Efficient & Effective Email Marketing
In the next couple of years there is expected to be over 4 billion email users worldwide. In 2021 alone there was an average of 293.6 billion emails sent and received each day. (Statista)
Email marketing remains one of the best ways to provide a unique opportunity to reach customers and offer a personalised experience.
Due to the sheer volume of emails in the ether, there are several aspects to consider when launching an email marketing campaign.
1, Timing is Everything
Doing your research is key. There are many different theories about when email campaigns should be sent. First thing on a Monday morning, the recipient is likely to be checking emails, but less likely to have the time to browse or properly read something that isn’t relevant to perhaps their morning at the office. Straight after payday? Many people actually schedule their bills and payments as close to payday as possible, this way they are guaranteed to be paid before salaries can be used up! Receiving an email with an offer or promotion at the end of the month before payday can also be tricky.
Research has shown that Saturdays are one of the worse days for email open rates and click through rates. The key is to understand audience behaviour, when is the target audience most likely to view an email, when are they most likely to click a link on an email with a view to making a purchase? There are no finite rules of course, but accurate customer research and analysis can really help narrow down those windows of opportunity.
2, Strong Subjects
People will open emails if they feel they will benefit from the content. Writing the subject line can be key to any successful email marketing campaign open rate. Making sure that the topic doesn’t look like spam or a virus riddled email is also high on the email marketing checklist.
There are several routes you can take with subject lines. Firstly make the recipient feel that they are going to miss out on something great. They will benefit if they open this email, they will receive something or get access to something that they absolutely need.
You can also approach it by tempting the reader in, inviting them to discover something new, see something extraordinary or perhaps suggest the answer to a question they might have.
Using words such as “discount” and “free” can make viewers pay attention to an email, because lets be honest – who doesn’t want something for free or discounted!
3, Clear Content
Most email marketing campaigns will direct the recipient to a website or webpage so in theory the email itself doesn’t need to be too complicated. If you give too much away in the email then people won’t need to click through which chips away at the possibility of converting them to a customer. Keep wording or paragraphs short and to the point and don’t put too many ideas in one email. If you have 10 products you are wanting to advertise, perhaps mention a couple in the email and then direct the viewer to a specific webpage showcasing all the items.
Easy reading is key. Make it clear what you want the recipient to do and how they can do it.
4, Keep Continuity
Imagine this, an email arrives in your inbox, it is advertising a digital design course. The email is sharp, clear, concise and explains exactly what the course is for and how to sign up. The viewer clicks the link to sign up for the course, enticed by the discount, the digital images in the email and the exciting blurb of the course. They arrive at a complex webpage, spend several minutes trying to find how to sign up for this course. They eventually give up because the website does not facilitate the email marketing campaign. The destination page must allow the user to complete the task you are asking of them in the email, and it must do it easily.
Following through on promised discounts and promotions is also very important. If an offer is time sensitive, make sure it is clearly stated in the campaign.
5, Research and Review
Before setting up an email marketing campaign it goes without saying that you have to have done your background research. Sending an email to a random bunch of people, hoping to catch a few potential clients is not the way to go. Your email marketing list will be made up of people who have interacted with your brand before, have an interest in similar brands or products, or people who want to hear about your services. These lists are important so as to keep email marketing campaigns both relevant and cost effective.
After every campaign it is vital to analyse the process. What worked and what didn’t? Was there a particular time that most people viewed the email? Did the email send users to the correct destination and did they complete the task or goal that was set initially? How many people unsubscribed? How many people didn’t even open the email?
All these analytics are so important to make sure that any email marketing efforts are not redundant.
For advice or help with your email marketing campaign needs, get in touch with eppiq today. We are experienced in running email marketing campaigns with a background across many industries.
