In this post, I will be presenting some initial email marketing best practices to help improve your marketing strategy.
The truth of the matter is, right now, and even moving forward, email marketing is important. Use these email marketing best practices to generate and convert more leads for your business no matter what industry you’re in.
Ensure that it is easy to subscribe to your email list:
As the first and most important point, considering the fact that purchasing an email list is not advisable, the best way to build up a strong list is by getting subscriptions. Throughout your website, you want to make sure that it is easy and alluring to subscribe.
A few easy ways:
– ensure that there are CTA’s throughout your website and blog
– create some gated content such as ebooks or whitepapers
– post on to your social media accounts with links to your subscription page regularly as you engage with already existing and new followers
Test Email:
Sending yourself a test email should be the first thing you do after finishing your design. This feels like a point that should go without saying. When you take into consideration how few people actually proof their emails, you come to terms that this is a key point.
In this process, you want to ensure that there are no typos, spellings are correct, format is good on desktop and mobile especially, and all links work and point to intended destination. Lastly, ensure that there is absolutely nothing wrong with the email before it is sent out to your target audience.
Welcome Email:
One of the most vital email marketing best practices is establishing contact within 24hrs after you get a new sign up. A well drafted email template should be created with a personal touch. This makes the receiver feel an added sense of value. The average open rate is 80% and CTR is between 20-25% with welcome emails making it the most effective email messages you can send.
Welcome emails also ensure your list is clean. By sending this initial email, you can determine if the contact email was entered incorrectly. It also informs recent signees that their sign up was successful.
Add something valuable in that email that can be of benefit to the new lead and you will be sure to see an increase in CTR and engagement.
Find a schedule that works:
In this highly competitive space, the goal is having your newsletter at the top of the inbox of your target audience. Knowing fully well that they are also subscribed to a lot of other businesses and companies.
The best time to send emails is very much unique to every business, the industry, location and audience. One of the most effective email marketing best practices is to send out a few test emails. Preferably in the morning from 8am – 9am on different days so that you get to know the digital habits of people who engage in your industry and discover their time of peak engagement. Based on a few tests, you will establish a day and time. Stick to that schedule, be consistent and informative. Remember that these times are specific to your recipient’s time zones, which may or may not match yours. Depending on the size of your customer base, you may segment your list based on time zones (more on segmentation later).
While on the subject of scheduling, how frequently do you want to send these emails? Depending on what your business is and the services you offer, you want to make sure you engage with your subscribers at least once a month.
If we look at the mailing frequency data, we see that email marketers who send one newsletter a week get the highest average open and click-through rates. Under mailing and over mailing are two things to be mindful of when thinking about your scheduling. You want to ensure your company has a strong inbox presence, and consistent sender reputation.
Developing a calendar is also one of the most important email best practices. Plan your content ahead of time based on the goods and services you offer to ensure that you are touching the right points at the right time. When you get the frequency right, you in turn develop a healthy and loyal list.
These above listed points are only the tip of the iceberg when discussing email marketing best practices. Please don’t hesitate to contact us for any of your sales and marketing needs. For great insights into startup sales and marketing, feel free to sign up for our newsletter or follow us on Twitter.
