Apr 26, 2013
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Marketing StrategySubscribe now and get the latest podcast releases delivered straight to your inbox.
Email Marketing remains a critical element of any Inbound strategy, but in a world of Facebook statuses, SnapChats, and a 140 character limit, even it is getting a bad rep.
Compared to the nearly instantaneous communication of social media and visual content, email marketing seems time-consuming and cumbersome, but if done correctly there is no holding it back!
Show your audience that you've got the write stuff!
Help your emails avoid the spam folder and get read using these 4 tips:
4 Tips for Getting Your Email Marketing Read
1. Personalize It
One major mistake that many companies make is not personalizing their email marketing. Nothing screams spam or email blast than a generic greeting, so trade in your "Dear Customer" or even "Good Morning, Music Lover!" and replace it with "Hi John!" or "Jane, Check this out!". Addressing your prospect by name automatically grabs their attention more than you would without it.
Also, make sure to segment your lists. Look at the information you have gathered regarding the prospect and their activity to determine which emails they should be receiving. Segmented emails receive 50% more clicks than general email blasts. (source: Marketing Sherpa)
2. Keep the Focus on the Customer
One of the Inbound Marketers biggest pet peeves is a "sales pitch" or content that is overly promotional. Not only is this material boastful, it simply isn't any fun to read. Offer the recipients of your email something to look forward to personally. If you have industry or company news, create a story about how it affects them. Gear everything to expressing why they should care, read more, and ultimately click-thru.
3. Pay Attention to Design & Visuals
Though full-text emails are still effective at times, a picture is worth a thousand words. Your emails need to compete for attention and pictures deliver messages faster and more creatively than words alone. They also grab your audience's attention more quickly by illustrating your point. Try integrating videos, infographics, images, and charts into your emails for an eye-catching multimedia effect.
Even if you do not use images (or your audience has not enabled them), pay attention to design and layout. If your email text is poorly formatted or harsh on the eyes, you will only discourage the recipient from reading further.
4. Optimize for Mobile
Today your email is more likely to be received and viewed on a smartphone or tablet than a desktop computer, but many brands continue to ignore this. Consumers are constantly on-the-go, with their smartphones practically glued to their hands and if you don't want your email to get passed over you need to optimize it for mobile viewing. No matter how entertaining, useful, or important your email is, it will quickly be overlooked if it takes too long to load or worse, doesn't load at all.
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