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Email marketing is one of the most cost-effective and efficient online-marketing strategies. It allows you to drive revenue with just a click and maintain strong relationships with your customers.
It’s also highly measurable, allowing you to optimize and fine-tune your campaigns to drive ROI that outperforms all other marketing channels. It’s clear that many businesses don’t invest enough effort in their email marketing.
We are constantly bombarded with email marketing, and I am sure you have hit “delete” more than your fair share of times. Maybe the subject line didn’t intrigue you, or the email just screamed “advertisement.”
You can make your email marketing campaigns more profitable and effective by following a few simple tips. Let’s go over the top five that’ll help increase your ROI the next time you send an email campaign.
Related: Why Email Marketing Is Better for Your Business Than Social Media
1. Monitor your email deliverability
While open rates, click through rates, and revenue generated all matter, deliverability is something you should pay more attention to. Everything else is meaningless if no one is receiving your emails.
You need to make quick changes if you notice you are not inboxing a large percentage of your list or that your deliverability rate has dropped. Spamming can cause some email platforms to flag IP addresses. Eventually, other users are affected because of a “bad neighbor” sending from the same IPs.
Spam filters are also much more advanced now than they were years ago, filtering out what they consider “junk” based on spam-trigger words included in the subject line and email body.
2. 2. Optimize for mobile
When you are writing your email subject lines and copy, assume that all users are going to receive, open and view your message on a mobile device. This means your subject line needs to grab their attention right away, your message needs to be direct and to the point, and your design needs to be eye-catching and flow seamlessly on a small screen.
Mobile email is rapidly growing and statistics are all over. Some resources claim more than 50% of all emails are opened and read on mobile phones while others claim that number is north of 70%.
This number will only continue to rise so make sure you design all your emails with mobile in mind. You might also consider having a responsive email template created. A branded template can make your emails standout and is very affordable.
Related: 8 DIY SEO Tips to Optimize Your Mobile Marketing
3. Include one CTA
Have you ever opened an email from a brand and been unsure what it was promoting or offering? Some emails contain links that lead to blog posts, or offer random sales or promotions.
Zero direction. Zero clarity. This is a terrible approach. These emails don’t convert, and they cause many consumers to hit the unsubscribe button. If you want to see your emails convert at a higher rate, include a single call to action, and tell your recipient what that action is and what you want them to do.
For example, if an apparel brand is promoting a new limited-edition drop, and the email serves as a pre-sale notification, it needs to make that clear. A little text blurb, an image of the product and then a call to action in the form of a large button that says “Pre-Order Now!” is all it takes to drive results.
4. Segment your email list
You are missing a huge opportunity. Your list should be broken down into as many segments as possible.
Segmentation is necessary for all data types, including purchase history, order frequency, and any other important piece of information that may be relevant to your business.
The sooner you realize that all of your email recipients don’t want the same thing, the sooner you will be able to send them emails that are catered toward what they do want. This isn’t an overnight process, but you can start by segmenting your list into two categories: customers and non-customers, and further segment from there.
Related: 5 Email-Marketing Strategies to Conquer Consumer Inaction
5. Use humor and shock value when writing subject lines
The email must be opened by the recipients. Even though you might have the best offer, if it is not opened or discarded, there is no way to generate any return.
Your subject line must grab attention and entice recipients to click on it. Your emails need to stand out from the dozens of other emails in your recipients’ inboxes. Use humor and shock value to your advantage.
