Email marketing is such an important channel that it is not going to end anytime soon. But even though each brand uses it differently, its principle remains and will remain the same. To get the most out of your email marketing strategy and ensure that you reach as many prospects and customers as possible, here are 10 dos and don’ts for your email campaigns…
But before that…
Email marketing is not over and will be anytime soon!
According to recent statistics, people who claimed that emails were dead are now biting their fingers, as the number of emails sent and received is increasing astonishingly every year! In 2017 alone, 269 billion emails were sent and received worldwide every day. This increased to 281.1 billion in 2018 and is expected to grow in 2023 with approximately 347.3 billion emails sent and received every day.
That’s why digital marketing experts are unanimous on the subject: Despite the widespread availability of smartphones, messaging applications, and other forms of digital communication, email remains the most widely used means of getting in and staying in touch with your customers, prospects, and customers. So an email campaign is probably the easiest and most profitable way to reach a large number of people with a single click.
So, do’s and don’ts in email marketing?
to do
define your goals
Before starting an email campaign, make sure you know both your goal and the purpose of your campaign, but also what you want to see in the results. To that end, feel free to use email in conjunction with other channels in a more general digital marketing campaign, considering the role email plays in your campaign’s general objectives.
Make your email mobile friendly
We’ll never repeat this enough, yet it’s clear that initiative is lacking in terms of mobile-friendly email marketing campaigns.
The desktop-friendly format is still important, but it becomes less important every year. More and more people are using their mobile devices to read their emails and if your communications are not compatible with their device, guess what? They won’t be interested!
So it is certain that emails which are not mobile friendly do not increase your bounce rate due to poor user experience.
Decide what type of email you want to send
Want to send out a newsletter or provide your customers with the latest information about your business? Do you want to promote your business, offer new services or offer special offers? Or do you just want to welcome new customers or let them know that their purchases are ongoing? Determine in advance what type of email you want to send so that you know what appropriate words to use in the body of the email. This will inevitably attract new customers and boost sales.
Create an Attractive Subject Line
The first item a customer will see when you send an email is the subject. A subject line that captures the reader’s interest will keep them from opening the email and reading what you have to say, so think carefully before choosing one.
To learn more, discover 51 Phrases to Force You to Open Your Emails.
Try A/B Testing
A/B testing can be extremely helpful in determining the most effective email marketing strategies. Try playing with objects, messages, colors, images, and calls-to-actions to see how users react to different options.
You can also try A/B testing your mailing lists, in which one group of people receives a different formatted email from another to find out what your audience is looking for.
Find out in this article the best tools to A/B test your marketing emails.
don’t do that
Don’t send the same email to everyone
It is extremely important to segment your contacts so that they receive more personal and relevant emails. You can segment in a number of ways, and it will really depend on how much data you have and what your goals are.
Don’t send your email without checking for errors
Sending your email without checking for typos, broken links and other errors is like playing Russian roulette with your email campaign. Remember that you have a chance to engage readers through your email.
Do not use identical images
Using identical images for each of your customers ruins the customer journey. For example, if you run promotions on clothing and you only use images of women, for example, you will definitely lose the conversion of most of the men on your mailing list.
don’t buy mailing list
A company’s email address list is valuable. With the push of a simple button, a company can send advertisements directly to people interested in its product. However, it is difficult to compile this list. An attractive solution is to purchase a list of email addresses. At the most, such a shortcut may prove ineffective. At the very least, sending spam or junk mail to multiple people can damage your company’s reputation.
No option to unsubscribe
Do not prevent users from unsubscribing. Not including a way to allow them to unsubscribe from your email is not only unethical, but also illegal under various consumer protection regulations.
Ultimately, successful email marketing campaigns depend on the human element in the email itself. The days of automatic text blocks are over. The most successful campaigns these days target people who need to know they are seen as such, not just prospects. So keep it simple, keep it personal, and keep it interesting, and you’ll soon see your hard-earned success.
Need help getting started or looking for ways to boost your email marketing strategy? Sign up for this certified training in webmarketing to build an effective emarketing strategy.