Email marketing is a powerful tool for any business, whether you’re a startup or a large corporation. The key to effective email marketing is to carry out a number of simple tasks that will improve your campaign performance. Whether you’re looking to email marketing for business or pleasure, these tasks will help you get the best possible results:
1. Create compelling subject lines
There is no denying that the subject line of your email is one of the most important aspects of your campaign. This is the line that your prospects will read before getting into the meat of your email. You’ve probably heard the saying “a punchy subject line will get your email opened”, and it’s true. Create a catchy thread that will make your audiencewant to know more. Here are some examples of awesome subject lines that get instant results:
- “How to make your social events successful”
- “New research on how millennials are adapting to social distancing”
- “Amazing resources your digital marketing agency could be missing”
- “How to make your Instagram stand out from the crowd”
- “3 ways to make your events e-famous”
- “Top digital marketing tips before and after the pandemic”
You can also use an automated email opener to make the same great impact. For Example, Litepond opens emails with a short burst of exciting content, compelling subject lines, and actionable calls to action. Don’t worry, your email service provider won’t think you’re crazy spamming them because they’ll understand the value of such automation.
2. Use templates where appropriate
You may think that creating templates is a waste of time, but using pre-made content is a quick and easy way to ensure that your emails match the same voice and contain the same information. Rather than having to draft an email from scratch, you can simply edit a template to fit your needs. When doing so, be sure to keep the integrity of the original while injecting your own style. For example, if the template contains a section on pricing, you might want to add an extra section elaborating on your cost structure or highlighting a special offer for a limited time.
Of course, you don’t have to use templates completely. If you have a bit of content that you think can serve as a basis for an email, by all means, go for it. However, if the content is only loosely related, it might not be the best idea. The key is to find that sweet spot where you can utilize pre-made content without having to overuse it.
3. Personalize the subject line and the introductory text
To make your email stand out from the crowd, craft a personalized subject line and introductory text. There is no denying that when it comes to getting people to open an email, personalized content often works better than plain-old text. For example, if you were sending an email to a subscriber who had signed up for your list using a purchased domain, you might want to tailor the subject line to include their username. Tailored subject lines and introductions ensure that the individual contents of your emails are relevant to each recipient. This is particularly important for marketing emails, where it’s easy for the content to become cluttered and uninteresting to those that aren’t part of the target audience. To ensure that your emails remain relevant to your audience, be sure to update your introductory text with relevant and compelling content.
Once you’ve determined the value proposition of your email (i.e. what you’re trying to achieve with this email campaign) it’s time to craft the perfect subject line. Start with a hook, something that will make your audience want to open the email.
- Personalized subject lines work better than normal ones
- Use action verbs in the subject line
- Avoid overused words
- Relevant and compelling content in the body of the email
An action verb in the subject line is a great way to grab someone’s attention, promising them that what they’re about to read will be useful or interesting. For example, if you’re trying to promote an upcoming event, you might want to use an action verb in the subject line like, “Register for our webinar now!”
Avoid overused words. Just because a word or phrase is commonly used does not mean that it is an effective email marketing keyword. The way you phrase your subject line and the text within your email body will form the foundation of your campaign. In order to achieve the best possible results, tailor both to be as persuasive as possible.
4. Get specific with the targets
There is no getting around it: a lot of emails are spam. That being said, you don’t need to do anything illegal to attract spammers. They’ll target anyone who is offering anything for free because, well, that is how most spam works. So, in order to avoid being marked as spam, you have to get specific with the targets.
As the old saying goes, “you get what you pay for”. When it comes to getting results from your email marketing, you have to be willing to pay for quality. Instead of hitting a random list of email addresses, you can target specific groups of people, which will dramatically improve your open rates. Once you’ve determined the demographics and psychographics of your ideal buyer, craft a concise and compelling message to provoke a reaction.
For example, if you’re selling a product that will be used by parents, you might want to target grandparents or other family members as potential buyers. Tailored messages will ensure that the contents of your email are of interest to your intended audience.
5. Measure the success of your email campaign
In a lot of cases, the success of an email campaign is measured in terms of open rates and engagement. After you’ve sent a couple of informative emails to your list, you can measure the results and determine whether or not you should continue with the campaign. To get the most accurate results, track the responses to each individual email in your list.
Take a look at the example below: in this instance, the target audience is parents, and the email is being marketed towards grandparents. Grandparents are a more mature audience, and hence, are more likely to show interest in a business that markets to adults (i.e. the gear used for kids’ sports). As a result, the open rate for this email is going to be higher than if it had been aimed at children.
If you’ve been diligent with the other eight tasks on this list, you should already have good results to show for your efforts. At this point, you’ll want to benchmark the success of your email campaign and determine whether or not it was worth all the time and effort. If you’re looking to increase your open rates, you can always try and experiment with different content or subject lines.
However, if you’re looking to reduce your bounce rates and unsubscribes, you might want to consider alternative tactics, such as inbound marketing or social media.
6. Test different formats & triggers
If you’ve been doing your job correctly so far, you’ll have a good basic email marketing toolkit already established.
With a tool like HubSpot, you can easily set up automated email campaigns that will hit your subscribers with a steady stream of engagement. If you’ve been using HubSpot for a while, you might notice that you can set up a number of different email campaigns, each one with a unique subject line and message. Different formats and triggers will help you determine what works best for your audience. For example, if you’re subscribed to a newsletter that is sent weekly, you might want to consider experimenting with emails being sent on a more frequent basis (e.g. weekly vs. monthly).
Often, the answer to the question, “What is the best email marketing format?” is, “It depends.” When it comes to getting the best results from your email marketing strategy, you need to experiment with different formats and triggers to find what works best for your audience.
7. Make sure your emails are error-free
Have you ever gotten an email that just seemed to go on and on and on without stopping? The worst. That is what you are in for if you use third-party email services like Mailchimp or Constant Contact. These services provide you with templates that you can use to create your emails. However, if you are using these services, make sure that all of your emails are error-free. Otherwise, the company that you’re contacting might just send your email to the “spammers” of their network. This is a guaranteed way to end up on that dreaded list.