Jul 16

Written by: host
16 July 2009 

Research shows that email marketing is delivering a return on investment (ROI), second only to search marketing. The high ROI can be attributed to the low cost associated with sending out emails; the targeted messages to match target audience needs, and the measurability to easily see what works and what doesn’t.
Here are some key principals of effective email marketing.  Implementing these Do’s and Don’ts will help separate your email from the crowd to provide an even better ROI.

Do....

Get permission to communicate to the individual

We are talking ‘permission marketing’ – email is just the mechanism for delivery.  Be very clear on this – you need to have permission to communicate with an individual. Without permission you are breaking the law and could be exposing your business to possible court proceedings and a fine.

Use html for design impact that is unique to your business

One of the enormous benefits of email marketing is brand / company awareness.  Sending a monthly newsletter reminds your audience of your company, who you are and what you deliver.
Make the email stand out, use html and a company template which is in line with your brand and with your website.  Use images (but not too many).  Make sure your logo is clearly visible and has a link to your website.

Ask the contact to add you to their ‘safe senders’ list on the first email after sign up

Deliverability is key to effective email marketing.  As legitimate email marketers we are always impacted by spam filters.  An email that ends up in a junk email folder will rarely get read.
If someone signs up on your site or before you send a new contact a newsletter, then send them an email thanking them (this always goes down well), and in this email ask them to add your email address to their safe senders list.

Put clear calls to action in your email

Have a clear purpose to your email – or even more than one.  What action do you want the recipient to take?  Once you know this then tell them what to do and make it very clear.  They will then understand what why you have sent them the email in the first place and will be more likely to respond in a positive way.

Add links to your website to drive traffic

One of the most common goals of any email is to drive traffic back to your website.  Make sure that the links are targeted to the relevant page on your site and not just to your home page.  Put a synopsis of an article in the email with a link to the full article on your website.
Make sure your links all work before sending out your email.

Analyse who has done what

Digital marketing consistently returns higher ROI because you measure, report and analyse on specific activity.  Analyse your open rates, click rates and bounce rates.  Look to see who has followed what link in your email – they are telling you what they are interested in.

Have an unsubscribe mechanism on every email

With permission marketing you must (it’s the law) provide a mechanism for people to be able to opt out of receiving your emails.  Most email systems provide this as a standard feature.  You then have 10 days in which to suppress the opt out.

Test, test and test again before sending out

Test that your email looks right in different client email accounts – Outlook, Hotmail, Google Mail, Yahoo and Mac email clients are the most common.  Test that your images load; test that the email is not considered as spam; and test that all the links work.  You cannot test enough before sending out a broadcast email.

Have a version that people can view online

If someone is having problems viewing your email (despite all your testing) or they don’t want to download images then have a link to an online version of your email.  Place this at the top of your email  so it is clearly visible.
Use an email service provider because they provide increased deliverability and protect your domain from being blacklisted

Don’t....

Use too many images

I have seen email campaigns sent out as a whole image.  Most email clients will not open images unless you are in their safe senders list.  This means that they have to click to download images.  So it is a good idea that even if they do not download your images that they can still see the text and so receive your key messages.
Images are a great asset to an email communication and they will enhance the overall look and feel of an email.  The word of warning is to use images in moderation. 

Bombard your audience with emails – they will think your spamming them

Spam gives email marketing a bad name.  If you send too many communications too often, people can perceive you as spamming especially if the information is not interesting and relevant to the target audience. The only outcome of this will be that they unsubscribe.

Use words that could be deemed as spam

As I have said deliverability is key to success with email marketing.  Be careful with using words that could be considered as spam by the spam filters especially in your email title.  Words such as Earn, Act Now, Please read, Amazing, Offer are all examples of words that spam filters look out for.  There are many more so be careful.  It is always a good idea to Spam check your email before it goes out, this is included in many email solutions.

Pass on personal details to others

When people agree that you can communicate with them they expect to receive emails from only you.  So passing their details to a third party is not what people expect.
Expressly saying that you won’t pass on their details at point of sign up has been proven to increase sign up rates.  You should have this as part of your Privacy policy published on your website.

Be too wordy – short introduction and then link to more information

On the whole, people skim emails – they rarely read an email from beginning to end.  So, provide a brief synopsis with a link to more information.  This will make your emails more effective, drive links to the site and allow people to self qualify their interest. 

Misspell words or use poor grammar

This is never a good idea in any communication.  It will reflect badly on you and your brand, so get one or more individuals to check your email copy before you send it out.

Please use this as a checklist when planning your email communications.  Some of these are blatantly obvious and some are not.  You may also find the free download ‘Email Marketing Planning Document' of use.

Following some key principals will soon have your email marketing delivering a massive return on your investment.

 

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