6 Tips to Make Email Marketing Work for You

In this post we’ll explain these 6 ways to make email marketing work for you: 1. Segment your contacts 2. Be more social, less salesy 3. Be specific and focused 4. Be patient with the process 5. Conduct A/B tests for subject line and timing 6. Leverage email marketing software
Email marketing often gets a bad rap. Most people get a lot of emails every day, and many of those emails are junk, so it’s no surprise that many of them end up in the trash or even labeled as SPAM. On the other hand, there are compelling statistics that support the effectiveness of email marketing. Here are just a few:

• Email marketing return on investment averages 28.5%
  
• 72% of people prefer to receive promotional content through email
  
• 97% of businesses use email marketing to convert email recipients into buyers

There’s no denying that getting your email into an inbox and getting it read is a challenge, but there’s also no denying that if you achieve that goal, it is worth your efforts!

One of the biggest mistakes we see businesses making in their email marketing efforts is sending the same email to everyone on their list. Segmentation is the key to improving open rates, click-through rates, and conversions, and decreasing opt-outs and SPAM rates. There are many ways to segment a list – interests, position in sales funnel, geography, demographics, and hundreds more - and every contact list is different. There is no one size fits all, so when determining how to segment your list, remember the goal of segmentation - to give your reader what they want and avoid sending them what they don’t want. Here are 2 examples of effective segmentation:

• A fitness center sending a series of emails to NEW subscribers
  
• A real estate agent sending one email to potential BUYERS and a different email to potential SELLERS
  

If you treat email marketing exclusively like an advertisement, you will quickly watch your list dwindle as people unsubscribe or report your emails as spam. You’re also trying to provide helpful information and to build ongoing relationships with your contacts, so the tone and content of your emails should reflect that strategy.

First, you need to realize that the purpose of an email isn’t always going to be about selling a product or service. However, it’s still going to be about getting your reader to take some kind of action – click to your website, download a coupon, give you a call, and – sometimes – make a purchase. So how do you do that? First, know what it is that you want to accomplish with the email and focus on that goal. Then be as specific as possible. A clear subject line that tells your reader what they will get for opening the email will improve your open rate , and a call to action within the email that clearly explains what they will get by taking the action will improve conversion rates .

Effective email marketing doesn’t happen overnight. Occasionally, a business will hit it out of the park and see amazing results with their first email, but most have to work at finding what works best for their contact list and their business. You can start with what the experts say is the best time to send an email, the best frequency, etc., but then you have to see what works for you. Think about when your audience is most likely to open AND engage with your email (segmentation can play a role here).

Conduct A/B tests by sending an email on Tuesday at 6 am to half of your list, and that same email (subject line and all) on Thursday at 6 am to the other half of your list. Then, look at which email got the most open rates, click-through rates, etc. Once you determine the best day, conduct an A/B test to figure out the best time. Once you figure out the best day and time, try another A/B test to see what subject lines work best.

Whether you are seeking a simple, easy-to-use email marketing system, or something more sophisticated that provides autoresponders and integrates with a CRM package, there is likely a great solution to meet your needs. For a quick overview of some of the more popular email marketing solutions, click here.

Not sure where to start? Power Marketing International can effectively design, monitor and manage your email marketing campaigns at a fraction of the cost of what most agencies charge. For a free email marketing consultation, give us a call at (484) 297-6395 or contact us online.