In 2019, email is still one of the top performing digital marketing channels. But, that doesn’t mean results come easy. To achieve a high rate of opens and clicks, follow these five email best practices.
Email Best Practices Proven to Improve Results
The effectiveness of email marketing is well-documented. In fact, one recent study found it is up to 40 times more effective than social media. If this sounds like an opportunity you would like to capitalize on, put these five email best practices to work.
1) Create Relevant, Quality Content
For starters, think about your own experience with email. How many times have you unsubscribed from an email list because the company sent you useless information? Probably, more than you can count.
The most basic (yet very important) email best practice is to always send relevant, quality content to your contact lists.
You will get more opens and clicks if you consistently provide valuable information to your subscribers. Even one off-brand email could cost you contacts.
2) Segment your Contact Lists
Since not all your contacts will share exactly the same characteristics, it’s also important to segment your lists before sending emails.
Segmentation is a process that starts when you collect contacts.
For example, a form on a landing page might ask a new contact about their income level or occupation. With this information, contacts can then be split up into different lists, which will receive more personalized emails.
By segmenting email newsletters, you will likely see higher engagement levels.
3) Use CTAs
The goal of email marketing is not just to get people to read your message. Ultimately, you want them to take an action, like buying a product or service.
To do this, you need to guide recipients to a call-to-action on your email. The most common best practice is to place a CTA button on the bottom of the email, which directs contacts to a website landing page. From there, you can guide them through the sales funnel.
4) Measure Results
One of the best features of email marketing is that it is easy to track. If you are using a content management system, like HubSpot, you will be able to monitor your results in real time.
You will have access to all types of marketing metrics, which will help you gauge campaign effectiveness. With this valuable information, you can find out what works, what doesn’t and what improvements can be made.
5) Use Split Testing
Split or A/B testing works well in email marketing campaigns. With it, you can test different variations of an email to see which performs the best. You could switch up elements like the subject line, photo or CTA to learn what resonates most with your target audience.
As you can see, there’s a lot of thought and strategy that goes into email marketing. If you are looking to increase your opens and clicks, try out these email best practices. Let us know how you do!
