Email marketing is cool. You create one, send it to your customers and prospects, and they send you money. Yes, that is definitely cool. And, it used to be that easy. Today, it is much harder.
The effectiveness of email campaigns aren’t a secret. Everyone in business from big box department stores to your local auto mechanic knows about it. And, they want their piece of the pie.
This means that the folks in your database are being bombarded with emails.
When they open their inbox and see tons of new messages, their minds overload. Regular cognitive functionality is diminished and the only thing left to do is…
delete
delete
delete
delete
After a few massive delete sessions, their mind overload hits the red zone. Then it’s…
unsubscribe
unsubscribe
unsubscribe
unsubscribe
Your emails can be in the safe zone with friends and family, far away from the delete and unsubscribe processes if you:
- Send relevant information in a timely manner. My children are required to wear school uniforms. Lands End is one of the preferred vendors. Their emails reminding me to order uniforms in time for school are lifesavers. (Yes, I know that if I were a real super Mom that I wouldn’t need a reminder. I’m not. So, there.)
- Provide valuable information. Your customers are thirsting for real content, not the sale du jour. If you sell clothes, provide tips for updating their wardrobe on a budget. If you sell gardening supplies, teach them how to root cuttings. If you sell automobile parts, explain the benefits of good maintenance. Do you see where this is going? Including links to your products is a service, not a promotion.
- Have a great relationship with your customer. Do you delete emails from friends and family before reading them? No? Why? You have a relationship with them and care about what they have to say. Treat your customers right, provide timely relevant information, and they will read your emails, too.
Being in the safe zone doesn’t guarantee that your emails will be opened.
You need a great subject line that has stopping power. It needs to be short, relevant, and make your recipients mind scream STOP when they are skimming through their inbox. Here are few examples from the emails I received in the last 48 hours (shown as I see them in my inbox. My email client truncates some.):
1. Solutions for a healthy new you
2. LAST DAY To Take 30-50% Off Desig
3. A Brand New Look for a Brand New Y
4. Fresh ways to get fit. For fresh little
5. Winter Sale—Save up to 50%
6. Hot Coats from $68
7. Up to 75% off clearance blowout!
8. Cold outside? Winter Sale + Free Shi
9. COUPON – Save 33%
10. Don’t wait! Stock Up & Save Today
11. New Year’s Offer
12. Live Healthy for Less: Diet, Fitness &
The problem with these subject lines is that they either blend in or are misleading. Numbers 1, 4, and 12 appear to be informational but they were strictly promotional. The emails featured products without any discussion of how they improved your health. If you are writing similar ones, the question to ask yourself is “Do I want to be ignored or alienate customers?”
Successful email campaigns are a process, not an event.
Sale promotions work, but they perform better when they are mixed with informative and entertaining emails. Each send builds on the previous one, solidifying the company and customer relationship. If you do this well, your emails will work every time.
For more information on how to improve your email marketing, read:
And, check out our email marketing playbooks:
You don’t have to be a marketing guru to deliver great email results. Follow the Email Map to increased sales and profitability.
