As an email marketer, I’m constantly looking for ways to achieve an increase in effectiveness of the emails I’m sending on behalf of myself and clients. Even a 1% increase in click rate could equate to 1,000+ individuals for some large blasts. By influencing those extra people and engaging them to click and engage with the content, the chance that they make a purchase goes up significantly. Without action there is no ROI to measure. They are a meaningless subscribe. If they open however, one can attribute that back to influence and transactions.
Below are 5 tips for increasing your effectiveness in emails:
- Clean your list up front. Many marketers gather whatever emails they can find and start blasting them out, and then are surprised when they have low engagement. I always ask, “How did you get that email address?” Most likely the person ‘found’ it or grabbed it from a transaction in their system. If you ask the person permission outright or allow them to subscribe themselves on your site, your contacts will me much more engaged in the future.
- Write a great subject line. Keep it short and simple. Let them know what’s in the email with a quick call-to-action of what you want them to do. It’s so easy to hit that “delete” button and move on to the next item in their inbox. What can you say to make them stop, even if just for a second.
- Be a familiar From Address. If your sales rep normally has a relationship with the person on the other end of that email, make it come from them. It’s easy to customize the From Address of emails with the help of advanced email service providers. Use email technology as a way to build retention and a relationship. If the subscriber doesn’t remember who you are, you’re not going to get through.
- Manage your IP reputation. Internet Service Providers such as Gmail, Yahoo, etc. have purposefully installed automatic filters that block emails from unknown or blacklisted senders. If you have a private IP address dedicated to your brand’s email sends, protect it. Don’t buy lists and send massive email blasts. Monitor your SPAM complaints and unsubscribe everyone who asks. You likely only have one shot to make a positive impression.
- Test test test. Just because something works for one company doesn’t mean it won’t work for you. The opposite is also true. Find out what works best for your list, on your schedule, with your content. Develop a 50/50 AB test where you send half of your list one subject line and the other list a different subject line. What worked better? Now test the From Address. Now test the From Name. Now test the day of week. Now test the time of day. Build a list of best practices and continue to modify.
Email marketing is effective because it’s highly measurable. You’ll be able to know exactly how many people opened, clicked, bounced, and unsubscribed. Use this data to develop a strategy for getting through to your customer. Always ask, how can I add value to their inbox?