Think email doesn’t matter? Think again. In fact, 89% of marketers named email as their primary method of lead generation (QuickSprout).  Dedicating time to list build, strategize and analyze emails can lead to an influx of leads. (That being said, don't blast your list with a ton of promotional emails with no strategy, which can lead to being marked as spam.) Sending targeted messages to engaged audiences and developing a strategy to reach untapped audiences can result in a goldmine for your business. Here’s 8 best practices for a successful email marketing strategy.

Figure out the ‘Why’

Before you even think about sending an email—you must determine the intent and what you expect to achieve. What is your desired outcome—are you trying to boost subscribers or revenue? How do you want your audience to respond? Look into analytics to see which campaigns have performed the best and which have performed not so well. After digging into some analytics, work towards optimizing your future emails based upon which emails you know have been successful in the past.

Know Your Audience & Keep Your List Updated

Who are you trying to target with your email? Audience segmentation and list updates is crucial to keep your audience engaged with your email campaigns. By sending your audience the right message at the right time, unsubscribe rates will also stay low.

How frequently you are targeting a specific audience is also important. You don’t want to inundate them with too many emails. Traktek recommends not sending out more than 2 emails weekly to the same list.  Look into analytics to see what times/days work best for your audience to maximize open and click rates.

Make sure to keep your audience fresh and updated. There is plenty of software, such as Brite Verify and Return Path, to keep your lists current and deliverability rate high. Remember to refresh lists prior to sending if they aren’t already on auto-refresh.

Stay on Top of Trends

In a sea of emails how can you stand out? By trying new things. Try personalizing your email subject lines, use gifs, create interactive emails, develop a new email template, or automated email workflows. Overall, dynamic, engaging content and images will always win your audience over.

Test, Test, Test

Testing is crucial for continued success and figuring out what truly works with your audience. Do they respond to hard-sell, soft-sell, storytelling? There are infinite opportunities, from A/B testing subject lines and CTAs, to gather insights of where your campaign is succeeding, or falling short.

Keep Their Attention

It all begins with an exceptionally crafted subject line. Your copy could be immaculate, but all for nothing if the subject line isn’t compelling enough to open and read more. What’s in it for them? Keep things incentivized and customer-focused. Create a sense of urgency with 3-day sales, last minute specials, or limited holiday promotions.

No matter the audience, keep the message clear and to the point. Keep the tone of your email true to your brand while also compelling. Emails can have multiple CTAs but do not need pages and pages of body copy.

Proofread Before Sending

Before scheduling your email, send a test to yourself and someone else for an additional set of eyes to double check your work. Look out for typos, broken links, and inaccurate images that will damage the credibility of your campaign.

Analyze Results

Give your campaign at least a week before analyzing the results. Some key metrics to focus on are open rate, click-through rate, subject line, unsubscribe rate, and date/time sent. Traktek recommends doing a full report and analysis monthly to view the results and develop a monthly email strategy for the following month.

Plan Ahead

The landscape in email marketing is constantly evolving with new resources and tools to help optimize your business and marketing strategy. What performed in the past isn’t guaranteed to work in the future, so it’s important to keep up with new trends and what works for your audience.  

Traktek Partners is a full-service marketing agency specializing in web design & digital marketing with a focus on travel, hospitality, education, and non-profit.We can provide your business with the right email campaign strategy you need in order to effectively market your company. Let’s transform your business for the long-haul; contact us today!