Despite email marketing’s high return on investment, many business owners aren’t using it to its full potential.
Having access to someone’s inbox is a privilege and a responsibility and requires marketers to be intentional about communicating with their audience. Email marketing goes far beyond sending promo codes and sale information — it’s about establishing a relationship with people who have chosen to hear from you in this way.
If you’re new to email marketing or need a refresher, these basic strategies will help you get on track and begin using one of the most underrated marketing tools available today.
Choose your platform carefully
If email marketing is new territory for you, the most significant decision you’ll need to make is which platform you’ll use. Options like MailerLite and ConvertKit are great for small businesses, and creatives are flocking towards FloDesk right now.
Platform essentials include automation and workflow sequences, high deliverability rates, and the ability to segment and group lists in various ways.
Define your process
Before launching into your first email, it’s essential to define your process for how you’ll communicate with your audience. For example, how often will you send emails? How will you come up with your content? Will you send your blog posts to your email list? How will your email messages integrate with your other marketing tactics?
During the editing process, it’s important to find the right tone for your message and avoid being too formal or too casual. Use reputable resources on grammar or punctuation to help you if writing isn’t your strong suit. Once you have a consistent process, the time investment will diminish with each email.
Answering these questions first will save you headaches later on when you’re staring at a blank screen and wondering what in the heck to write.
Prep your audience
The last thing you want is for someone to open an email and wonder, “who is this, and why did I get it?” To avoid this dreaded reaction, use your website and social media channels to prime
your audience and let them know to expect your email.
If possible, time your email to coincide with a new product launch, event, or announcement that builds anticipation. If you’re still printing collateral materials on paper, incorporate a bit of text around your email newsletter into your design.
The more people expect to hear from you, the more likely they will open your email and take the desired action.
Plan to measure
One of the biggest mistakes in marketing is sending emails and never analyzing the results. Yet, even just a few emails can tell you a wealth of information about your audience’s preferences and behaviors.
Make a note of analytics like open rates, click-through rates, and conversions to test which content performs better. If you can incorporate some A/B testing with subject lines, you’ll quickly learn which topics peak the interest of your audience most.
Once you have consistent data to work with, tweak your approach to find the perfect balance between what to send, when to send it, and which calls to action to promote the most.
Stay consistent
The number of businesses that begin an email marketing campaign and never follow through is astounding. This lack of consistency communicates to your audience that you don’t have a plan or the ability to stick with something long-term.
Start by creating a content calendar and plan your first 10-12 emails, including what you plan to send, when you plan to send it, and the primary purpose of each message. Then, work backward and add tasks to your calendar so you can dedicate an adequate amount of time to content creation, editing, and delivery.
As social media sites try to bombard your audience with ads and irrelevant content, the inbox real estate increases in value. If someone has trusted you with their email address, be a good steward of that resource and send them valuable content that enriches their life.
Even if you’re facing open rates between 25-35%, that kind of targeted reach is unheard of on any other platform. You can achieve unbelievable success by creating thoughtful content, listening to your audience, and delivering on your promises.