Email Marketing is very powerful, but only if you avoid some of the most common email marketing mistakes. Over the years, we have developed an approach to avoid some common email marketing errors. Following these tips will help you increase email open rates and reduce email deletes.
Sending the same message to everyone
People are different and the one message fits all approach does not lead to great results. You need to look at your email and answer “Does this email make sense for the group?”. It takes time to segment your email messages into groups, but the return is worth it.
There’s a world of difference between prospects and customers and it makes sense to tailor your messages to the recipient. Messages can be very powerful when they are relevant to the person receiving the email. You can’t treat every email recipient the same.
Using unappealing subject lines
Your subject line needs to answer the question “Why should I open this email?”. If your subject line connects with your recipients then it will get opened. If it doesn’t, your open rates will never really get off the ground.
Make sure people know the message is from you (not a spam source), by including your company name or another indicator they’ll recognize. Sometimes it is advisable to have your organizations name in the subject.
Sending an email for the sake of sending something
If you have nothing relevant to say – don’t send the email. If you send out a stream of dull, boring messages your audience will delete them and then unsubscribe. You need to answer the question – “Why should I read this email?”. Make your message relevant, informative and engaging.
Personalizing proves that you know your audience
Email marketing is about nurturing customers and prospects (or members and donors). To nurture a relationship you must know something about them. Email marketing becomes very powerful when you know who you are communicating with and what they find important. You need to answer the question “Why is this important to the recipient?”.
For example if I just purchased a car, knowing that I might need accessories for my new car would be relevant. Talking about oil changes does not generate any interest and in fact would prove that you are out of touch. You stay connected to your audience, by making sure your customer information is up to date. Being able to leverage this information is critical.
To open or delete an email, can be a split second decision
The email marketing tips above and the tips in Part 2 will help you increase your email open rate and decrease the delete rate. By avoiding some common email marketing mistakes, you can nurture relationships and grow sales.