Email marketing can be quite a tricky business, and what’s acceptable is subject to change as time passes, so it’s a smart idea to revisit email marketing best practices routinely. What works best is affected by other aspects and technology changes, so if we want to get the best results we need to keep current.
Ten best practices for email marketing
- Craft an attention-getting subject line – This is task one, as if you don’t make this something that compels an open, you’re done. Use short, bold and punchy text.
- Optimize your emails for mobile – Since now as much as 67 percent of all emails are being viewed on a mobile device, if you’re not doing this you are losing ground.
- Personalize the “From” line – Using an impersonal return address such as info@soandsocompany.com will more than likely get trashed.
- Utilize several calls to action – If you really want the click, sell it, and make sure you have one of these above the fold.
- Make the body text brief and to the point – No one is planning on reading a thousand word email, so don’t be that guy! Say what you need to say, using bullet points if you have several points, and ask them to click elsewhere for more.
- Include videos and pictures – Visual content is very popular these days, and there is a lot of evidence that it converts much better than mere text.
- Emphasize benefits to reader – Don’t spend time talking about you: all they really want to know is what’s in it for them, so be sure not to disappoint.
- Don’t be a stranger, or a pest – Each audience in each market is different, but suffice it to say you need to mail enough to be front of mind in your market without being annoying.
- Encourage and enable social sharing – Using social sharing effectively doubles your click through rate. Any more questions?
- Deliver valuable content – The best thing you can do to get better results from your email marketing is to consistently deliver awesome content. Doing so will brand you a star in your niche, and word will get around.
