Interested in getting better results with email marketing efforts? Email marketing is great for re-targeting potential–and continuing engagement with current–customers, members or clients. It is still considered a top driver of quality leads for many businesses.
That being said, I want to list my top 10 tips for getting results with email marketing with the hope that your business will be able to get more qualified leads from this channel.
So, let’s get started…
Segment Audiences. Get to know your audience, so you can segment into email list groups based on geographic location, behaviors, demographics, or type of need. Go to forums, social networks, and areas your audience is most active to assess their needs. Be direct with feedback requests by surveying individuals who meet criteria for your ideal buyer persona(s). The information you gather will help you craft your initial email copy.
Discover New Opportunities. Demand for what you offer may present itself within an audience you might not have yet defined. Occasionally, look at Google Trends or search keywords for your business to see what new conversations are taking place. New pain points can be discovered that require adaptation of messaging or a product/service itself.
Personalize Messaging. Data collection can help you personalize a message, so it feels less generic and automated. Sending out a message for best wishes on someone’s birthday or addressing him/her by first name are good places to start. If a user expresses interest in a particular option through link clicks within an email, tailor follow up content to those specific interests or provide relevant recommendations.
Build a Relationship. Getting constantly “sold” on a product/service can be a turnoff, especially if the person isn’t ready to buy. It is like asking someone to marry you on the first date. Provide readers with value beyond just the product/service, make it more about them than you, and educate and delight them with materials (whitepapers, e-books, webinars) that speak to their needs or interests in that moment.
Be Real. Users have access to all kinds of tools and information on the Internet, and they are active participants in the buying process. Over promising or using typical sales speak can cost you business. If you have done the first four steps, you shouldn’t need to resort to such tactics. You can often gain more from a referral or repeat customer that trusts your brand than you do from a one-time customer.
Keep It Simple. Email recipients don’t have time to read lengthy emails. Sometimes shorter emails coming in bursts are easier to consume than less frequent, lengthy ones. Also, if there is too much going on in an email, it can distract from the main call to action or point you are trying to make. Be clear with your intent. Additionally, having less content can prevent from your email winding up in the spam folder.
Offer an Incentive. There are opportunities to build your email list or move people further down the purchase funnel, but it is rare someone will give something for nothing. If you are requesting a fill out a form on a landing page after I click-through from the email, or ask me to refer a friend, I would expect something in return. Think about what would incentivize you to take action.
Optimize Campaigns. Once you have your initial emails set up for holidays, special promos, or service/product introductions, you can begin to A/B test emails. I suggest just changing out one element like an image, link or varying a call to action message to start. This makes it easier to detect what specifically is performing well. Weed out what doesn’t.
Test Email Rendering. People view email on different devices, in different browsers, and through different email clients. Make sure your design looks good no matter where it is viewed. Select an email platform that enables in-platform testing to save time.
Aim for Predictive Intelligence. The more data you capture and track, the more historic data you build. Historic data can help provide a guideline for further engagement. The more times you show interests in a particular piece of content or incentive, the more sure I am of your response to similar content or incentives emailed your way.
These days, there are many tools that can be used to detect user’s actions and segment them for particular automated, personalized messaging drips. How you segment, define rules and craft a message for email recipients can make all the difference in whether you find success with email marketing efforts.
Crafting the right message for the right audience at the right time is both an art and a science that can take years to master. If you are interested in having an email marketing expert examine your campaign analytics and provide recommendations for improvements, get in touch with our email marketing team at McClain Concepts.
