There was a time when email marketing was the hottest thing around. Everyone was just starting to use email, and companies were profiting off it by easily reaching their customers. However, as time has gone on, so too have the ways in which people use the Internet. While email is still popular, other methods of communication of become more prevalent, and as a result, email marketing has become less effective.
If you’re running an email marketing campaign, you might think that it is dead. Your open rates have plummeted over the past decade, and you don’t see the point in continuing with it. However, with a few simple changes, you can bring your email marketing campaign back to life, and make it effective once again.
Why Email Marketing Fell Off
Before we get into how to improve your email marketing, it’s important to understand why it’s no longer as popular as it once was. There was a time when email was the most popular way to communicate with friends, family, co-workers, and everyone else. Now, we have things like Facebook and Twitter, and practically everyone has a smart phone.
These tools make it easier to communicate, and we no longer rely on email as much as we once did. For instance, users can easily connect with their favourite brands right on social media, and no longer require email updates from them.
Since people are checking emails less often, your company’s email is less likely to get noticed. This means that if you want your email read, you need change up what you’re doing.
Start By Fixing The Headlines
The headlines of your email are the first thing that people notice. If your headlines are boring, then the email is likely skipped over, or deleted right on the spot. You want your email’s subject to grab a person’s attention right away, and give them a reason to open up the email and read the rest.
Examine The Text Of Your Emails
It’s not enough to simply improve the headline however. If someone opens your email, and deletes it a few seconds later, you haven’t accomplished much. This is where the copy of your email plays an important role.
Just like your subject, the body of the message needs to be engaging, and provide the readers with some tangible benefit. If your emails are not doing anything to help the reader, they are not only unlikely to follow through to your website, but they might unsubscribe from future emails. Take some time to learn about crafting compelling content, or hire someone to do this for you.
Don’t Forget The Format Of Your Text
While you’re examining the text, pay close attention to how you format your emails as well. Emails that are just blocks of text are boring to read. You need to break your text up into sections, add headings, use bold face to highlight important parts, and even add pictures. Think of each email you’re sending as a separate blog post. The more visually appealing you can make your post, the more likely it is that the recipient will continue to read.
Add Incentives
Next, you should give your subscribers an additional reason to open your emails. Maybe there is a coupon inside to save on one of your products, or additional information on a subject they care about. People are busy, and it’s likely they don’t have much time to sit around and read all of their emails. You need to stand out from the crowd, and give them an incentive for reading yours over another.
Track Your Stats
Finally, you should set up a system to track the success rate of your emails. By learning which emails are opened the most, which ones result in a click-through, and which ones are skipped over entirely, you can hone your strategy going forward. You most likely won’t get your emails perfect on the first try, so you need to try new things, learn what you’re doing wrong, and make changes.
If you can do all of the above, you should find that your email marketing campaigns come back to life. Then, you’ll see that not only is email marketing still a viable option, but it is an extremely effective one. To learn more, please contact us and ask us any questions you may have.
