Email marketing offers a direct route into people’s inboxes, that is if you can avoid those dreaded spam filters. After reporting that email marketing techniques were very much alive and kicking last summer, many businesses may have entered the New Year with a renewed appreciation for this rather traditional marketing tactic. If done correctly, email marketing boasts a number of business centric benefits for those serving all sectors. At a fraction of the cost of other advertising and marketing techniques, email provides a proven, targeted route to a wider audience and deeper relationships with consumers.

In addition to having the capabilities to increase brand awareness, a well-timed, carefully crafted email marketing campaign is easily sharable and measurable. It’s also extremely cost effective with the average return on investment £38 for every £1 spent on email marketing according to DMA. So what makes an email marketing campaign successful? Here we take a look at the dos and don’ts of email marketing, so you can craft email marketing materials that recipients not only open but interact with…

Do segment your contact list

With personalisation of content one of the hottest marketing trends for 2018, it’s no surprise that the more niche you go with email content, the better the open rates and click-through rates will be.

Known as list segmentation, separating your email marketing lists into more targeted groups and crafting your email content to the needs of each has been found to boost open rates dramatically. Open rates were improved by 14.31% in segmented campaigns when compared with non-segmented campaigns. Despite the stats however, 42% of marketers don’t use segmentation according to MarketingProfs, so make sure you’re not missing this rather easy to implement trick.

Don’t be afraid to automate

Email marketing boffins like us use specialist software to fine-tune campaigns further, just like 51% of businesses in the UK. Use of email marketing automation is simple with the right knowledge and can make it easier to plan and execute campaigns as well as analyse results. The analytics available via marketing automation software make revising future email campaigns easy, meaning marketers can get down to the smallest details to determine which parts of a campaign worked and which didn’t.

Do use email to prompt consumers

Shopping cart abandonment is particularly common in the ecommerce world, so why not use your email marketing activities to prompt your customers to return and continue with checkout? Unbeknown to many, abandoned cart reminders sent on a regular basis may be annoying but they’re very effective, making consumers 2.4 times more likely to purchase according to Experian.  Email marketing after all isn’t just about lead generation as our recent post on lead nurturing details.

It’s not the only email format that’s effective either. Welcome emails garner 320% more revenue for the businesses that they’re sent by.

Don’t forget to spell check

Research conducted by Marketing Land found that the biggest email marketing faux pas is bad spelling and grammar, so don’t make the mistake of forgetting to spell check your email content. Your subject lines should also be crafted with care for maximum impact. Don’t be afraid to add a bit of humour to your subject lines either, particularly if you’re targeting recipients aged between 45 and 64.

Email marketing doesn’t have to be difficult. Our email marketing specialists provide a range of tailor-made services to ensure your emails get noticed by all the right people. Embrace all the joys of email marketing by calling on our team for a little help.

Square Media is Northamptonshire’s premiere Web Design & Marketing Agency experienced in developing effective content and marketing strategies for forward-thinking companies in the local area. Our team of specialists consistently deliver outstanding results working in a variety of areas such as Search Engine Optimisation, Social Media Marketing Consultancy, Pay Per Click (PPC) and AdWords Management amongst a wide range of other services.