Is email marketing dead? In the past decade, there have been so many hullabaloos about social media marketing, so much that one wonders if email promotion is still as effective as it used to be years back. On the contrary, it is still very much alive, kicking, and bubbling with life, but the problem is, it is ignored by people, no thanks to Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Youtube, etc craze. If you are among those that have ignored this effective internet marketing strategy, have a rethink because you are just living money on the table. Do you know that the stats for email marketing effectiveness is set at $32 to every dollar spent (DmA 2018)? This is a whopping 3,200% return on investment, and this makes it one of the major effective internet promotions available for 2023 and beyond. How do you start an email marketing campaign that really works?
Email marketing/email campaign:
The term email marketing and the campaign are the same, an email campaign is an act of performing email marketing, and it means preparing a sequence of promotional efforts to connect with different multiple recipients at the same time. The campaigns are created to connect with the company subscribers at the best time, and they usually contain vital content and useful offers for their subscribers.
Email marketing is based on different factors that determine its effectiveness. Therefore, for it to be attractive, it must meet certain factors, mentioned below:
1. Timing
Timing is a very vital element in preparing the campaign, and it relies on the audience, location, habit, day of the week and message topic. Generally, the best day during the week to send messages are Tuesdays to Thursdays. You will observe that Mondays and Fridays are left out, and the reason is that Mondays are usually very busy so people will have little or no time to check their messages and on Fridays, people focus on avoiding backlog of job for the next coming week, while on Saturdays and Sundays are set aside for relaxation. The days to send messages is just an observation, not a rule, you can send messages any day you wish, but the response rate you will get varies – messages sent on Tuesdays to Thursdays, have higher opening rates.
2. What is the best time to send messages?
The best time to send promotional messages also matters because the response rate on different days varies. If you send messages on certain hours of the day, you are sure to get a higher open rate compared to others. For instance, the best time is 6 am, the reason is that people have the habit of doing stuff like going through their phone on the bed at that time. You can also send it by 10 am, 2 pm, and 8 pm.
Starting an email marketing campaign:
Now that you know the factor that will make your effort effective, it’s time to learn how to create a campaign like a pro. Please note that this knowledge will also boost your campaign effectiveness.
1. Start by creating a targeted email list
By targeted, we mean sending out awareness to people or audiences interested in your niche or products/services. If you have your list filled with qualified leads, you have more chance of getting the best from your effort, and this means increase open rate. One of the significant ways to build an email list is by turning your website guest to subscribers. Expert has observed that 80% of visitors can leave your website without taking any action, and the best way to avoid this is to use the exit-intent popup strategy to turn the visitors abandoning your website to subscribers,
2. What are your goals?
Start your email promotional campaign by knowing your goals. Write down what you wish to achieve as this will be your motivation and guidelines during the campaign process.
3. Understanding email types
Also, it is very pertinent to know and understand the different email types because each has their unique writing style and format. The different email types are promotional, transactional, and operational emails.
4. Identify and know your prospects
A vital aspect of implementing an effective email campaign is to know your target audience. Understanding your target market will enable you to create a suitable campaign that addresses their needs and desires.
5. Apply wisdom in the use of technology
There are email marketing tools that you can use for your campaign, but you are advised to take caution while using them. Learn how to utilize tools like OptinMonster, WordPress, and others before use to avoid making unnecessary mistakes.
6. Create opt-ins
The best campaign job has a great list of targeted prospects. To accumulate active and hungry prospects in your list you need to build attractive forms and encourage people to opt-in to it.
7. Planning email follows ups
After you know your goals, audience, email types, and have drawn people to your list using opt-in forms, next is to plan your campaign.
8. Create your subject line
The subject line is the first message your prospect will see, so you must ensure it’s catchy enough to make the recipient click the email message. The best subject line will significantly impact the opening rate.
9. Email content
Once you have tested your subject line and are satisfied with its effectiveness, the next step is to create the body of the email message. You should try to build a hook from the start of writing the email body to hold the attention of your prospect to the end of the message.
10. Call to action
Never end any promotional copy without telling your audience what to do. For example, you can tell the reader to click a link, and don’t forget to add emotional prompters like “click this link before it’s too late..”
Email marketing is a vast subject, and the info we cover here are just basics to get you started. To create the best email marketing campaign, you can either hire professionals to help you or commit yourself to learn more strategies that work.
You might like also –
