Sometimes we all get stuck in a rut. You’ve found your tried and true method and plod forward. sticking with the status quo week after week. When is the last time you looked at your email campaigns? You’ve got your list, your standard header, layout, and monthly messaging. You usually cut and paste and then add a new image or special for the month. Sound familiar? Well, if so, there’s no better time than now to shake things up and do some spring cleaning!
One Size Email Does Not Fit All
With just a check in the box, most email marketing services like MailChimp allow you to customize your emails. Inserting subscribers’ names personalizes a mass communication and stands out more from the email onslaught so many of us have waiting for us in our Inboxes.
Clear Purpose
You may be tempted to try to get more bang for your email opens by including several messages in your email communications. But more isn’t necessarily better. Sticking with one clear call to action with an obvious follow through is direct and provides pointed direction. Offering free shipping if you order the Product of the Month? Provide the code and link it to your website to order direct. Event coming up and you want customers to RSVP? Provide a deadline and sense of urgency by requesting immediate RSVP’s linked to your FB event page. Don’t leave them guessing. Tell them what you’re offering and how to take advantage of it.
We Have Contact
Woe is the marketer who disregards that first point of contact with their consumer. You only have one chance to hook your audience, so make your email title and pre-header text attention-grabbing with obvious calls to action, inspiring urgency and the desire to not want to miss out on what you’re offering. Use emoticons if it makes sense. But be clear on what folks will get if they open your email.
The Time Is Now… And Also Now
If you’ve found your sweet spot when it comes to hitting your audience and your open rates show it, great. But that tried and true time is one of most likely several key times to reach your audience. Don’t hesitate to mix things up and schedule your emails at various times and on various days. Check back with your analytics to see what’s hitting and what isn’t so you can move beyond sending all emails at 11 A.M. on Tuesday.
Have Smartphone, Will Travel
Emails don’t only get opened on desktops. In fact, they are opened less and less on desktops. By this year, it’s estimated that 8 in 10 email users will likely access their email accounts exclusively from their mobile devices. Being mobile-responsive is imperative. If your email doesn’t read clean, your emails won’t get opened.
So snap out of your email doldrums and breathe some fresh air into your email marketing methods. And then do it again in a few months. And then a few months after that…
