1-2-3 Elements of Successful Email Marketing

Email marketing is both an art and a science and few organizations have mastered it. From the subject line to when to send it, getting the formula right can be a difficult task for any organization. If you’re looking to dip your feet in email marketing or trying to improve a struggling campaign strategy, consider a solid approach that rests on three legs: your offer, your creative and your list.

Your Offer

It comes down to the very reason that you are sending an email newsletter in the first place. What do you want from your customer and what are you going to give them? Whether you offer a financial discount, buy one get one free, or a free gift – your offer should be crystal clear and easily identifiable to your reader.

If you choose to focus on a different theme or product every week or month, the same offer won’t always work. Try experimenting with new offers to see what receives the best response (i.e. sales, registrations, downloads, etc).

Your Creative

A professionally branded design and good copywriting can make a huge difference on the quality and impact of your newsletter. The design should be professionally branded to include your logo, corporate colours, fonts and photography. A slapdash newsletter that doesn’t reflect your brand is a one-way ticket to a Junk folder.

The copy should be brief, straightforward and focused around your offer. Avoid the hard-sell approach – instead, give your readers interesting, compelling and useful content that’s tailored to their interests. Choose a subject line that is short and sweet that implies a benefit. Don’t trick your recipients into opening the email with a snazzy subject line that has nothing to do with your business or offer.

Your List

You may have a stellar offer and slick creative but without a strong list, your email campaign will most likely flop. A large, targeted list of opted-in email subscribers is your key to an effective email marketing campaign. If you are handling email marketing for a large company or organization with multiple service areas/offerings, a general “catch all” list might not be the best idea. Don’t be afraid to segregate your lists by service interest or demographic information and produce a separate newsletter for each.

To maximize your ROI in email marketing, try planning and scheduling your email newsletters 6-12 months in advance and using an email marketing management tool like Constant Contact. It allows you to maintain a consistent brand across all newsletters, shine a spotlight on your offer and easily manage and update your lists. You can track progress with their measurement metrics and fine-tune your offer and creative to optimize your results.

If you’re not using email or are struggling to use it to its full potential, get in touch.

Cyan Solutions specializes in helping clients set up and create effective email campaigns through branded templates, the development of campaign strategies and creative copy.