Many of you will already being using iContact for your email marketing partner and will have received this wonderful tip on effective email marketing. For those of you that have not take a look and enjoy, they are basic things but can help immensely with your future campaigns. Of course if you have the need for e marketing we are more than happy to help you through the process of setting up online newsletters and auto responding campaigns. Call us on 07 5452 7045.
#10 Build Your List at Every Opportunity You Have
If you have a retail location, add a point-of-sale sign-up form. At conferences or events, ask everyone you speak with if you can add them to your list after you exchange business cards. Add your sign-up form to every page on your web site using the sign-up form generator within iContact to create the code.
#9 Avoid Excess Punctuation or Capitalization
Don’t use ALL CAPS or multiple exclamation marks within your subject line or body-copy. Doing this will trigger spam filters. WHEN TEXT IS IN ALL CAPS, IT’S ALSO HARDER TO READ!!!
#8 Include Plain Text and HTML Emails
Be sure to include both an HTML and a plain text version of your newsletter. iContact will automatically detect which subscribers can see the HTML message and which can only see the plain text message. If you don’t include a plain text message, around 5% of your recipients will see a message with nothing in it.
#7 Familiarity Encourages Opens
Make the From Name for your messages either your company name or the name of a person at your company. Once you choose a From Name, keep it consistent. In the split second when subscribers decide whether or not to open your email, the most important factor in their decision is whether the From Name is familiar to them or not.
#6 Add a Note About Deliverability
To improve message deliverability, add a message at the top of your emails that says something like: “To ensure receipt of our emails, please add something@yourcompany.com to your Address Book.”
#5 Be Consistent With Your Sending Frequency
Pick a schedule. Whether it is weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly, stick to it as closely as possible. This way, your customers will come to expect and anticipate your company’s communications.
#4 Timing is Key with Business to Business Communication
In most cases it is best to send business to business emails Tuesday through Thursday. We’ve found that the best times of the day to send are just after the start of the day or just after lunch. It is best to avoid sending business to business emails after 4:00pm or on weekends.
#3 Timing is Key with Business to Consumer Communication
In most cases it is best to send business to consumer emails either between 5:00pm and 8:00pm Tuesday through Thursday, or between Friday evening and Sunday afternoon.
#2 Only Include Relevant Content
Only send content relevant to the recipient. This can take many forms including content on a relevant topic, a discount off a product related to one purchased previously, and so on. If you stay relevant, people will allow you to continue to contact them.
#1 Only Send Emails to Individuals Who Have Requested to Receive Them
Unsolicited email is, of course, called SPAM. Sending SPAM will ruin any legitimate organization’s reputation and brand value quickly. Rule number one of becoming an intelligent email marketer is to never send unsolicited email.
