The Right and Wrong Way to Approach Email Marketing

Email marketing isn’t rocket science. In the simplest form, it’s a direct way to communicate with individuals who have given you their email. It’s a method of communication through words, but it’s also a passive method of communication.

Social media is a form of active communication, where you can comment, respond, and have a continuous discussion within seconds.

While that is more convenient, we’re definitely still addicted to our emails — and marketers are aware. Email is not the top source of analytics without good reason, after all [1]. And when done right, email marketing helps drive sales. For instance:

• 89% of marketers say email marketing is their best source of lead generation [2]
• 44% of email users made at least 1 purchase from promotional emails last year [3]

But you need to start it right. Here’s how to go about it.

Spend a lot of time on subject lines

Nothing else will matter if no one is clicking your emails. The subject line is one of the most important parts of any email sent — the same way headlines are the most important part of blog posts.

The subject line’s role? To get enough intrigue for someone to click it, and hopefully, read the body of the email. The subject line needs to hit on a pain point the customer is experiencing with a potential promise to fix it (if the email is not promotional).

If the email is promotional, then the subject line should reflect that. I’ve got $1600 worth of products to help you with X. Or, You’re the VIP so here’s a discount code to show it.

Simple. Direct. To the point, while also hitting on emotional intrigue. If your click-through-rates (CTR) are looking a little sad, experiment.

Look at your analytics and see which keywords get the most clicks. Then maneuver them into new subject lines for better CTR.

Now that we’ve established the importance of subject lines, once people are clicking you need to…

Build customer relationships

Marketers and bloggers suggest building your email list quickly. Attach a free lead magnet people will sign up for and receive, then sell your paid products directly after.

Which is a good strategy. But there needs to be a section in between the “get email” and the “sell to them” part.

The last thing you want is for customers to see your emails — or worse, your brand — as spam. Spam gets deleted. Spam gets unsubscribers. So by leaping directly into selling your freshly launched products minutes after an email sign-up, you’re just hurting yourself.

Marketing through emails requires relationship building. Knowledge needs to be shared. Value should be priority. Because happy subscribers, who feel a company provides the best product for their needs, become happy customers.

The type of emails you send depend on:

• Your brand and,
• Your customer’s idea of your brand

If your company offers heavily discounted hearing aids, customers expect to be emailed promotions. But you can also provide news and updates related to hearing aids to help build a relationship further.

However, if your website is not promotional, sending discounts and coupons may confuse your subscribers. Like stated above you’re developing a “community” here. So try your best to get to know them before hitting up their wallets.

What never to do in email marketing

Go silent.

If you disappear after successfully launching a campaign, you’ll be hit by a growing number of unsubscribers. And if you send out a new email after weeks of silence, you may find a sudden influx of brand new unsubscribers.

Why?

Because they forgot you existed.

Ouch, right?

And once they remember who you are (or don’t), they may think what you provide and what they need aren’t the same.

It’s not good for your (eventual) sales, or your current email marketing campaign.

Sources:

1 http://www.forbes.com/forbes/welcome/#552820b1406c

2 http://www.mailigen.com/blog/infographic-segmented-emails-is-what-the-future-holds/

3 http://www.convinceandconvert.com/

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