There is no single secret recipe for successful e-mail campaigns, but we are happy to provide you a good starting point with this guide.
1 – boost your opening rate with attractive subject
The key to get more people to open your email lies in the subject – provided that the receiver knows you and has given you the permission to make contact by email.
Don’t forget that your email is just one of many in the inbox. Also consider the fact that it is very likely that your email will be read in a smartphone. Make sure your subject makes a difference – but also keep in mind what approach your target group are familiar with.
Get a better understanding of which subjects work best by testing them. The easy way to do this is two write two different headers, split your address list in two and analyze the opening rate.
2 – First things first, and make it look good
Get to the point soon in order not to lose readers’ attention. Consider how a news article is constructed. Put the most important content first, and the least important at the end.
Make life easy for your recipients by portioning your newsletter content in a great-looking layout with clear headlines, bullet lists and links. Write short and easy-to-read texts. Put emphasis by using colors and bold or underlined text. Always consult your graphical guidelines.
3 – A picture says more than a thousand words
People look at the images first. Spice up your emails with good –looking images, illustrations, infographics and video clips. Illustrations and infographics are good complements and make the text easier to comprehend. Maintain a good balance between text and graphics.
4 – Personalized newsletters are effective newsletters
Sending the same newsletter to all your recipients may save time – but being in the same target group does not mean being alike.
By analyzing your historical stats on opening rate, click through rate and conversion you can build understanding about the variation of interests and behavior within your target group.
Create a number of segments out of your target group and send them different versions of your newsletters. Adjust both the subjects and the disposition of the contents in order to be more relevant. Personalize your recipient lists according to other recipient information that you already have, such as demographical facts or what their profession is.
Using Triggerbee allows you to follow the recipient’s journey and behavior – all the way from the newsletter and through the home page. The visitor’s profile is continuously refined and provides increased value over time; data about the visitor’s interests or the visitor’s proneness to buy your products or services. Triggerbee gives you a so much better understanding of your visitor – being relevant becomes easy.
5 – Use a personal tone of voice
Newsletters are all about reaching through with a message to another person – so make sure you use a personal approach. Put your name as the sender. It’s simple – consider how you would react. You’d probably rather read a text that is directed to you.
6 – Don’t forget to make it accessible
Test your newsletter in various email programs and devices before you send it. Use a responsive template for best result. Some email programs filter images, so make sure you include the Alt-tag for those who cannot view images in their email program. And finally – don’t even think of sending your newsletter as an image. It is no good for clicks and it is useless for measuring.
7 – Don’t miss the point!
Yes, newsletters build brands – you are always present among the audience. But newsletters are also supposed to drive traffic to your web site.
Make sure to include Call To Actions that lead to clicks and conversions – campaign offers, sign-ups for events or white papers for download.
7 hot tips on successful newsletter managementGood luck with your email marketing!