The world of email marketing is a delicate ecosystem. On one hand, you have a direct line to your audience, a powerful tool for nurturing leads and driving sales. On the other hand, you’re just one click away from the digital abyss of the unsubscribe button. How do you navigate this treacherous landscape? The key lies in creating content that your subscribers actually want to receive, not just tolerating.
Here are some long standing tips for crafting email campaigns that foster engagement without driving people to hit unsubscribe.
1. Personalization Goes Beyond First Names
We’ve all received emails that start with “Hi [First Name],” which is a good start, but it’s a very basic approach to personalization. True personalization is about understanding your audience on a deeper level. It’s about segmenting your email list based on behavior, interests and demographics.
For example, a clothing retailer could segment their list based on past purchases. If a customer has consistently bought winter coats, you might send them a tailored email about a new collection of cold weather accessories. If they’ve only bought summer dresses, you would not send them an email about coats. This approach makes your emails feel like a personal recommendation, not a mass broadcast.
2. Focus on Value, Not Just Selling
Think of your email list as a community, not just a list of potential customers. The best way to keep a community engaged is to provide them with something of value. This means a significant portion of your emails should be educational, entertaining or insightful.
Share blog posts that solve common problems, offer exclusive tutorials, or provide behind the scenes glimpses into your company. For instance, a software company could send a weekly email with tips and tricks for using their product more efficiently. A food blogger could share a new recipe every week. When you consistently provide value, your subscribers will look forward to your emails and view you as a trusted resource, not a persistent salesperson.
3. Optimize for Mobile Everything
More than half of all emails are opened on a mobile device. If your email is not optimized for a small screen, you are immediately creating a frustrating experience. A great mobile experience means using a single column layout, large font sizes that are easy to read and clear, and concise calls to action that are easy to tap with a thumb.
Test your emails on different devices and email clients before you send them. A responsive design is not just a nice to have feature anymore; it is an absolute necessity. Make sure your images are optimized for fast loading times on a mobile network.
4. Be Transparent and Manage Expectations
From the moment someone signs up for your list, you should be transparent about what they can expect. On your sign up form, be explicit. “Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get exclusive recipes and cooking tips,” is a lot more effective than a generic “Sign up for our newsletter.”
This transparency continues with your email cadence. If you told them to expect a weekly email, then don’t start sending them three emails a day. If you plan to increase the frequency, give them a heads up and explain the reason for the change. This helps to build trust and prevent that jarring feeling of being spammed.
5. Craft Compelling Subject Lines
The subject line is your one and only chance to convince a person to open your email. It needs to be a hook that’s both intriguing and relevant. Avoid clickbait and be genuine. A good subject line could be a question, a benefit driven statement or a teaser. For example, “Are you making this common marketing mistake?” is more effective than “New Blog Post.”
Test different subject lines to see what resonates with your audience. A/B testing can be incredibly insightful for this purpose. However, do not get so creative that you compromise clarity. Your subscribers should have a general idea of what the email is about before they open it.
6. Make Unsubscribing Easy
This might sound counterintuitive, but an easy unsubscribe process is a sign of respect for your subscribers. Hiding the unsubscribe link or making the process complicated will only frustrate people. This can lead them to mark your emails as spam, which is far worse for your sender reputation and deliverability than an unsubscribe.
A clearly visible and functioning unsubscribe link at the bottom of every email is essential. Some companies even offer a preference center where subscribers can choose which types of emails they want to receive. This is a smart way to retain subscribers who might be overwhelmed by the volume of emails but still want to hear from you occasionally.
7. Don’t Be Afraid to Clean Your List
An active, engaged email list is more valuable than a huge list full of people who never open your emails. If you have subscribers who have not engaged with your emails in months, it is time to consider removing them.
Before you do, send them a re engagement email. Something like, “We’ve missed you! Do you still want to hear from us?” A clever and brief message can work wonders. If they don’t respond to that, it is probably time to remove them from your list. Maintaining a clean list improves your open rates and click through rates and also helps your overall sender reputation with Internet Service Providers.
By following these guidelines, you can transform your email marketing from a potential annoyance to an eagerly anticipated part of your subscribers’ lives. It’s about building a relationship based on trust, value and respect, one email at a time.