So it happened to me. I set up a new business email account so that I could have my VA’s check it and response to inquiries. Then, I sent an email out to my email list of 19.000 after neglecting them for years, in an effort to warm them up before my major book launch. What do you think happened? I had several reports of abuse, including one from a good client of mine! They did not recognize my new email address, and thought my business was hacked. I should have known better than to make these rookie mistakes, after all I was a Marketing Professor. Thanks to MarTech’s great infographic, I thought I would write a little refresher on the main points of email marketing.
Email marketing remains an essential communication tool for businesses, facilitating direct engagement with target audiences. The effectiveness of this tool is determined by how adeptly one uses it, focusing on a few best practices and ever evolving trends.
OPTIMATION
The core of any successful email campaign lies in its optimization, ensuring that the message not only reaches its intended recipient but also resonates with them.
- AI: Leverage artificial intelligence to refine content based on recipient behavior and preferences. This goes beyond just recommending products; it’s about predicting what kind of content will engage and resonate most with everyone.
- Lists: Maintaining a healthy and updated email list is paramount. Ensure its cleaned regularly to remove inactive subscribers, and always prioritize quality over quantity.
- Subject Line Relevance: Your subject line is the first impression. It needs to be enticing enough to prompt a click. Crafting subject lines that are both relevant to the content and intriguing can greatly improve open rates.
DELIVERABILITY
Ensuring that your emails land in the right inbox and aren’t sidelined as spam is critical to the success of your campaign.
- Permissions: Having clear permissions ensures that you’re reaching out to individuals who genuinely want to hear from you. This can significantly reduce unsubscribe rates and spam complaints.
- Reputation Management: Your sender reputation plays a vital role in email deliverability. Regularly monitor it to ensure that your emails aren’t being blacklisted or flagged.
- Safe Lists: Encourage subscribers to whitelist your email address. This action tells email service providers that your content is desired and reduces the likelihood of being labeled as spam.
TOXINS TO NAVIGATE
Certain practices can hinder your email marketing campaigns and should be handled with caution.
- Complaints: A high complaint rate is a clear indication that something’s amiss. It might be the content, frequency, or even the tone of your emails. Address these promptly.
- Hard Bounces: Repeated hard bounces can harm your sender reputation. Regularly clean and update your email lists to minimize them.
- Purchased Lists: Never be tempted by this. Purchased lists not only harm your brand’s reputation but also contravene many data protection regulations.
TRAPS TO AVOID
These are pitfalls that can snag your email campaigns, reducing their efficacy.
- Spam Filters: Stay updated on the criteria used by spam filters. Ensure your content, especially the subject line, doesn’t contain flagged terms.
- Desktop Filters: With many companies using desktop email filters, be aware of how these clients filter and categorize emails. Test and design your emails to navigate through these seamlessly.
Adapting to these elements will position your email marketing campaigns for heightened engagement and improved deliverability. Always prioritize your audience’s preferences and needs because in the realm of email marketing, the recipient is at the center of every strategy.
I have no doubt that the two major mistakes I made cost me unnecessary unsubscribes and confusion with my clients. In the end, it did help me weed people off my list. Luckily I learned my lesson and now proudly can boast an open rate of over 66%.
#MarTech #emailbestpractices #marketing #optimization #deliverability