Top 10 Email Marketing Do’s and Don’ts (Part 2 of 2) by Jae-ann Rock

Posted on Mar 21, 2023 in Blog, Training and HR

In our last blog article, we shared the top 10 email marketing “Do’s.” But, it’s also critical to remember that email marketing DONE WRONG can wreak havoc on your business. As a matter of fact, it’s better to do NO email marketing than to do it WRONG. Here’s why…

A botched e-marketing campaign can result in:

  • SPAM filters stop your email from “getting in”
  • Low percentage of “opens”
  • Low percentage of “click-throughs”
  • Prospects that DO read your email DON’T call you
  • Creating ill-will with prospects
  • Trouble with the law! (See #1 “Follow All CAN-SPAM Laws” in our first article)

So, this week, let’s review the top 10 email marketing “Don’ts” to be sure you know the traps to avoid!

1.) Use of SPAM-Triggers

Spam filters rate your incoming email based on a long list of criteria to determine what to “let in” and what to “keep out.” If you trigger the spam filter, your email will be filtered out right from the start, never even reaching the intended recipient.

So, never use the following spam triggers:

  • Common spam words such as free, offer, trial, sample, etc.
  • ALL CAPS in the subject line
  • Too many images or links in the body of your email

2.) Sub-par Subject Lines

Subpar, uninteresting subject lines will kill your campaign results right from the start. After all, if people don’t even OPEN your emails, there is no point in sending them. Instead, use a short, interesting, “teasing” subject line to entice people to open your email.  You have less than a second to get the reader’s attention. Use a number in the subject line to create curiosity. Example: “The Top 10 Email Marketing Tips.” And be sure to keep it short for ease of reading on mobile devices!

3.) No Perceived Value

People will quickly delete your emails or unsubscribe if they find no value in the content provided. Produce and promote content that is value-added, educational, informative, and risk-free. Doing so will build trust and confidence in your company and your brand.

Always remember: Your email marketing campaigns should teach, not sell.

4.) No “Email Teaser”

The body of your email should not contain your entire message. If it does, people will be less likely to go to your website, and you won’t be able to track who clicked through to read the article. Instead, tease people to “click to read the whole article.” This is an effective way to capture and measure who has gone to the landing page to actually read the article. If a prospect is interested enough to click through, then they are interested in your message. (Good information to know, right?)

Also, keep in mind that people SKIM email content, so content provided in only paragraph format will turn off most readers. If you make them read several paragraphs (i.e. no bullets) to get the main idea, they may skip it altogether.

Instead, use bullets and bolded text to break up the text and highlight key points. Allow people to quickly determine whether an email contains something of interest to them or not.

5.) No Call-to-Action

What’s the point in sending an email at all if you don’t tell the reader what action you’d like them to take? Instead, move the reader to take action in your email. Provide several links in the email content where people can click through for more information. But, don’t confuse recipients with too many options. Instead, request a specific action to: “Click here to read the full article.” “Sign up for our free webinar here.” “Call today for a free demo.” “Download our complimentary white paper.”

If your email doesn’t contain a call-to-action, don’t be surprised if the reader takes no action at all.

6.) Overcomplicated Content

Stay focused on a single message that adds value to the reader. Say what you want in as few words as possible. Don’t use big words to impress. Be concise. Remember: “people don’t read – they skim.”  In every article you write, go through it a few extra times to remove unnecessary words or sentences. We all know someone who “talks a lot, but says very little.” Don’t do this in your emails or people may become annoyed and unsubscribe from your email list.

7.) Not Leveraging Email Marketing Systems

Use of a quality email marketing system is critical to your email marketing success. Do not think your CRM system can do the job. Use an email marketing system with robust reporting, to collect vital campaign information such as:

  • How many people opened the email?
  • How many and who “clicked-through”?
  • Which page(s) did they click through to?
  • Who has read my emails most frequently over time?
  • What types of companies are responding to my message?

Knowing the answers to those questions will provide vital feedback to inform future email marketing campaigns regarding:

  • What is working? What is NOT working?
  • What should I do more of or less of?
  • Who appears interested? Can I use that information to market to them differently?

Also, look for email marketing programs that allow you to create custom “Hot List” reports. For example, you can define a “hot lead” as someone who clicked three times within the last 90 days – all great information on which you can act to improve your marketing ROI! Continue to fine-tune your strategy based on campaign results.

8.) Not Calling the Click-throughs within 48 hours

What you do with the information from your email marketing reports is critical. The biggest mistake you can make after sending an email campaign is NOT calling to follow-up on all click-throughs. These are people who are obviously interested in the topic and may be ready for a deeper conversation about their related needs…

Capitalize on the knowledge of who clicked through to read your article. Who is actually paying attention to your content? Call on all click-through leads within 48 hours after the email campaign. Start a dialogue about what interested them in the topic and how you can help address their related questions or needs.

9.) No Consistency

Marketing inconsistently leads to poor results. A company that sends an email campaign today, the next in six weeks, and the following four months later will not see positive results. To be effective, your email marketing must be done on a consistent schedule. Sending value-added content twice per month is a great start. Your goal is to stay in front of prospects by providing value-added content at regular intervals without annoying them!

Note: Be sure to track your unsubscribe rates based on mailing frequency and act accordingly. While consistency is key, sending emails too often can annoy recipients and increase unsubscribe rates. Find the right balance.

10.) Not Sending to ENOUGH Targeted Contacts

To generate enough leads from your email marketing programs, you must market regularly to a large enough database of targeted contacts. One of the most common failures we see is companies marketing to TOO FEW contacts.

Let’s say you purchase 2000 leads for an email marketing campaign. Using an “open rate” of 10%, this results in 200 email “opens.” Now apply an average click-through rate of 5% and by marketing to 0nly 2000 contacts, you will have only ten “click-throughs” who actually read your content. That means you have only ten contacts to call on and follow up on their interest. That’s not many.

Start with a larger targeted marketing list and your results will multiply. The basic rule to follow is “The larger the net, the more fish you’ll catch.”

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