I received two e-newsletters the other day. One was from an existing supplier telling me simply that I could save 10% off my printer consumables if I brought from their online store over the coming 2 days. Clicking on the link, I went straight onto the site and made a purchase.
The second e-newsletter came from someone I didn't know. I think it was trying to sell me scented candles (I'm still not to sure) and there was no real offer; just screeds of text and images of candles. As an allergy sufferer, scented candles are just not my thing and so this newsletter didn't get me at all excited. As there was no way to unsubscribe to the list, and so I simply marked the email as junk and placed a ban on that particular email address.
So why did I respond positively to one newsletter and not to another?
One knew what I needed
One got to the point fast
One gave me a great offer
One provided an incentive to act by providing an expiry date on their offer
One company got my repeat business
E-newsletters are valuable tools because they
– keep top-of-mind awareness for both active, inactive and potential customers.
– allow you to communicate cost effectively with your audience
– allow you to track response rates to your campaigns
– provide a tool to implement viral marketing “tell a friend” campaigns
– refer clients back to your website to help your page rank / hits
– allow you to position and build your brand
– gather market research and a profile from your customers (through the links they click)
– allow you to cross-promote other goods and services
– provide the opportunity to gather and build a database (go try and buy a database and you will see how valuable contacts and email address lists are)
– allow you to get repeat business
So, do people love or hate getting your e-newsletter? Here are 11 tips to get your clients and prospects loving to open your newsletter.
2. Don't just waffle on about yourself and your product or service – no-one cares – rather, tell your reader how you can solve their problem today
3. Get straight to the point
4. Make sure your e-newsletter includes an offer with an expiry date
5. Allow customers the ability to unsubscribe to your list if they wish and honour that
6. Ensure you have a “forward to a friend” link – to help customers refer you on
7. Don't send your newsletters too frequently. We think once a month should be your maximum frequency.
8. Always hyperlink your articles or offers back to your website to increase traffic flow.
9. If using embedded images, make sure you use alternate text tags with each image.
10. Monitor your responses and “click-throughs” and adjust your content on future campaigns accordingly.
11. Make sure your email template aligns with your brand and website design theme to ensure a consistent message goes out each and every time.
Forget trying to send Bulk emails through Outlook. Rather use an online system like www.ezemail.biz or www.mailchimp.com to send out your emails
Applying these steps will get you well on your way to a successful email marketing campaign.
Comments