Email marketing has been a successful tool for communicating commercial or fundraising messages to a targeted audience over the internet. It’s used in many different ways to generate new business, maintain existing relationships and increase bottom line profits. However, despite its widespread use, many marketers are not fully aware of how to create effective and valuable content. Content is what makes up the heart and soul of email marketing. Without good content your emails will fail. Below I’ve outlined some of the most important tools and tactics you should keep in mind as you begin to utilize this powerful marketing strategy.
The first and most important tool is the title of your email marketing campaign. If your audience isn’t looking at your emails or if your email marketing channels are attracting only dead traffic, then none of your work will do you any good. Email marketing experts advocate including a strong headline and call to action statement in all of your email marketing efforts. With this call to action, readers are prompted to either click-out of your message or take advantage of the promotional offer that will be presented to them within your email marketing campaign. For instance, if you’re offering a free e-book or report as part of your email marketing campaign, your call to action may read “learn more about how you can get free stuff” or “quickly download a report that details the details of a powerful new marketing strategy”.
Another important piece of content is the body of your email. The body of your email plays an integral role in garnering your audience’s attention. As the sender, you want to focus on enticing your reader to continue reading. There are a number of different ways to accomplish this, which we’ll outline below.
Many experts recommend that you utilize one or more of the following tools in your email marketing campaigns: A newsletter capture form, an opt-in form, a signature file, and pre-designed templates. All of these tools enable you to gather information from your readers before ever reaching into your customer’s inbox. Using the newsletter capture form, you can collect names and email addresses from potential subscribers. Using the opt-in form, you can collect the names and email addresses of customers that have expressed an interest in receiving more information from you.
One of the most effective ways to generate excitement for your campaign is to provide useful, helpful content. This content will allow subscribers to feel that they are “one of the few” that will benefit from the offers that are contained in your email. This excitement will drive subscribers to become more responsive and increase the likelihood that they will click on your links and make a purchase from your site. In addition, your content must be relevant to the market that you are trying to reach. Content that targets a market where there is very little interest will be considered ineffective, while content targeting a market that is saturated with similar offers will likely be effective.
Finally, the way in which you communicate with potential and current clients is extremely important. If your email marketing campaigns are not efficient, it may be because you are communicating with a large number of people who have not shown an interest in what you are offering. For this reason, it is always a good idea to consider the demographics of the recipients of your email marketing efforts. You will find that certain demographics respond better to marketing than others, and it is always best to target your email campaigns based on proven demographics. By following this advice, you will find that email marketing campaigns are far more effective than any other marketing tool.