Email marketing isn’t as hard as it seems – if you have the right tools, that is. Here’s what you need to know to get started.
The Basics
Here are the most basic elements of ensuring that email marketing works for you.
-> Use an email service provider like Constant Contact to avoid spam
Breaking the CAN-SPAM Act is a very serious offense. And, as a general rule, spam is annoying to customers. If your emails appear to be spam, it can really hurt your brand. You can learn more about the CAN-SPAM Act here.
-> Don’t let your clients forget about you
Depending on the size of your business and the amount of content you have, sending a daily email might be too much; however, even the smallest of businesses should be sending out emails at least monthly.
-> Create emails that match your brand
Consistency is key. For example, if you’re a more traditional law firm, keep things serious and helpful, but if you’re a little bit more tongue-in-cheek, then let than shine through in your email marketing campaigns.
-> Spike interest with captivating subject lines
If you put effort into learning how to craft a great subject line, you are really going to stand out from your competitors. The best way to do this is to read articles on journalism, read the news extensively, and keep an eye on your competitors.
-> Always add links
This way, your clients have more options to interact with your brand once they finish reading the email. Adding links also lets you examine analytics, like click-through rate.
List Growth Tips
Here’s what you need to know to grow your email marketing list:
-> Always focus on list growth
Industry average open rates are about 24 percent. This may not hold true to your audience; however, the more people you have on your list, the better.
-> Add a link to all outgoing emails
This way, your clients have an option when they finish reading your email. It could be a link to share with a friend, visit your website, or sign up for a course or product launch.
-> Add a line on your contracts for email
Whenever you have someone sign on to your business, have them provide you with their email.
-> Train your employees to request emails and invite people to your join your email list
This is one of the easiest ways to grow your email list! All you have to do is simply remind your employees to ask for client’s emails when they are interacting with them at the register, on the sales floor, or out in the field.
-> Collect emails on your website
This is a very low-effort way to achieve great results. Adding an incentive like, “enter your email for these free 25 marketing tips, straight to your inbox!” tends to work very well.
-> Collect emails at trade shows
As you network in your industry, be sure to collect emails in addition to names and phone numbers. It’s a much easier way to stay in touch with clients and contacts.
-> Run a contest
Running a contest and requiring an email address to enter is a great way to grow you list! It could be a raffle or a guessing game – use your imagination!
Personalization
People love it when marketing is customized to their interests! Here’s how to do it:
-> Add client’s names to personalize emails or get a better insight of analytics
This way, even if the email is automated, the client thinks you put a little bit more effort into it and is more likely to open the email or interact with it.
-> Create separate lists for different interests
Going back to the example of the law office, if you work in family law, you shouldn’t have your clients from divorce cases and adoption cases on the same list, as their needs are going to be extremely different.
-> Show personalization with birthday and anniversary emails
People love it when you remember things about them! Show your clients you care by commemorating their birthday, wedding anniversary, or subscription date.
Automation
The best thing about email marketing is that it’s (for the most part) set and forget. Here’s what you need to know:
-> Send birthday and anniversary emails
You don’t have to remember every single client’s birthday or anniversary! Email software like Constant Contact will do that for you. Just create the email one time and it’ll go out when needed, forever.
-> Send a customized welcome email
It’s the same for welcome emails! Depending on the funnel your client signs up through, be sure to have a customized welcome email sent to them immediately.
-> Add a welcome email drip campaign
Email drips are a series of emails that welcome new subscribers and show them around your blog, business, or website to show them what you have to offer.
-> Create a drip campaign bases on click-throughs
When someone clicks on a link in your email, you should set up auto campaigns to send them things like more information or a special discount code.
Analytics
You could have the biggest email list in the world, but it’s not going to be very useful to you if you can’t tell how it’s performing. Here’s how to get started:
-> Compare open rates with subject lines
Good subject titles will get better open rates! The higher the open rate, the more return on investment you will receive.
-> Compare open rates with time of day
Most people will read an email from a brand immediately if they are going to actually open it. If not, they will let it sit in their inbox for a day or two before purging it. Experiment with when your emails go out, so you can maximize your open rate.
-> Compare open rates with topic of email
What kinds of emails perform well? Are you product launches failing, but your company newsletters excelling? It’s important to know what your clients are interested in, and then maximize on that.
-> View who clicked though on your links
This is a great function on Constant Contact because you can see the exact demographics of your audience who are responding to what you have to say.
-> Track links through to your website and see behavior in Google Analytics
This is helpful because you can see how your clients behave and what interests them once they arrive on your website. This way, you can make sure to play up these features.
-> Make sure your list is growing
Email providers like Constant Contact can give you detailed reports on exactly when, why, and how your email list is growing, so you can see what’s working and what’s not.
Do you need a little bit of help maximizing your email marketing campaigns?
The team at TOCmedia would love to help. Contact us today.
