9 Tips for Effective Email Marketing
Posted by karenses on February 21, 2008
Email is a great tool and can be used effectively for direct marketing programs if done properly; however, there can be low rates of return, you can risk annoying would-be customers, and have to understand spam guidelines to avoid a negative impact.
With that said, email marketing is a powerful medium if you carefully craft an effective campaign. Here are 9 ideas to help you succeed:
1. Don’t rent email lists. Don’t learn the hard way. At first, it may seem like a good idea – paying a low price for thousands of names and emails. However, most of the time the quality isn’t there (i.e. the demographics aren’t highly targeted, many emails are outdated, etc…) and there’s the risk of being accused of spamming, which quickly diminishes credibility. You never really know what you’re getting. So don’t do it!
2. Build your own list. There are many good ways to build an email marketing list. On your web site have visitors opt-in (whether for a newsletter, at check-out or when completing an online form). In your retail establishment, ask customers whether they’d like to receive email communications from your business when they are paying for their purchase. With that, don’t make it a simple request - be specific about what’s in it for them (i.e. get a bonus, receive discounts, learn about special sales and events, and more). Sell them on the value of the communications and guide them into signing up.
3. Be clear about your value. Make sure your emails are exciting and full of substance. The communications should be informative and useful. Offer tips, ideas, suggestions… things of value to your customer. Use the email’s subject line to announce the offer upfront.
4. Be consistent. You should view your email marketing communications as ongoing dialogue between you and your customers and prospects. Consistency is key. Schedule your emails weekly or monthly based on the communication needs of your business. Also, be consistent with formatting and type of content you provide. Work towards having customers anticipate your next communication.
5. Keep it simple. From layout and design to the amount of content you include, make sure your communications are easy to read and pleasing to the eye. Limit the content to only “pure value”. Bring in a marketing writer to at least review your content. The best way to fine tune this creation cycle is to collect samples of emails that work and emulate their structure, design and basic content blocks. Always proof your work many times over.
6. Be aware of spam triggers. Many people use spam filters. While they are helpful for the end consumer, they make your job more challenging. They keep you from reaching your customers and prospects. Arm yourself by understanding what types of words are likely to set off spam filters (i.e. FREE, Special Offer, etc…). Many email marketing tools have “spam checkers” built in as part of their service. If not, you can easily find one. It’s important to educate yourself to be effective.
7. Effective campaign management. Another challenge to email marketing is actually managing your campaigns. Once you have the customer data, you need to be able to segment and target them, manage the data sets, the campaigns and the communications within those campaigns. There are many great companies offering effective and affordable services – from the basic (www.icontact.com) to the more elaborate and more expensive (www.Eloqua.com). These are just 2 of many, so do your research to be sure you find the right one.
8. Make it easy. Make sure it’s easy to sign-up; from a quick form in retail to 1-click opt-in on web sites - make it painless to join. Also, make it easy for readers to pass along your communications. By nature, email is viral – so encourage people to pass it on. Lastly, make it easy to opt-out. The ability to unsubscribe is key to following spam guidelines and keep your would-be customers happy.
9. Test for effectiveness. From testing your campaigns before you send them to reviewing metrics of specific campaigns after sending them, make sure you understand what’s working and what’s not. Take corrective action based on those results.
Summary: Email marketing is an effective marketing tool once you understand the limitations and empower yourself with the knowledge on how to create, optimize and deliver successful campaigns. Do your research to ensure success.
Please post your ideas and suggestions below for further dialogue.
Posted in Email Marketing, Keeping Customers, Lead Generation, Marketing, Marketing Mediums, Marketing Programs | Tagged: Marketing, Direct Marketing, Email Marketing, Eloqua, icontact, Online Marketing | 1 Comment »
