out on the 31st because the convention is the first and the second. So they will be there kind of just introducing everyone to our product, and then, like you said, kind of going over what we offer, who we are, that kind of stuff. And then they'll be directing them to me to move them through the next process. And hopefully maybe that gives us some more opportunities there for our agents as well.
[2:18] Vanessa: Absolutely fantastic. This is the chat, Elita — you're in the right place. So one of the things that we did for the Tavern League is we built a front-and-back one-page flyer, very tailored, very specific to their industry. And we added QR codes specifically tracked to connect with Bethany, with the connection that it came from this association, right? So because we have representatives there in person, able to have the sale right there and connect with Bethany, it's an augment to the standard agent tracking link. So while we are also obviously giving the association tracking link, because of these special circumstances, we were able to provide this additional support — which was direct access in a trackable fashion to Bethany — so we can onboard members.
[3:16] So if you have an association that is willing to take things to that level, just know that we will match that energy, right? And so I will be sharing the flyer that we created — the flyer design, front and back. It's very information-dense, it's not as graphical, but I'll be sharing what we did for them — not today. We have to — I want that to be packaged with the success story, right, after they're at the show together.
[3:47] Kenneth, they are going to the Wisconsin Tavern League. They're not throwing the convention — Tavern League is participating at the convention, and Tommy and Tim are going to be in their booth.
📌 Commission Payouts & Relay Setup
[4:01] Vanessa: All right. So if there are any questions, I just wanted to give a big shout-out to everybody that's working towards great success with the associations — congratulations. Can't wait to be rolling out those commission paydays, right? If you feel like you should have received a commission and you haven't gotten it yet, please check your email. Once a week I go through and I send a reminder to everybody we owe money to and say, “Hey, you've got to set up your account. You've got to do it — it's the only way we can pay you.” It's through a service called Relay — R-E-L-A-Y — and you have to provide a W-9 executed for tax purposes. If you're international, come let me know — we can work something out. But if you are in the US, we absolutely have to have that W-9 and your ACH set up for Relay. It's the only way we can pay you. So if you have any questions, please come to me at getsupport.biz — I will help you out.
📌 NALP Email Campaign Overview — Background & Premise
[4:57] Vanessa: So are there any questions before we get started? Because what I'm going to talk about today — I've kind of teased it for about a month while we were doing it. We started this project March 6 — Friday, March 6. We sent our first email that was focused on — oh, I lost it — I lost my picture, I'm sorry, not as visually stimulating. The email campaign that we sent was different from just sending out your agent referral URL. Okay, I want to preface this entire conversation by saying: if you just want to do cold email, I understand — this is an option. We do not ever want to gatekeep successful methodology, just like we do not require that you go attend a convention, we don't require that you do phone calls, we don't require that you do walk-ins, we don't require that you take this methodology of email and use it. But it is working very, very well for us. So I want to share it with you and you can choose to use it or not. Totally up to you. The content of this email will be published in the Small Business Advantage members area, and we are going to review word-for-word the emails that we sent and review the results today.
[6:28] The difference between just sending out your agent landing page and this is that these emails do not have a link, and the call to action is a reply. So it is to start a conversation via email, not just sending a link. So I just want to preface that so you know going in, but that's the difference.
[6:51] All right, so the premise of the campaign — we started with a strategic partnership. Illusional, the business, partnered with an organization called the National Association of Landscape Professionals. We partnered with them — they're an association. They gave us direct authorized access to their entire member mailing list. We've discussed that concept in the past, right? So they are providing us a highly qualified audience. We performed standard data hygiene, which means — while they did give us their member list — we wanted to protect our deliverability because they had not opted into our system. We did have permission from NALP to partner with them and represent that we had partnered with them, but these contacts still hadn't opted into us. So we don't want to burn our domain, get blacklisted, etc., so we took their list of members and we ran it through a tool called My Email Verifier, which checks for hard bounces, full email accounts, spam traps, etc., and we just took those out. Not worth the risk for what we were doing, right?
[8:00] Then we crafted a three-touch email campaign that went out to these members with the sole goal of having them hit reply and type us back a message.
📌 Campaign Results — Stunning Numbers
[8:16] Vanessa: I want to tell you these numbers are stunning. If you have never sent a cold email campaign, trust me when I tell you — this is gold level. If you have sent a cold email, then you know what we're talking about, right? So we started with 998 contacts, and after they were cleaned, we had 741 clean emails. So the campaign was sent starting on a Friday, March 6, to 741 people. Okay, positive responses. Now, when you're talking email, a lot of times mentally we're thinking of opens and clicks — we got clicks, let me take that one step further for you. Not only did they open, not only did they read — they hit reply and then used their physical hands to type a message back, and it came back to us.
[9:13] So direct replies requesting more information or a meeting — that is a 7.7% response rate, significantly outperforming standard cold outreach benchmarks. Right. So a standard run-of-the-mill cold email would have sent the email with a link to a page where they could either buy or set an appointment, right? Or opt in and get triggered for Bethany and the inside sales team to make a phone call, right? What we're talking about with a reply is a live fish on the hook.
📌 Step 1 — The Hook (Email One)
[9:51] Vanessa: So step one was the hook. This was the first email — word for word. This is word for word what we said. There was no personalization, no customization — just, “Hey, we put together an exclusive benefits package for NALP members.” Let me stop right there and say: instant authority. These people pay a premium to be a part of this group. They pay attention when you evoke, invoke the name. Okay, this matters to me, right? I'm spending my money to hear from people. Okay, so we're borrowing that authority — Tommy talks about that a lot. We've put together an exclusive benefits package for NALP members. Okay, let's jump into it: telehealth for the whole family, identity protection, accident coverage included. Okay, we're hitting three high-value benefits. And then we say, “Dozens of members are already using it — want me to send over the details?”
[10:52] Okay, now the reason we're able to say this — we have the early adopter program, right? The first step when we work with associations is to have them choose 10 to 20 high-ranking officials in the association and enroll them, right? Because the best endorsement is using it yourself, right? We want to build that social proof. “Do you want me to send over the details?” Name, benefits advisor, landscape industry specialist. That's it. Simple, direct to the point.
[11:22] Mentions the members immediately. “Dozens of members” creates FOMO and validates the offer — fear of missing out. People are already doing it, you don't want to be left out, right? Quickly lists high-impact, easy-to-understand benefits. We don't get into the weeds. We don't talk about savings plans and business versus health plans and virtual private networks — no. Boom, boom, boom — things you know what they are, you know they're a benefit, you know they're great. High level, right? And low-friction call to action. There's no link. It doesn't feel like spam. It doesn't really feel like I'm trying to sell you anything. Do you just want more information about what we put together for members of this group?
[12:11] Okay, so the cadence of this email campaign was: we sent on Friday, we skipped the weekend, and the next email was sent on Monday. If you started on Monday, the cadence will be Monday, Wednesday, Friday — just depends. But we do want a break in between, and then we're coming back, right? So we want to get all of the emails that we can get initially. Now, if they reply to the first email, don't send them the second — you don't need to. You have branched off into a private conversation if they sent you an email, right? So you don't want to follow up — then you'll look like you don't know what you're doing. So keep track of who replies; don't send them the second email. If you have a CRM or an automated email service, there are ways to do this automatically. If you are sending these emails by hand, by yourself, or with a mail merge process, make sure you remove the people who reply.
[13:10] And Bethany will tell you — the most replies we got were from that first email. So be vigilant.
📌 Step 2 — The Follow-Up (Email Two)
[13:17] Vanessa: Okay, so step two is the follow-up. The strategic intent: we want to re-engage. Maybe you caught their attention with the first email but, you know, “Oh, I'll reply later,” “Oh, that's interesting.” Okay, this is following up. And maybe they didn't see it at all, right? People are busy, emails get filtered out, emails get ignored. So this could be the first time they see you or the second. So prospects who missed the first email — we want to expand on the value. We specifically mentioned coverage that we didn't talk about in the first email, because going back to — maybe they saw the first email, it didn't work. If they didn't reply to the first email, what we said wasn't enough, it wasn't the right thing. So with the second email, we have another opportunity to just say something different. Maybe that's what grabs them. So here we expand it to mentioning the family and the zero-dollar co-pays — again, huge value but very easy to understand. Then we're reinforcing the exclusivity: “Built exclusively for NALP members.” It's kind of — it was built exclusively for Illusional and Illusional is partnering with the NALP, but it's an effective sentence that is not untrue. How about that?
[14:35] And so the email copy is just circling back — okay, this is reminding them that we've had contact before, this is not my first outreach. “The benefits package covers employees, spouses, and up to six kids.” Okay, so there's a little bit of intrigue there. You're following up — did I miss something? Did I forget something? The benefits package — six kids, right? So it's interesting and it's not laying everything out for them, so it's like, well, recycled run-of-the-mill garbage, right? So you're like, “Oh, the benefits package — what are we talking about? Spouses and up to six kids, no co-pays, identity theft protection, the works.” Okay, so that implies there's more. “Built exclusively for NALP members and dozens already on it” — again, that exclusivity. “Happy to share more if you're curious.” Low pressure, kind of a take-it-or-leave-it blasé attitude. When you start sounding like you're desperate for someone to want what you have, it diminishes the value of what you have. This is very much like, “Hey, we're doing this, and if you're interested, let me know, right? No pressure.”
[15:41] Alita asks: did you track which of the emails generated the most replies? The first email — the interest and response was immediate. Most of our replies came from the very first email. Now I will never, ever, ever endorse a one-blast, one-and-done email campaign — never — because we did catch stragglers with the subsequent emails. But the good news is with this approach, it was very highly effective on the first email. So you don't have to wait, you know — I hope the next one does well like the first one did best for us. But we definitely did follow through with the rest of the campaign because every single email did get some replies. I'll say that.
📌 Step 3 — The Pivot (Email Three)
[16:10] Vanessa: All right, so step three — the pivot. This is the last email we sent, and it was simple. No pressure, no scarcity, no threats of “you can never have this again.” We simply said, “I might not be reaching the right person for this — do you know who handles benefit decisions for your team?” This allows for a handoff. It asks a different question while still addressing the benefits and the fact that we've talked before. It serves as a trigger to ask, “What are you talking about?” Any response is a good response.
[17:05] We did have some that were, “Stop emailing me, I'm not interested” — like, that does happen. Okay, but if it's, “For what? What do you need? What are we doing?” And it lowers the defenses. This is still psychology — by asking for help rather than making a direct pitch. Okay, so there are psychological studies that show the best way to ingratiate yourself and make a friend and forge a relationship is to ask for help, ask for a favor, allow them to be of service to you. There's a lot of science behind it, but allowing someone to see a vulnerability and provide support or assistance — it builds relationships. So it's really taking it down to bare bones, but that's the psychology behind this email.
[18:02] Right, we want to find the authority. Maybe you are talking to the wrong person. Maybe the NALP — National Association of Landscape Professionals — member list had a secretary's email listed instead of the president of the company. Maybe you truly are sending to the wrong person and this person just wants to get it off their desk. Maybe they forward the email to the right person. Maybe they reply back and say, “You're supposed to be talking to Julie.” It's still a reply. You have cracked the seal. So — short and direct, extremely brief, making it easy to read on mobile, quick to reply. All of these emails were definitely — the vision was, especially since we're working with landscapers, these are in-their-truck mobile people, right? We wanted it to look great on their phone and be easy to manage. Again, no click link, no calendar setup — just hit a reply and let's get to work.
📌 Q&A — Done-For-You Email & Small Batch System
[18:57] Vanessa: Let me jump into some questions. Is your DFY service set up so that the three-email sequence terminates once there is a response to one of the emails? Brian, I believe you're talking about the Small Batch System done-for-you service — that is a different product and a different service. You can set up campaigns to trigger with a reply, but if you'll send in a ticket or let's talk about it in that training on Monday, we can dig into it. Because remember, the Small Business Advantage — we don't have a done-for-you service for sending emails here.
[19:42] If everybody here — if you're not aware of the Small Batch System service — it is a service that Brian offers that is for cold email marketing. It's a great partnership. If you're interested in that, we can take it offline. I can help you. But that's what Brian was asking about, and I just didn't want to ignore Brian.
📌 Association Campaign Clarification & Branching Referrals
[20:02] Just for clarity — this is for recruiting members after their association has already signed up on our program, correct, Donald? Yes. That is the case here. We had partnered with the association and we got their list. But we've covered the emails. Now I want to tell you about — I'm really glad you asked this question because let me fork off from that real quick if you don't mind.
[20:16] Bethany: Before you fork off, I want — Donald, I had a call with someone from the email campaign, and he's actually discussing with us the possibility of bringing on an association from his church. So just keep in mind that every single person that you've talked to may know someone else, so there's always that branch. He's looking at getting the product personally, but also, you know, we might be able to get another association from that.
[20:53] Vanessa: Bethany, that's amazing. That is so cool. Yeah, definitely good information to have. And like, we don't always think about it that way. We look at it like a tunnel, but you need to look at it more like a tree.
[21:03] Bethany: Oh, I love it.
[21:04] Vanessa: No, I had no idea. That's — congratulations. Very cool.
📌 Using This Email Approach WITHOUT an Association
[21:08] Vanessa: Okay, so what I was going to say is — you are not limited to using this approach if you don't have an association partner yet. Let me tell you how to use this today. Go on Facebook, find a group of professionals. Okay, you can craft your message. Let me jump back. Let's read this again: “We put together an exclusive benefits package for members.” We did not say that we had partnered with that group. Okay? You can use this approach with a lot of the same messaging to any group, whether you have signed up their association or not. You are just using publicly available information. They are members of a Facebook group or any group that you find, that you source, and you are saying, “We've got a benefits package for people in this group.” You see — you're still borrowing authority, you're still identifying yourself as a team member, right?
[22:13] I recommend it — join the group, right? Our sources for lists — like the lists that we give you — are not group-specific, right? So you're not limited to marketing to lists that can be provided through SBA. So if you have a source for any kind of group, if you create that list yourself, if you are going into a Facebook group and sending these messages to people on Facebook through DMs — “Hey, I'm a member of this group with you, and we've put together this offer” — non-obtrusive, non-salesy. Remember, you're not limited to email and you're not limited to lists that we give you. Like, let's get creative here. So do not feel like the only way you can use this approach is if you've already, quote, landed an association. It's fantastic if you have and they're giving you their member list and all of that partnership happens and they're endorsing you directly and you're backing them up. All of that is fantastic. We've talked about it ad nauseam. This is a new way to market to a cold list with or without the endorsement of the actual group. Does that make sense?
[23:57] See, would these types of emails work if I ordered a list from you for XYZ-type businesses that are not within an association that is signed up? Kenneth — perfect follow-up question. Absolutely, yes, yes, yes, yes. Instead of saying, “We've put together an exclusive benefits package for NALP members,” find another way to identify them as a group, right? “I'm working with plumbers in the metro Atlanta area.” “I have a special package I've developed for roofers in southeast Boston.” Find a way to personalize it just to give the impression of — or to convey, to communicate — that this is not a blast-and-spray-and-pray, blast-and-run-away mass email. “I want to work with you. I have identified you as someone I want to work with. I put this together for you.” The personalization is the difference-maker, right? And as you can see, we had great results with it.
📌 Live Response Examples from the NALP Campaign
[25:06] Vanessa: The responses are pretty quick, almost instantaneous, and this is what they are. These are actual screenshots Bethany gave me from the replies that she got, because again, this was an internal campaign, so the replies came to us. If you are sending these emails, the replies will go to you — that's a very important differentiator. Okay, you have to be aware of that. This was an internal communication, so when I say Bethany got these emails, it's because we sent the emails, right?
[25:33] So the very first response — March 6, Friday, March 6, when we started sending the emails at about 11 a.m. — we got this one at 12 p.m. Okay, that was local time. It's a different time zone. We started our campaign, we started sending it at 11 a.m. Maybe she got it in the central time zone — oh, that's p.m., okay, that makes sense. All right. But anyway, it's real. And all she said was, “Yeah, please send me more details.” Oh, she wrote it back to Elena — that was the sender account — and then Greg Strong was the owner. So Greg responded, “Elena, please send me more details.” Right.
[26:11] This one was 7:27 p.m. the same day — Friday, March 6 — “Send info so we can review it. Thanks, John Ryman, President/General Manager.” Okay. March 6, 1 a.m. — that's definitely a time zone weirdness. “Please do. Eric from Trinity Lawn & Landscape.” Friday, March 6, same day, 8:19 p.m. It looks like these folks are getting responses after work hours. That's interesting. That's a good mental note.
[26:44] “I'm interested in what you have to offer for myself and my team of 12 to 15.” How interested does that person sound? Not just “yes” — but I'm proactively giving you details about myself. Right? And my team. And 12 to 15 members — not a bad land, right? So quick wins. Even more: “Yes, please send over details.” “Yes, please do.” Etc., etc., etc.
📌 Why It Worked — Key Takeaways
[27:12] Vanessa: So why did it work? We leveraged the NALP name, which provided instant credibility. Again, you can borrow this credibility even if you're not endorsed and not given a list, right? Bypassing the skepticism associated with cold outreach — this works on different levels for any kind of personalization you are able to provide, right? Base level: merge the name of their business in the subject line, mention the city, absolutely talk about the industry. Those are the basics, but don't do that at least. If you are able to identify a group that they are a part of, definitely tap into that power.
[27:55] Concise copy — short, punchy, easy to read on mobile. These are guys and ladies in their vehicles usually, after work, scrolling. Respect the busy schedule of business owners. Don't send them a wall of text. Nobody's gonna read it, right? Get their information, earn the opportunity to talk about the benefits. And clear value — there is such abundant, easy-to-understand value in this. We all know how deep the benefits go, but it's almost like drinking from a fire hose. It's so good. We want to tell everything all at once, right? Oh, but they need to know — oh, oh, oh — let's hook them first and then give it to them at a pace they can consume it so that they can truly appreciate the value. What hits them first? Telehealth, ID protection, zero co-pays, covering the family. You saw the email campaign — that's exactly what we said. Easy to understand, highly relevant to their needs.
📌 Pivoting When They Say “We Already Have Healthcare”
[29:01] Vanessa: Thank you, Alina and Donald, appreciate it. Brian Wade says, “That branched referral is cool when it happens” — yes it is. The more you can build a relationship and rapport with your customers, with your referrals, and they trust you — yeah, of course they're going to want to share it.
[29:22] Tommy loves to say, you know, we're in the business of helping people. Like, our mission here is to give this kind of support to people who need it, right? If someone is working for a big corporation and they have this amazing insurance that includes telehealth and includes all these benefits and blah, blah, blah — like, they're taken care of. But there's a massive number of Americans who need this. This is not like we're selling a luxury item. This is something that is absolutely beneficial and can immediately improve quality of life for individuals. And when you are able to forge that relationship and give them this benefit, people who love people — they want to share that. And it can benefit them, obviously, with the financial aspect of partnering with you.
[30:21] Can you please give the example again of what you would say to a cold list with no link to an association in place of NALP? Kenneth, so you mean like if you just were able to obtain an email list of people in a Facebook group, right? I actually would love to do that. So what I'm going to do is I'm going to show you how this email was created. I'm going to jump into a free AI tool called Gemini. It comes free with Google.
[30:56] I'm just going to ask — I've encountered a lot of people that tell me, “We already have healthcare benefits.” And that's a great opportunity for you to pivot to the other benefits that we offer and focus on the legal services, focused on the data protection, all of those different things, because it's a whole package. So I think instead of focusing solely on telehealth when they're like, “Oh, we already have benefits” — that's not the end of the conversation. So keep it going if you can, you know, try to pivot to “Well, we offer all of this,” and I've noticed that tends to get a little more traction.
[31:37] Bethany: Absolutely. When we — and I hope everybody has seen the January 29th training with Deb — she went through, she's with our vendor partner. And she went through every single benefit. And honestly, telehealth was a spec on the whole call. The things she showed us are very frequently not explored because telehealth does seem to be such a hook. She actually gave us data on, as the provider as a whole, legal services are actually the most used — more than telehealth — with the greatest return on investment for the business owner, right? If you think about it, a lawyer can charge $500 to $1,000 an hour for the services that are included for $40 a month when that business uses the lawyer through this service.
[32:36] Vanessa: So yes, Bethany is absolutely right.
📌 Live AI Workshop — Building a 3-Email Campaign with Gemini
[32:56] Vanessa: Okay, so everybody sees on my screen. Okay, so I'm in Gemini, and I'm going to write a prompt to give me an email campaign. So imagine that you are starting completely from scratch. Let's work together — think of it as a working session. Let's build a brand-new campaign, okay. I want to write a three-email campaign to — what kind of industry? Somebody give me an industry — we're going to treat this like Mad Libs.
[33:54] Okay, we're going to go with Kenneth — Kenneth said roofers. Business owners who run roofing companies. Okay, about my ability to share with them an exclusive benefits package for themselves and their employees. The benefits are detailed at Illusional.com. I want to keep the emails under five sentences. I want the call to action to be for them to reply to me. I want to emphasize value and the core most impactful benefits. I want subject lines for each email. And then let's talk about tone — do not sound salesy. Be personal and personable with a business-casual tone.
[36:41] All right, so this is my prompt. And then I just scooted down and pasted in — I just copy-and-pasted the benefits comparison. Can you share this prompt? Absolutely, Randy. I'm going to put together all of this document — it'll be in the SBA membership area along with this video, for sure.
[37:00] All right, so let's see. This is a free option, so fast and free. I haven't upgraded, so everybody without spending a penny can get exactly this.
📌 Reviewing Campaign V1 — AI's First Draft
[38:21] Vanessa: So let's look and see what they've got. So running a roofing crew is tough work — high risk, long hours, and constant motion. These emails are designed to respect a business owner's time while offering peace of mind for their team. Okay, so it feels like Gemini gets it right. So email one is the peace-of-mind intro — “Protecting your crew and your bottom line.” Okay, what I like is that they're already speaking the language of a roofer, right? “Crew” and “bottom line” — business owner, right? So: “Between job safety and managing a crew, I know you've got a lot on your plate. I'm working with roofing owners to provide a unique benefits package that includes telehealth for the whole family, identity protection, and accident coverage — just $39.95. It's a simple way to look after your team without the massive overhead of traditional insurance.” Did I say it was $39.95? Oh, it did — okay. The comparison chart did include it. I didn't know if it went and did deep research on Illusional.com, but it took what I told it, and that's great. “Drop me a reply if you'd like to see how we can set this up for your crew.”
[39:23] Wait, that was email two — I jumped ahead, sorry. Focus on value. So the second follow-up — remember, wait a day or over the weekend and hit them. Let's call this the Wednesday email: “A quick way to boost employee retention.” Interesting — we've talked a lot about retention, and I didn't mention that, but Gemini thought of it. “Finding reliable roofers is harder than ever, so I wanted to share a benefit that actually helps keep them around. For less than 40 bucks a month, your employees get full family telehealth and $10K in accident coverage, which is a huge weight off their shoulders. It also includes identity theft protection to keep their personal lives secure while they're on the clock. Drop me a reply.” Okay.
[40:04] And owner-specific benefits: “I want to follow up because our business plan also includes specific perks for you, the owner, like cell phone protection and legal data breach solutions. You get the same family telehealth and accident coverage as your team, but with added security for your business operations. It's a comprehensive safety net that fits a roofer's budget. If you're interested, reply.” Okay.
[40:24] So this is my take. You saw it happen live. This is my impression: these are fine emails. I think they're too wordy. I think they're too much. It doesn't fit with the approach we took on the campaign that we know worked.
📌 Fine-Tuning — Campaign V2 (Simplified)
[40:51] Vanessa: So what I'm going to do is I'm going to share this with you in that document. I'm going to copy this — Campaign V1, no adjustments. But let's go back and see if we can fine-tune, right? So let's see — this is a good start, but it's too wordy. Simplify the messaging by 50%, all right? Let's make it, you know, “explain it like you're talking to a five-year-old” kind of stuff. Don't get too technical or too detailed about the benefits. Keep it light and try to sound casual.
[42:03] Okay, so let's do away with the sales speak and get right to the point. Okay, so we had asked it to not be salesy but now we're reiterating that in fine-tuning. If you ever hear me talk about AI, I think AI can write 80% of it but humans have to take that 20%, and that doesn't mean rewriting — it does mean fine-tuning those prompts, right?
[42:56] Vanessa: “Quick question about your crew. I'm helping roofing owners set up a simple benefits package that covers the basics — family telehealth, accident coverage, and identity protection. It's only 40 bucks a month and covers the employee's entire family. Think your team would find value in that? Let me know if you want the details.” I already like this a thousand times better. Who's with me? Give me a 13 if you think this is infinitely better than the first.
[43:18] Thank you, Alita — first to bat, agree with me. I appreciate you. Yep, all right, thanks, Donald. Right. But like, it just took one adjustment. This is how easy it is.
[43:26] Okay, so the value prop — this is the follow-up email: “Keeping the guys happy.” Maybe, maybe the gals — okay, Gemini, I see you, we can always make adjustments. “Finding good help is tough, so I wanted to share a low-cost way to look after your crew. For less than the cost of a tank of gas — especially these days — they get 24/7 doctor access and injury coverage for their whole house. Shoot me a reply if you're open to a quick chat about it.” I like it. I like it.
[44:06] And the owner perks: “One less thing to worry about — just a final follow-up on those benefits. The plan also includes cell phone protection and legal help specifically for you as the owner. It's a solid safety net for both your personal life and the business. If you're interested in checking it out, please let me know.”
[44:20] Now, I will say — I'm realizing we're not doing the pivot where we're asking for authority, right? So let's try that with another adjustment.
📌 Fine-Tuning — Campaign V3 (Adding the Pivot)
[44:31] Vanessa: Last email should include a pivot to find the correct contact, such as — how do we word it — “I might not be reaching the right person for this. Do you know who handles benefits for your business?”
[46:18] Vanessa: All right, so heads up. Okay, so this didn't change — “I'm helping roofing owners set up a benefits package that covers the basics.” And right here, where it says “roofing owners” — of course, if you are sourcing this to a group, however you obtained that group's contact information, you can further specify. This is how we customize it to roofers: “Roofing owners in Metro Atlanta” — that's another way to add further customization.
[46:48] Okay, and the follow-up — “Finding good help is tough” — so we're tapping into that retention aspect that we've been talking about. And then it did update the pivot: “One last thing to worry about, just a final follow-up on those benefits. So reminding them what we're talking about. The plan also includes cell phone protection and legal help specifically for you, the owner.” Okay, so we are still tapping the owner-benefit side. Flip of it: “And I might not be reaching the right person for this — do you know who handles benefits for your business?” Exactly what I asked them to say.
📌 Fine-Tuning — Campaign V4 (Adding Group, Association & Location)
[47:39] Vanessa: Let's say — update all emails to reflect that I am working with the NARP, National Association of Roofing Professionals, and targeting Georgia roofers through NARP. It makes the outreach feel more like a member benefit than a random pitch. That's how easy it is. Now you don't have to take this formatting with the bold, right? And I think Gemini is showing us the customizations that it's making.
[48:53] So really, what you can do is once you find an email campaign that you like, you can just go in and customize — making these changes, right? Adjustment 3: Adding Group, Association, Identity, and Location — and we're going to call that V4.
[49:36] Okay, “NARP specifically here in Georgia to help roofing owners set up a simple benefits package.” Okay. Second: “We're focusing on Georgia roofing crews through NARP, and wanted to share.” Just a final follow-up on these NARP benefits — the plan also includes, etc. Subtle but effective.
📌 Document Recap & Sharing the Resource
[50:00] Vanessa: All right, so let me jump over here. This is the document I put together for you. So: Prompt → Campaign V1. Adjustment One → Campaign V2. Pivot → Campaign V3. Adjustment Three → Campaign V4.
[50:47] Any questions about whipping up a three-touch email campaign that drives replies to you? Okay, Randy says — sorry for my confusion — and once an association is on board, does Illusional do email and/or phone call outreach to their members if the association agrees? Randy, absolutely yes. Yes, we do. This is the kind of thing that we did for the NALP that we would do for associations once they give us the members list. This is a way for you to generate businesses through going through a group — per chance, maybe if they haven't signed on yet and haven't shared their member list, like we talked about. This is a way for you to use cold email outreach to start conversations with individuals.
[51:37] Alita, I'm very glad you think this overview is helpful. I'm very, very glad. Thanks, Guy. And Randy, you're very, very welcome.
📌 How to Send These Emails — Tools & Cold Email Course
[51:43] Vanessa: Kenneth asks, “How are you physically sending these emails? What system? How many emails can you safely send per day if you are new?” Kenneth, all of these questions are fantastic. As Small Business Advantage is not a cold emailing course, I can't really teach it here. It is — if you've never sent a cold email — an entire process. Brian has a course and membership that teaches you how to do it and has a done-for-you aspect for sending the emails. We had a couple of questions about it at the top of the hour. As a Small Business Advantage member, I can give you the course and offer you a discounted done-for-you process to help you do this marketing. Just send me a ticket so I can get you the information, right? It's called the Small Batch System. Like I said, I can give you the course — it teaches you everything that you're asking. But it's not really something I can just bop-bop go over. But the crux of the answer is: we use the Small Batch System methodology on a Go High Level email CRM. But there's a lot of nuance to cold email that — to help you be really successful — I would like to give you that course so that you know what you're doing, right, and not just send you out into the wild and say, “Yeah, send 10,000 emails, nothing bad will happen” — because that's a lie. That domain sender will get blacklisted if you try sending 10,000 cold emails in a day, for sure. And that applies to everybody. If you are brand new to cold email marketing and you want that help, Small Business Advantage members — I'll give you that course for free. Just send me a ticket and I can get you set up.
📌 Closing Remarks, Homework & Next Week's Preview
[53:35] Vanessa: Okay, everybody, that's our hour. Thank you for hanging out with me at this interactive workshop. Bethany, thank you for your help and for telling us about that awesome tree-branching association referral situation. That's so awesome to hear about.
[53:51] Let me share this link — anyone with the link can view. I'm copying the link. Okay, so in your chat right now is this document. Feel free to make a copy for yourself and then you can make any edits that you want. But this is a view-only document so that nobody can edit the master, right? And I will share this link with the replay of this video in your members area.
[54:15] Kenneth is asking, “Do you think this would work with cold associations or work better with businesses?” So Kenneth, you're talking about sending emails to associations to get them to pay attention to you — sharing the opportunity with them. Absolutely. The beauty of this, of email, is that you can use it to initiate a conversation with anyone about anything, right? When you tailor it to direct messaging, obvious value, a more personal approach, and simplifying to just “give me a reply” — everything else is: “I'm working with associations to help deliver benefits to their members in a way that serves to generate non-dues revenue for the association. Can I send you more information?”
[55:33] And you know what? That's what we'll do next week. We're going to do the exact same thing — we're going to workshop emailing associations. How about that? And homework: everybody jumps on a free Gemini, a free Claude, a free Manus — whatever free AI, if you don't already have one — try these prompts but play with it. Try different industries, try different adjustments, see what you can create in a simple three-email campaign, no more than five sentences, with a prompt to reply to you. Okay, that's your homework and we can talk about it in the Facebook group. I would love to see the campaigns you come up with.
[56:11] And then what we will work on next week is crafting a series of emails that we will share — the exact same way we did this — for contacting different kinds of associations: chambers, professionals, contractors, realtors, right? We'll put together a list and we will make the emails together. What do we think? Awesome.
[56:32] All right, thank you again, Bethany. I'm not sure if you can still hear me. I hope you have a great day. I want to wish everybody a fantastic week, weekend, etc. We'll see you next week. I look forward to working with you again on the emails, and I'm going to get this posted for you. Thank you so, so much, everybody. Bye-bye.
[56:49] Bethany: Thanks for having us today. Y'all have a good day. Oh, there you are. Hey, okay. Bye, Bethany. Bye, y'all.
