Email marketing can be somewhat of a slog for many smaller companies with an array of statistics to analyse, creatives to design, copy to write and so forth. If the campaigns aren’t performing as expected frustration can begin to creep in before the enthusiasm of the whole channel is long gone. So what can you do before you hit that stage. Well here are a few tips;
Think about your data
Where has your data come from? How has it been collected? What messages have you sent to this data previously? The quality of your data is so important and if they aren’t engaged with your brand the chances are your response rate is going to be pretty low. Think about the sort of person in your database; what time they will be online, what device will they be using and build your plan on these crucial points.
Give each email an objective
Sounds like a simple idea on paper but in the real world this does not always happen. It is unwise to communicate with your data for the sake of communicating so an objective for each email is a must. Whether it is a sale, a visit to site or eyeballs on your content depends on your business though the objective will help you with your creative, copy and justification for the time you are spending building the email.
Leave creatives to the professionals
If you aren’t already using a designer for your creatives and you aren’t a Photoshop type yourself, the chances are your dodgy email header is hampering your chance of success. On almost every email campaign I have worked on the header image is one of the most clicked items. It sets the tone for the communication and is so often the difference between the user reading on or bouncing. Make sure your header is on brand, illustrates the point of the communication and most importantly is clickable.
Respond to replies
If a customer messages your Facebook page (personal or business) you’d respond right? What if they were to right or text you? You wouldn’t simply ignore them. So why is it when you reply to a marketing email do you get no response? If someone on your database has taken the time out of their day to respond to your email, whether it’s good or bad make sure you get back to them.