It is widely assumed that email is archaic. In fact, email marketing is still one of the most one of the most effective marketing methods when connecting with customers. Studies have shown that email marketing is still more effective at engaging and converting users than any social media outlet. Major companies such as Amazon and Walmart understand the value of sending promotional emails. That is why these companies spends millions annually on these campaigns.

Email marketing is a great cost-effective way for any business to connect with existing and new customers. It is an inexpensive way to reach a wide range of demographics. By incorporating automations and segmentation solutions, you can make email generation even more efficient. Companies that are already utilising an email marketing strategy are seeing an increase in their ROI.

If you have yet to initiate an email marketing strategy, keep reading to learn our top tips that will help you achieve success.

  1. Develop an email marketing plan

Create an email marketing plan before you send out your first marketing email. This gives you time to develop your strategy and think about the results you are aiming to achieve. A details email plan will help guide you through the marketing process. This could include a list of email marketing tools and types of emails you intend to use, timelines and also tactics to help build your email list. This stage should not be skipped if you want to guarantee marketing success.

  1. Define your target audience.

Most customers will not engage with generic emails that provides no benefit or appeals to their specific problem or need. Customers expect a personalised email that is address to them and provides offers that are useful for their requirement. Take some time to define your target audience by exploring the interests, motivations, pain points and preferences of your customers. This way, you can ensure your email campaign will appeal to that specific customer.

  1. Design mobile friendly emails

It is more common now for people to check their emails on their mobile phones. Which is why making your email campaigns mobile friendly is crucial. Your emails should be optimised to ensure special promotions or offers are easily viewable on a mobile device and place important links nearer the top for a higher click through rate.

  1. Include a call to action (CTAs)

Once your customers have read your email, what action would you like them to take? It may not always be clear to some customer on what the next steps should be. Therefore, including a clear call to action on your email is key. This could be for example, a “Sign Up”, “Get started” or “Subscribe” button or highly visible link. An effective CTA will create a sense of urgency, thus motivating your customer to take immediate action.

  1. Implement Automation

Now that you have devised your email strategy and crafted your email, it is time to start automating its delivery. This means you will not be required to send out an email manually to each of your customers. Using an automation tool such as Constant Contact or Mailchimp is easy to use and will save you time. These programs can help set up your automations to schedule emails at your chosen time and can send you statistics on how many customers open and click though the email campaign.

  1. Find the best timing

Determine when the best time is to send emails to your customers with the help of Google Analytics. Under the Goal Conversion section you can identify visitors, time spent whilst looking on the site and bounce rates along with other related data. You should also consider public holidays, late evening and Monday morning as times that generally experience a lower open rate. Using this combined information will help you to gain an understanding of when customers are more likely to engage with your email.

  1. Evaluate marketing metrics and KPIs

KPIs—or key performance indicators—are measures of the performances of different aspects of an email campaign. As email marketing is still of the most effective ways of delivering content to customers, knowing how effective a campaign is depends on the KPIs and Metrics you are tracking. These metrics will allow you to tweak your strategy in accordance with your customers’ latest expectations.

To determine the success of a campaign, you ideally want to solidify trends within your subscribers list and modify your approach to stay ahead of the game. Metrics like unsubscribe rates, click-through rates, and bounce rates will quickly highlight if a campaign isn’t having the intended effect

Email marketing is still one of the most effective ways to promote your online store, build relationships with customers, and generate sales. With a little bit of effort and creativity, you can use email marketing to increase your brand’s sales and help create long-term customers.

Are you currently reaching your customer base via email? If so, what’s your number one tip for email marketing success? Get involved and leave us a comment!