Despite the large number of tools in marketers' arsenals, email is still a valuable component in an inbound strategy. However, this channel isn't the same as when it first gained popularity. You need to be aware with the latest developments in email marketing to ensure your messages stay effective and are on track with what customers want.
Improving email deliverability
It's hard to meet the goals of your email marketing campaign if messages are never reaching the inbox in the first place. Most email marketing clients offer users more options for how to customize their filtering options so they don't receive unwanted messages. This makes it tougher for marketers to get their emails delivered, and this is even more significant for customers who use Gmail.
In 2013, Google split its inbox into tabs, including a folder dedicated to promotions. While this may not have an impact on mobile users, desktop recipients can almost completely avoid branded content.
You need to check your spam score and implement best practices to lower it, if necessary, according to MarketingProfs. Enabling authentication in your email marketing software sends a positive signal to email service providers. Utilizing a double opt-in procedure can lead to a more engaged customer database.
This process works by having website visitors sign up for your email list on your site and then sending them an email with a confirmation link to a landing page. This technique can also be used to ask subscribers about their email preferences.
In addition to improving sender score and implementing a double opt-in process, it's important to avoid spammy content, especially in your subject lines. Certain words, phrases or even styles can send a negative signal to an ESP. For example, capital letters, a lot of exclamation marks and too-good-to-be-true phrases are often viewed as a warning that the email contains spam.
It's also a bad idea to cut and paste email copy from Microsoft Word into your marketing software because it can interfere with HTML coding, and emails may not display the content correctly.
Good list is hygiene is crucial to improve your sender reputation. Inactive email addresses should be removed after a time because they can result in hard bounces, or permanently undeliverable messages. This is another negative sign to ESPs and should be avoided when possible.
Other crucial email mistakes to avoid
Although arriving in the inbox is the first step, you don't want the contents of your email to scare potential customers away. Too many loud colors or distractions can cause people to delete your messages - or worse, unsubscribe, iMedia Connection stated.
Too many colors in one message can detract from the message the copy is trying to convey. Images can be distracting, mess up your layout or cause slow loading speeds from a mobile device. Additionally, it's important to keep in mind that too many photos can cause the message to be sent to spam if you don't have a good text-to-image ratio.
However, too many words can hurt your campaign just as much, especially if you use big paragraphs. It may be a better idea to direct recipients to a landing page with more information. While mobile devices give people the opportunity to read emails on the go, this capability also means they may not want to spend as much time interacting with their inboxes in one sitting. You need condense the message to ensure it will actually be read.
Generic messages sent to a large number of your subscribers won't be effective. You need to target relevant content toward specific users to get them to convert. Too many irrelevant emails can cause people to unsubscribe from your list.
Get mobile responsive
An increasing number of people around the world are now the owners of smartphones, and this is the primary means of Internet access for many individuals. Because of this, it's crucial to provide a mobile email experience or risk losing subscribers. In fact, 65 percent of all emails are now opened from a mobile device, according to Business News Daily, citing data from the "U.S. Consumer Device Report." Sending the same message to your desktop and mobile subscribers is a mistake. Smartphone users don't want to have to zoom in to interact with the message.
Fortunately, there are a number of ways marketers can implement mobile emails, including responsive design templates that adjust to the size of the screen used to view the message. Single column layouts tend to work best for improving mobile user experience. Responsive design provides a more consistent experience for all recipients. However, if you take this approach, it's important to remember to direct subscribers to a mobile-responsive landing page, otherwise you may see a higher bounce rate on your pages.
Get your landing pages in shape to make email really count
Email is just one part of attracting customers. Once you have their attention, you need to keep it. High converting landing pages can help with this process. Email can alert customers of a specific offer, and you can use a landing page to convey more information to avoid bogging down the email. Plus, a landing page can make for an easier transition from the email to your website. If you send recipients to your home page, they may be disoriented.
In general, a landing page should be specific to the email customers received. This applies to the colors, layout and overall message.
What are some of the ways you use email to connect with customers?