Despite the boom in people using social media to keep up to date with friends, brands & businesses, emails newsletters still hold a place in your marketing.
In this Optinmonster.com report, 58% of those surveyed claim their email is the first thing they check each morning. The high deliverability of emails also mean that engagement rates are significantly higher than social media posts.
When used thoughtfully, email newsletters remain as an important tool to keep your existing customers & fans up to date.
So, here’s 5 ways to instantly improve your email marketing campaigns. To better tell your story & inspire action:
1. Optimise the subject line
Along with the sender name, the subject line is your first chance to grab your audiences attention. These words are what will inspire them to open your email & see what’s inside.
Often more time is spent on what the email looks like inside, than on the subject line. But if the recipient doesn’t tap open, they won't ever get to see your hard work.
Use this space to inspire an open. Keep it short so it can be read in full. Remember the aim here is to get the recipient to open the email - a cold hard is likely to turn them off.
Don’t forget what Mailchimp calls the 'Preview Test'. This is the extra line of text from you that appears in many email clients, just below the subject line. Optimise this space too, always with the intent of inspiring your recipient to hit open.
What is an Open Rate: an open rate is the total number of users opening your email divided by the total number of recipients it was sent to.
2. Pay attention to what it looks like on mobile
46% of email opens happen on mobile device. Research suggests that the younger the recipient, the more likely they are to use a mobile to check their email. So, even though you’re using your laptop to create & test your email newsletter, the recipient is likely to see the mobile version.
Check test sends of your email campaign on both your desktop & mobile device. Take note of what it looks like in your inbox, what it looks like when you open it & what the journey is like when you click or tap on the links.
What is a responsive email design: a responsive email is one that automatically adapts to whichever device it is viewed on. The same images & text will be displayed if the recipient opens on either device. They will just be shrunk.
3. Create templates
Adapting pre built templates offered in sending clients like Mailchimp is a good starting point. But building your own using drag & drop functionality is just as easy.
Search for templates you like on Pinterest or Canva & recreate them in your email sending platform. Duplicate old templates when building your latest email newsletter.
Using a standardised look & feel each time will help your recipient read your newsletter. But take care not to be too repetitive. The design may lose its impact. Refresh your templates at least every 6 months.
4. Make your images clickable
A picture speaks a thousands words.
Heatmaps of where your readers are clicking will prove time & time again that this is where users click. Make sure your images have relevant & useful links behind them. Design your image with a call to action (CTA) like 'Shop Now' or 'View More' to subtly communicate there is more content along those lines, should the reader want it.
Take care of the size of your images. If they're too large they'll too long to load. Your recipient is likely not to wait. Pair your images with short & sweet titles & sentences to explain the reason for your email.
5. Understand your analytics
Take the time to look at the results from your newsletters to understand their impact. Basic sending tools like Mailchimp offer analytics like open rates & click through rates. As well as heat maps that show where readers are clicking.
Compare your campaign statistics against themselves. Soon you'll get a feel for what's a good number or a bad number. Remembering that the more specific or targeted the audience is, the higher the rates will be.
For example; a sub segment of your database, only containing those who have engaged in one of the last 10 emails you have sent, is a super warm group. An email sent to this sub segment will see a significantly higher open rate & click through rate.
What impacts an open rates - time of send, day of send, subject line. What impacts a click through rate - the design of the email, wording, images, call to actions & links.
Keeping your customers & fans up to date with an email newsletter is still an effective way to relationship build. Making just a few small changes to the way you use your email newsletters could drive significant benefits for your business.
There's more on how we can help your email marketing here. If you'd like even more a steer email michelle@narrativeagency.co.uk. She's an email marketing pro.
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