Email Marketing Strategy and Tips for Successful Campaigns

One might think that so much has been said about email marketing that it would appear there is hardly anything more else to add... but they would be wrong.

Email marketing may be popular, but there are still many unknowns to unravel. For one thing, who is to say there won’t pop up a better and easier way of advertising anytime now?

Email marketing is the cheapest for of advertising, but it is by no means easy. Marketing is marketing, no matter the form of a campaign, which means that it centers on feedback. Unlike with traditional marketing that implies eye-to-eye contact, email marketing must gain the trust of the recipients first - the task that relies solely on the quality of the subject line.

Namely, the subject line translates into the first impression, and everybody knows that first impressions stick to people persistently. Even more importantly, they should be ye-catching, as you may well expects that your customers will be interested in competitors’ offer, too.

To that end, it is crucial to keep informed about the competition. The easiest way to achieve that is to subscribe to their newsletter. Not necessarily should all brands operating in the same industry or in the same area be considered as competition - only the successful ones and those offering similar products. Another important aspect to mind is - adjust the prices in line with competitors’.

How toCreate a Targeted Email List?

 First of all, you’ll need to build your email list. Sending marketing emails to random people is not the way to go about increasing your ROI, as it will ultimately fail. Normally, you’ll want to promote your offer to people who are looking for one.

That’s why segmented, targeted campaigns boost brands’ RPI dramatically, as opposed to random messages sent to random people.

There are multiple methods to aid you with building a solid email list, most common ones of which are subscription forms, social media and giveaways. The first two are as clear as; as for the giveaways, you may offer an incentive in return for an email address. These don’t have to be expensive or exclusive - the majority of brands offers a free ebook or similar. 

In order to boost subscriptions, you need to communicate to the prospective customers what they can expect from your brand. This is of crucial importance, since spam emails are on the rise. What do you plan to send? Simply word it - newsletters, promotions, special offers, discounts, discounts, et al. 

Whatever you do to collect email addresses, do not by any means buy lists. Again, you’ll want to avoid your messages being flagged as spam by sending them only to interested parties. 

Always Send Personalized Emails 

Personalization is highly important in email marketing, because it will tell the recipients that they are not just another income source but actual persons. Address people by their first names (you’ll gather this info from the subscription form) and send thank you messages for subscriptions and after purchases.

Next on, keep an eye on the purchases. You can (and should) send personalized offers to customers, as that will both increase your sales and reassure the recipients that they matter.

Finally, all emails should feature a contact info, an unsubscribe button, and a call to action. Unsubscription is always preferred to your messages being filtered as spam, in case you were wondering.

Make Use of Automation

It would be too much to expect that overseeing each email personally would be a good practice. It certainly isn’t and neither is it common practice. Use automation tools instead (look them up - the offer is rich).

Define Special Offers Carefully

Broadly speaking, there are two types of special offers: regular and personalized. Regular special offers pretty much include seasonal and annual sales and are open to all customers. Personalized special offers are sent to loyal- and VIP customers and consist only of the items they may be interested in. This info is easily enough obtained from their purchase history and communication with your brand.

There is no One-size-fits-all approach in this regard. Apply best practices in accordance with your strategy and current offer. After all, no one knows a brand’s customers better than the brand itself.

Encourage Communication and Feedback

Communication is best encouraged at all times, and the practice should go beyond email communication. Generally speaking, email marketing works best when coupled with social media exposure, as it increases your brand’s visibility and benefits from followers’ comments and shares.

Make an effort to address all customers’ inquiries and complaints  and note the feats people are satisfied and unsatisfied with. Assign both thanks and apologies where applicable. Adjust your future campaigns in line with customers’ wishes for best results.

That, in a nutshell, would be a productive way to devising successful email marketing campaigns. Use insights for best results and, most importantly, remember that audiences change over time. Perform analyses on a regular basis and adjust as needed.