The single biggest problem in
communication is the illusion that it has taken
place.
-- George
Bernard Shaw
Email should be a critical part of any firm's communications and marketing plan. It can help retain
customers, keep members informed, increase sales,
fill seats, raise brand visibility and help you grow your business. Email is faster and more affordable than traditional print mail, and may even
offer the best return on investment of any marketing medium. And a well crafted email campaign can turn into a viral marketing sensation. If you are
not doing a consistent, substantive email campaign with your audience, you should seriously think about starting.
But to work, email has to be done well. Content needs to be clear and compelling. Graphics need to be visually appealing. Campaigns need to be
personalized and relevant. Delivery needs to be timely and accurate. And results need to be thoroughly tracked and applied to future mailings. Here
are 10 tips that you can use to improve your chances of getting your message heard:
1. Ask for permission.
Sending to people who want to hear from you is the best way to remain legally compliant, maintain a solid reputation, and generate great results. And
with consumers becoming more finicky about what they read - and servers becoming more finicky about what they deliver -
building a true permission-based list is more important than ever.
2. Get into the address book.
Want to know the secret to reaching the inbox? It's the Address Book. Get in there, and you're more likely to bypass any filters and show up just the
way you want to. So remind your audience members to add you to their address book (or white list or safe senders list) every chance you
get.
While we
are on this subject, this might be a good time to remind you to add us to your address book, white list ...
3. Give your emails style and substance.
The visual possibilities of HTML mean it's easier than ever to create emails that are attractive and enticing. Just make sure that in addition to
creating emails that look great, you're also giving your emails enough substance to warrant sending them
in the first place. Marry style and substance with the campaigns you send, and your readers will thank you (and maybe buy something while they're at
it).
4. Send with delivery in mind.
Before your emails can be read and responded to, they have to be seen. You need to ensure that your emails are sent in a way that's designed to
ensure high delivery rates - through personalized delivery, sophisticated delivery policies, and ISP relationships.
5. Use (really use) the subject line.
Arguably the most important single line of any email, the subject line is your two second opportunity to catch someone's eye and convince them to
stop and look. More than one great email has been ruined because of a generic, vague or uninspiring
subject. So craft your subject line with care, test variations whenever you can, and remember that those are the most important 5 to 10 words in your
campaign.
6. Know your audience.
The key to creating appealing content is to really know the group to whom you're trying to appeal. Use signup screens and a database to collect
information about out who they are, where they live, and what they like, and enlist your recipients'
help to keep that information fresh and up-to-date.
7. Tailor your message.
Forget the old days of batch-and-blast. Today, it's about creating smaller, more targeted mailings based on your recipients' demographics, interest
and more. The more timely, relevant and personal you can make it, the better.
8. Handle opt-outs immediately.
This is one thing you can't mess around with. The CAN-SPAM Act grants you 10 days to handle opt-out requests, but in the world of email 10 days is an
eternity. That's why our opt-out feature handles requests instantly and remembers those requests to prevent against accidental abuse.
9. Understand (and use) your results.
Tracking metrics like receipts, bounces, opens, clicks, forwards and signups is the first step to understanding what's happening to your emails. But
those numbers are more than just metrics - they're your audience talking to you. Not with real voices, because that'd be weird, but through their
actions (or inaction). Listen to what they're saying and then apply it to your future emails.
10. Experiment and adapt.
Like most things, email marketing isn't a one-size-fits-all proposition. So start with a basic plan, apply your philosophy and
style, and adapt as you go.
Discover your marketing elements.
