5 Tips on Optimizing Email Marketing Campaigns

Email marketing is an essential part of marketing programs for brands. It allows brands to communicate personally and directly with their audience.

There are the basics that all brands should be implementing into their marketing plans, but then there are those few extras that brands can do to further optimize their email campaigns for increased open rates, engagement with the content, and in turn conversion to a customer (or loyal customer).

Here are 5 tips for optimizing email marketing:

Add Clear CTAs

Adding a call to action (CTA) is common, but not all brands do it properly. Unfortunately some brands forget to make it stand out.  Or they add too many, making the call to action (the intent from the brand) less likely to occur.

Our tip – make the one, specific CTA, stand out. Use a button or a different color…either way ensure it calls out to the reader. In addition ensure the wording on the CTA is relevant and a next step that makes sense.

For example, if you have an excerpt on one of your products, add a CTA that allows the reader to continue reading on the topic elsewhere (online, social media, or via download).

Socialize your Content

This step is crucial to any brand whether they are just starting out or not. Utilize social presence and allow the audience to continue the conversation online with brand specific hashtags ,which apply to the content.

Additionally, allow readers to share your content easily with their friends.  Let them tweet it (have a shortened link already available for them to use), let them share on Facebook, let them pin it on Pinterest, let them +1 it or whatever they may choose as their preference.

The key is, the more shareable the content, the further the content and conversation will go. Hence – more eyeballs on your brand!

Have a Cadence

It is important to establish a cadence so your audience knows when to expect your emails. If you send them too infrequently, you may be forgotten but if you send them too often, people may unsubscribe or you’ll end up in spam.

The key – establish a content calendar for the themes, topics, and frequency for your emails.

For example, your brand may email once a week with tips and tricks and/or once a month with sales and insider perks. It depends on your brands’ offerings and your audience. Perhaps allow the audience to decide which emails they subscribe to and the frequency so it is in their hands and they are more willing to open the emails they do receive.

Measure to Optimize and Personalize

Measuring open rates, what your audience clicks on and the duration of which that person spends with your content is a great way to optimize and personalize content further.

For example if “Mary” opens your email due to a certain subject line and clicks on certain topic areas, you now know what to target her with (and what not to).  Measure, Optimize, Measure, Optimize…

Continue the Conversation

Always remember that the conversation doesn’t end at the email, it can continue on and offline.

If your brand is hosting an event send some exclusive invites. Continue it online by utilizing hashtags, hosting chats, and allowing your audience to talk to one another and create a community around certain topic areas.

It takes time to implement and find the right strategy for your email marketing campaigns, but as long as your brand is continually learning, listening, and tweaking, your brand will get to a point where your audience is excited to get your emails – whether it’s each day, week, or month.

Do you have an email marketing campaign? What has your experience been like?  Do you feel it’s helping to engage your customers’ interaction with your brand?