Email marketing is all about Open and Click rates. The
higher your rates are the more successful your campaign will be. Sounds pretty
easy right? Unfortunately like my grandmother used to say, “Anything worth
having doesn’t come easy.” However, that
doesn’t mean to say you can’t break it down and figure out how to make it that
little bit easier. I’m Gillian the Promos
Girl at Bikini Lists and this month’s ‘How To...’ blog is all about
improving your Open and Click rates on your next email campaign.
So let’s break your email down into sections and look at
where you can make improvements to maximise your reach.
Your Subject Line – Here’s
my three simple rules for cracking your subject line; the triple S – Short, Smart, Specific.
Keep your subject line short. No more than 50 characters is my
rule of thumb, that way it can be easily read by the recipient. The job of the
subject line is to grab the attention of the recipient and incentivise them to
click through.
You are talking to creative people, so be creative! A great example of using a creative subject
line successfully comes from photographer Tom Broadbent and his recent email
campaign detailing his work photographing the somewhat unknown subculture of
‘Furries’. His
clever subject line ‘At Home with the Furries’ received a 32% Open rate and an
8% Click rate.
Keep your subject line specific but don’t make it sound
boring. Try to give your recipient an idea of what the email is about while engaging
them creatively. If you’re not sure what to write, brainstorm a few ideas on
paper or even better, with friends or colleagues. You’ll be amazed at what you come
up with. This simple exercise will also generate a number of other ideas for subject
lines that could come in handy for future campaigns.
Your Image – Hurrah!
You’ve successfully secured a good Open rate by conjuring up a killer subject
line. Don’t waste this opportunity by selling yourself short when choosing your
image. Choose the image(s) that reflects the style of your work best and will
help you stand out to buyers. Again, a good technique is to choose a handful of
images and run them past your friends or colleagues and see which ones they
like best.
Your Body Copy – With
email body copy, less is always more. Think about your audience and what they
need to know, not what you want them to know. Creatives are busy folk, if
they've opened your email it’s because you got the subject line right. Don’t
give them a long-winded biography, they won’t have time to read it! Displaying
your work should always be the priority, that’s what they clicked through to
see. On top of seeing your work,
Creatives want to know are who your previous clients are, where they can see
more of your work and how they can get in touch with you. That’s pretty much
it! Don’t tie yourself up in knots with the copy, just keep it simple and to
the point.
The same rule applies to your links; one or two links is
sufficient. Multiple links to blogs, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and different
parts of your website can often cause confusion and you run the risk of losing
your precious openers. We've carefully designed our email templates to feature
your image, copy, links to ‘View more’ and your contact details because we know
that is all your audience are interested in.
When To Send – There’s
no such thing as a perfect time to send your email campaign. In the age of
smart phones it’s become increasingly easier to access email on the go. For
some this could be early morning or late at night, for others during the
working day. The key is to experiment and change your send times to see what
achieves the best open rate for you. At Bikini Lists we can send your campaign
any minute of any day, of any month, of any year, so the email world is your
oyster!
Finally the simple things are just as important and can
sometimes be overlooked. Check and
double check your spelling and grammar, because a sloppy email campaign reflects
very badly on your business!
As always, I’m here to support you in this process so if you
have any questions about your next campaign you can contact me at promos@bikinilists.com
If you’ve come across this blog post because you want to
improve your email marketing, then why not take out a BikiniLists Freebie
account here - Get the free trial...
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