Email marketing is not simply a matter of sending out emails to customers and potential customers. You need to know about how it works, what your customers want from you and how to make your email marketing work for you, your customers and your business. Use the tips from this article to develop an email marketing campaign that will give everyone what they want.
Do not send out unsolicited emails. Your emails will be considered as spams if you send them to people who did not sign up on their own. In addition to having a negative effect on your reputation, this could also cause ISPs to block you.
Offer a coupon to customers who sign up for your marketing email list. Put a form on your website where customers can sign up and set the form to email automatically new customers a coupon when they submit the form. This encourages customers to agree to allow you to send them marketing materials so that you won’t be accused of sending out spam.
Always seek permission before sending marketing emails to potential customers. Sending unsolicited emails will quickly have you labeled a spammer. Getting permission to send your messages doesn’t have to be hard; offer something valuable to your customers in exchange for the ability to email them, such as a discount, coupon, or other sign-up incentive.
Before using email marketing, create a test email and send it to a friend or family member. Your loved one can see how the email looks and give you feedback. This way, if any changes need to be made, you can do it before sending the emails out to customers.
Ensure that your audience is targeted correctly. When you have a substantial number of readers, brainstorm ways to have them sign up friends. Include a link to subscribe at the top of your emails so that anyone who receives a copy that has been forwarded from a friend can sign up as well. Your subscriber base will grow by itself.
Let your readers choose the layout of your content. Any messages with images, graphics and JavaScript is likely to get eaten by software filters and never seen by human eyes. Send out basic text or rich text format including a link to your website, and the option of an HTML version for those that want it.
Try engaging the customer using the subject line of the email. Your email must grab your reader’s attention the minute it lands inside of their inbox, otherwise it may go into their trash. If you have a weak or uninteresting subject line, that is exactly what will happen. So try spicing up your subject line with some creativity.
While you want to use your email marketing to improve your sales. The only way to get potential customers to read your emails is to convince them that they have value. To do this, your emails should always contain concrete, useful information and relevant links, and not just generic sales fluff.
Don’t send more than one email marketing message per week. Your customers are likely busy people who receive several messages every day. If you send out more than one email per week, you will see that your customers will delete or not read them.
Clearly posting an unsubscribe link is recommended. Never fail to give your customers this unsubscribe link, and you should never bury this link within the text that makes it difficult to be located. You want the subscribers to feel like they are in control of the process, and nothing is being forced onto them.
Let customers know how to add your email address to their “safe sender list”. Many people do not know how to prevent certain emails from being sent to their spam folder. Inform them of how to prevent this from happening and encourage them to add you to their address book.
Make sure every email you send contains a strong call to action. Don’t leave anyone guessing about how you want them to respond. Tell them clearly. Make sure that any links you include are clear and easily spotted. You can repeat these sections by including them in both the top and bottom of your messages.
Remember that the point of an email marketing plan is to build a reputation with your customer base. Be sure you don’t cut corners, target inappropriate customers, or any other misleading techniques. Your business’s reputation is at risk here and you must remember that.
Rather than purchasing or renting a mailing list, build your own from the ground up. You can do this by including opt-in forms on your website, gathering business cards at conventions or other industry events, and encouraging your subscribers to share your emails with others, which can garner even more subscribers.
Keep all of your branding in your email consistent with your business. Don’t make your email appear as though it belongs to another business. Try to stick with your usual colors, voice, and fonts so that the readers can recognize that the email is from you and so they will read it.
As noted above, email marketing is not as simple as just sending out emails to customers and potential customers. Your content and strategy makes all the difference in whether you email marketing will be a success for whether it will just be another piece of overlooked spam. Use the techniques and the information from the above article to help you launch and email campaign that you and your customers will love.
