How to start running successful Email Marketing Campaigns

Email marketing is one of the best ways to reach and build stronger relationships with your customers. Not only do most people check their email many times each day, they also readily engage with the messages that land in their inboxes.

For businesses, that practically screams opportunity. Email marketing campaigns are an effective way to boost awareness, improve customer experience and even drive sales.

However, without the right strategy, these campaigns can fall flat. Don’t get left wondering why your email marketing campaign left you with little to no results. Here’s a look at why email marketing campaigns are so successful - and how you can put them to work for your business.

Email marketing is not going anywhere

Businesses in every industry have caught on to the benefits of email marketing. Just take a look at the data and you will see how popular this marketing strategy has become.

As a whole, 102.6 trillion emails are sent every year. Email use also spans generations. It’s true that email is a more popular communication tool for adults, but most people begin using email by at least 15.

Let’s take a closer look at these email users. On average, a person using email subscribes to 13 commercial emails each day, according to OptinMonster. Email users are also checking their inboxes - a lot. For some, checking email at least 20 times a day is not out of the norm. Sometimes, it’s one of the first and last things a person does each day.

Email represents a business opportunity

These stats represent a rather strong argument for starting an email marketing campaign for your business. Most of your customers are likely already using email and, according to the statistics, are also likely actively checking their inboxes for new messages many times each day.

That’s a business opportunity if we have ever seen one. If you know where and how to reach your customers, then you should capitalize on that every chance you get.

Customers respond to email marketing

Email is one of the best ways to reach customers. In fact, many consumers say they actually prefer email when it comes to communicating with their favorite brands and businesses. More than 80% of small businesses rely on email as their primary way to acquire and retain customers.

Many customers want to hear from businesses often, too. According to one study, nearly half of consumers said they would like to receive promotional emails from businesses at least on a weekly basis.

Plus, by sending those emails, businesses can really drive results that matter - such as increased sales. Per another study, businesses can expect to see an average return of $42 for every $1 spent on email marketing.

Here’s where strategy comes in

No business is going to realize those returns simply by writing a few paragraphs and sending an email to a mailing list, though. Successful emails that create those kinds of returns takes the right strategy and approach. Let’s start with the basics and then dive into more best practices.

First, always proofread emails. An email with typos undermines any efforts to appear professional. It’s always best to read copy twice before hitting send.

Next, you have to tell the recipients as soon as possible who the email is from (or at least make it obvious) and what the email is about. The subject line is the best space to let readers know what to expect before they open an email.

The last basic piece of advice we have is to always include a clear and concise call to action (CTA) early in the email. Your CTA is how you want customers to respond to your message, whether that’s click a link, buy a product, contact you, etc. Without a call to action, customers may be left wondering about the message’s purpose.

OK, now let’s go into a little more detail on how to really create a winning email marketing campaign.

Build a better mailing list

In many ways, an email campaign’s success starts with a tailored, well-organized mailing list. The first step is to promote the mailing list to get users to sign up in the first place.

When looking for those early subscribers, try to provide some form of incentive based on what you are able to provide. Will email subscribers get exclusive deals, be the first to know about sales or have easier access to your services? Think of some incentive and create a call to action in your mailing list promotion that will convince people to sign up.

Personalize emails

Customers enjoy speaking to businesses when they feel that business is speaking directly to them rather than sending out untailored messages to a massive amount of people.

This is where personalization can do wonders for a campaign. According to Oberlo, emails with personalized subject lines can see open rates that are up to 50% higher. Many email marketing platforms allow you to personalize subject lines and message content to include the name of the subscriber in the text.

Write compelling copy

Email marketing campaigns perform much better when they offer readers some form of compelling content. Consider opening up to readers and offering a human story, showing them they are not just interacting with a business, but rather actual people. This could drive an emotional response and create truly great results.

Another way to compel readers is to offer some sort of value, such as useful knowledge or tips for how to get the most out of your product or service.

Finally, have a little fun. Spice up your messaging with photos, polls, surveys, even GIFs - anything to better engage readers.

Measure your success

It’s hard to determine how successful an email campaign is without taking a look at analytics. You will want to track analytics such as how many people opened your email and how many people clicked a link, often referred to as click-through rate.

Many popular email platforms provide you with these basic analytics. Some even can be further integrated with your website to show sales and other results.

Start your campaign

OK, we have just scratched the surface on all the best practices for crafting better emails and driving more results through email marketing campaigns. The truth of the matter, though, is that developing and running these campaigns can take a lot of time.

That’s where Emagine comes in.

Our team can help you realize the power of email for your business through cost effective solutions using a wide variety of helpful tactics, such as automation, personalization, data analytics and so much more.