It’s not difficult to believe that email marketing has a somewhat of a bad reputation, years of untargeted communications have made it unpopular. But, when it’s done right, it absolutely has a place in a well-balanced comms plan. More art than science, if you get the ingredients right, your chances of achieving your targets are much higher.
If you think you could do better with your email marketing, these top tips may help you get the best results.
Make sure that the emails you send feel part of a larger customer experience. Branding, style, and tone should reflect across all channels and be an instant eye-catcher. Be clear, organised, and strong in your identity.
Your emails should feel like an extension of the journey they started with you when they first learned of your brand and the same rules should apply to all your operational/transactional communications as well.
Bringing through elements of personalisation works well when it’s done correctly. Confidence in your data is essential in personalisation. There is a very good chance your engagement will be poor if you pull through wrong information.
Including personalised offers and messaging gives the reader confidence that you understand what they are interested in and can deliver exactly the things they are looking for.
Be confident in your email strategy, by knowing the answer to the simple question, so what’s the point?
Every email campaign needs a point, understand the action you want the recipient to take to build a stronger, more compelling argument for them to complete the desired action.
Keep the subject line simple and concise, over-worded subject lines can look intimidating or boring, losing your hook. Also use intriguing words like: ‘discover’, ‘find out’, and ‘uncover’ to build excitement.
Get the content balance right – it needs to encourage the reader to find out more not leave them confused or give them all the answers.
Obviously, GDPR has played a big part in making email marketing a sensitive subject. You need to have the correct legal basis to contact people. You also need to make sure you give them the opportunity to unsubscribe from future marketing communications.
There is no best time to send an email anymore, it all depends on the audience and what action you want them to take. Regular but non-intrusive communication is best. Adding preference management and connecting your email marketing to your CRM can let the individual easily control the volume and what they want to hear about. Giving them control can result in a huge increase in engagement.
The email’s content, layout and visual cues such as pictures or animations are all important. You want your audience to immerse themselves into your message, like a customer stepping into a shop – make what you have ‘on sale’ appealing. You can do this through a consistent colour scheme, tone, backdrop, and imagery.
Remember, not all images will show in the recipients’ inbox, so make sure the body text of the email gets the message across. Do not become over-reliant on images and media to the point where it corrodes the core text.
Most of all make sure it’s responsive, its estimated 84% of emails are now opened either on a mobile device or via webmail, so not displaying properly on those devices is a big mistake!
If you’re looking for some help to up your email game. Get in touch