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Email Automation · Lifecycle Marketing

An 11-email nurture sequence at a 50.78% open rate

705 sends across 11 emails, a 50.78% open rate, and zero bounces or unsubscribes over a full year.

Role
Automation build, QA, segmentation, subject lines & design — body copy by another writer
Company
Brave Leadership
Timeline
Aug 2025 – Aug 2026 (12 months)
Team
Kenneth + 1 copywriter
Impact
50.78% open · 3.83% click · 0% bounce/unsub

Overview

"SO Tool to LE Pitch" is an 11-email sequence that nurtures leads who completed the Super Objective (SO) self-discovery tool toward Leadership Essentials (LE), Brave Leadership's paid program. The sender voice reads as a trusted mentor, not a marketer.

Problem

Converting a self-discovery-tool lead into a paying customer without the sequence reading as a hard sell — trust has to be built before the pitch, not assumed.

Process

The throughline across all 11 emails is authentic leadership, self-investment, and shared mission — urgency is introduced only in the final email, a deadline close ('special something ends tonight') with a midnight cutoff.

This sequence sits downstream of a separate re-engagement campaign (see the SO Tool re-engagement case study) that feeds it volume — together they form one connected funnel: reactivate → nurture → convert.

Solution

Built and implemented the full automation in ActiveCampaign: entry trigger on SO Tool completion, 11 email sends with wait steps between them, and a purchase goal. Owned segmentation, subject lines, pre-header text, and email design; QA'd the entire sequence before and after launch.

  1. TRIGGER — SO Tool completed
  2. EMAIL 1 — Welcome / opening
  3. WAIT
  4. EMAIL 2 — Nurture
  5. WAIT
  6. EMAIL 3 — Nurture
  7. WAIT
  8. EMAIL 4 — Nurture
  9. WAIT
  10. EMAIL 5 — Nurture
  11. WAIT
  12. EMAIL 6 — Nurture
  13. WAIT
  14. EMAIL 7 — Nurture
  15. WAIT
  16. EMAIL 8 — Nurture
  17. WAIT
  18. EMAIL 9 — Nurture
  19. WAIT
  20. EMAIL 10 — Nurture
  21. WAIT
  22. EMAIL 11 — Deadline close — midnight cutoff
  23. GOAL — Leadership Essentials purchase

Results

MetricResultvs. industry median
Open rate50.78%median 33.78% · ▲ +17.0 pts
Click rate3.83%median 1.37% · ▲ +2.46 pts
Click-to-open rate7.54%—
Bounce rate0%705 sends, 12 months
Unsubscribe rate0%705 sends, 12 months

My role

Body copy for this sequence was written by someone else. Kenneth built and implemented the automation in ActiveCampaign, QA'd and tested it end to end, and owned segmentation, subject lines, pre-header text, email design, and sequencing logic.

Let's talk.

Open to remote Digital Marketing, Marketing Automation, and WordPress roles — reach out directly.

Email

kenjsangalang@gmail.com

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LinkedIn

linkedin.com/in/kenneth-jon-sangalang-tech

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GitHub

github.com/ken-turtle-learner

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