Getting the most from your e-mail marketing

Despite concerns about volumes of ‘spam’, e-mail marketing remains a legitimate and effective channel for marketers.

A survey by the Content Marketing Institute shows that 63 per cent of B2B marketers use e-newsletters as part of their range of tactics.

However, as inboxes become more and more congested, it is essential to ensure your email marketing is focused, relevant, and engaging. We suggest the following five ways to make sure your messages are getting through to the right people:

1. Build your list legitimately

You can do this by using current and previous customers, sign-ups through your website and networking with people who give their permission. With email marketing, quality is more important than quantity so review your list to ensure you aren’t straying into scattergun territory. The better you know your list members, the higher your open rates will be.

2. Get the frequency of your mailings right

If you e-mail too often, you risk being ignored or the user simply unsubscribing. On the other hand, if you leave too much time between mailings, there’s a risk of recipients losing interest. Think about asking people on your mailing list how often they want to hear from you. For example, give them the option to sign up for weekly, monthly or quarterly emails.

3. Don’t try to be all things to all people

Consider using segmentation to boost effectiveness and ask yourself if you can split your list into smaller, more focused areas (e.g. clients, prospects and intermediaries)? Always keep in mind that when anyone gets an email about something they are genuinely interested in, they are significantly more likely to open it.

4. Create the right first impression

Your targets are busy people so your subject line needs to grab their attention. Kick off with a benefit that tells the recipient what’s in it for them. Try to stimulate the reader’s curiosity and make them feel they may be missing out they don’t take a look. Urgency is important, but avoid all capital letters, exclamation marks, and words like ‘free’ and ‘sale’ as these will trigger the spam filter.

5. Get the basics right

Send your emails at the right time of day and make sure they are from an individual with a familiar name. You can find the best time to send your emails by checking the addresses on your list. Business email addresses are often better sent during the day, while personal ones, such as gmail or hotmail, are perhaps better sent in the evening.

How do you measure up?

Take a look at this benchmarking information from Mailchimp and see how your email marketing activities compare to your individual industry sector.