Do you use email marketing to drive business? Even in the age of social media, email is still one of the most powerful marketing tools you have available. With email, you can send a targeted, personalized message directly to your ideal audience.
Of course, your customers and prospects are probably inundated by emails everyday. If they're like most people, they delete many of their emails before they even read them. To get the ROI from your email marketing program, you have to make your messages rise above the noise.
Here are five tips to help you emails stand out and to help you get the engagement you want from your audience:
Personalize your emails. Yes, your audience probably knows that you're sending mass emails. But that doesn't mean your message has to read like a mass email. It's very easy these days to use email software that can quickly pull personal information from your list and plug it into an email's body.
For example, you should strategically place the recipient's first name in the email a couple of times. Also, segment your list into different customer groups so your recipients only get the emails that are most relevant for them.
Perfect the subject line. Your subject line may only be a few words long, but that doesn't mean you should gloss over it. If your subject isn't strong, it may be the only part of your email that gets read.
Above all else, your subject should pique curiosity. Hint at the valuable offer or content in the email without sounding pushy or spammy. The more curious your recipient is, the more likely they'll be to open the email and read it.
Provide valuable content. Why should your audience read your emails? Hopefully it's because they know that your emails provide valuable and helpful information. If you're using email to push product, you're doing it wrong. Instead, give away your best information to earn your audience's trust. They'll reward you by opening your emails when you finally do offer them a special deal.
Use a pre-header. The subject line gets them to open the email, but you still have to get them to read on. Use a pre-header to keep them engaged. A pre-header is a paragraph at the top of the email that further hints at what is below. It strings them along in a way to keep their curiosity rising.
Put your CTA at the top. The whole point of the email is to get them to click through your call-to-action. So why is your CTA buried in the bottom of the email? Put it right at the top, either above or below your pre-header, so they see it immediately. That should improve your conversions.
Email marketing can be a powerful tool....if you use it correctly. Review your emails and see why they haven't had the impact you want. Then make changes and test to see what works best.
