By Julian Lynch
Online Marketing Account Manager
Email marketing can be effective; there is no argument with that. The channel works really well for marketers who know how to use it. Even 45% of consumers in a recent eMarketer survey said it was a "great way" for companies to stay in touch with their customers. Few other marketing vehicles can give the instant gratification of an email campaign that has found its target.
As with all promotional activity a succinct, clear email marketing strategy should be defined. This should be built on the foundation of the overall marketing strategy. Before embarking on the creation of this strategy, several questions should be answered:
- The positioning of the product - namely what it does and who is it for?
- What is the target market and key segments?
- What are the sales objectives - specifically the amount of sales, volume of sales, profit margin, etc?
- What are the estimated open rates, click-through rates and conversion rates?
- What is the life-time value of each customer acquired?
- What are the estimated effects on lifetime value for customers of a retention campaign?
- Other factors should be taken into account such as fulfilment, delivery, customer service and other activities that will be affected by the campaign.
There are two main elements to creating an effective email:
1. Know Your Customer
2. Actual Creative - Copy & Design
1. Know Your Customer
One of the most important elements in your campaign is your target audience. The more you know your consumer, the more your strategy, offer, and entire message will be unified. Find out exactly what your consumers need. What makes him tick? What makes her happy? What does she do on weekends? Is he a workaholic? A multi-tasker? A weekend warrior?
2. Copy & Design
Some key copy and design considerations are as follows:
- First impressions count. Subject lines dramatically impact results both in terms terms of deliverability and open rates.
- Write to be scanned, not read. Pay particular attention to the "fold" and ensure the WOW! factor of your message appears above the fold.
- Make the call to action clear. Don't expect your reader to click because a link is present. Tell them to click - this will dramatically improve click-through rates.
- Avoid using impersonal generic email addresses. Send emails from a real person, and not info@company.com.
- Proof read email copy and test links. It might seem redundant but get a third party to read through copy and check all links.
- Avoid common spam triggers. Check the email through one of the commercially available spam checkers.
- Make your creative something to be proud of. Do not over clutter the message: don't use too many words, and do not cut corners just because email is a cheap communication medium.
In summary, done right, you'll find that the success of your email campaign is fast, measurable and calculable.
Back to May's Newsletter
