One of the earliest and time-tested digital marketing strategies is email marketing. Despite the rise of social networks and various instant messaging sites, email remains a very effective communication channel.
According to McKinsey, email is 40 times more effective at gaining new customers compared to social media channels, such as Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram. About 72% of consumers prefer marketing contents to be delivered via email, while a meager 17% prefer social media. This reflects the reality that many people still consider email as a more trustworthy source of information than social media.
Email marketing also delivers an impressive ROI for marketers – you can expect $42 return for every $1 spent. It is a surefire way to connect with your target audience and essential part of any business’ marketing arsenal.
Understanding Email Marketing
Email marketing is the use of email communications to deliver promotional services, contents, and products to potential customers. It is a more personalized marketing strategy where messages are sent directly to email subscribers who have signed up to your contact list.
Email marketing also aims to build relationship with email subscribers, drive sales, and provide informative content.
Tips for an Effective Email Marketing
Back in the days, email marketing was just as simple as sending promotional content to as many recipients as possible. As a result, email users have been flooded with marketing emails, many of which are considered spam emails. To address this concern, email service providers has toughened its algorithms and developed robust spam filter technologies. This has rendered email blasts ineffective and has inevitably shaped modern email marketing.
Today’s email marketing campaigns are more methodical, strategic, and scientific. Gone are the days of one-size-fits-all email blasts. It’s not about the number of emails you’ve sent but rather the quality of content you send. You have to connect with your target audience to reap the full benefits of this marketing strategy.
Developers of email validation solution by Byteplant emphasized that modern email marketing is about personalization, segmentation, and consent. These three aspects are vital to a successful campaign. Here are some tips for an effective email marketing.
1. Set a workable, achievable goal
Before you start sending out marketing emails, you first need to establish “SMART”goals, which means specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-based. Every marketing content you develop should help realize the set objectives. By ensuring that your campaign is clear and can be tracked and tested, you can quickly assess its effectiveness and modify strategies if necessary.
2. Build a targeted email list
The success of your email marketing campaign depends largely on your email list. The goal is to create a targeted or segmented email list. To achieve this, you need to collect information from your audience which allows you to segment them based on demographics, geographic locations, preferences, etc. With segmenting, you are able to better understand your audience and create content that appeal to their individual preferences and interests. This will definitely help ensure higher open and conversion rates.
3. Create useful and interesting content
In email marketing, content is king. Create interesting, simple, and straightforward email copy. Use visually-attractive images and powerful call-to-action (CTA). Avoid overly promotional content that does not add value to its readers. Likewise, you should avoid spam trigger words in both your subject lines and the content. Email servers have powerful spam filters that can actually scan your entire content.
Before sending out any content, ask yourself whether it adds value to your brand, if it satisfies the recipient’s needs and preferences, if it aligns with your marketing campaign, and if it benefits both the reader and the brand overall.
4. Catchy email subject lines and sender name
The subject lines and email sender name is the first thing your subscribers read. As such, it is a valuable part of the campaign’s success rate. Email recipients are more likely to open an email with a catchy subject line than one with a generic line. Likewise, avoid spam-like email sender names. Stick with your brand name instead.
5. Know and follow email marketing regulations
There are some rules and regulations that ensure email marketing is not intrusive to consumers. Make sure you understand and follow these regulations to avoid being penalized legally or banned by email service providers. Under the CAN-SPAM Act, email users are given the right to unsubscribe from marketing campaigns. Likewise, it protects the consumer details from marketers and brands, and you cannot acquire email addresses without the recipient’s consent. Compliance with these regulations is essential to avoid hefty fines for your business.
Like any other marketing strategies, email marketing is constantly evolving as consumers change their habits and preferences. As such, you need to keep track of and stay abreast with the latest trends.Use these five tips to help ensure a successful email marketing campaign.