It’s that time of year again when Halloween is right around the corner again. Costumes, masks, candy and much more will be coming to a neighborhood near you very soon. With that, the folks over at Get Response have created a fun infographic that outlines some email marketing tips to help you get the most from your efforts.
9 Email Marketing Tips to Increase Sales
If you aren’t a visual person and are just looking for some text, check out my personal take on each of the 9 tips above.
Build your List Organically (disagree)
While building your list organically is definitely something to aim for, there are other options that may expedite the growth of your list. One way you can do this is to cross promote with a partner or someone who has an audience that is similar to yours. This some times comes with a monetary cost. Here are some tips on what to look for in a partner for cross promotion:
- Has a large list of qualified subscribers
- Has a list of subscribers that have opted in
- Has a regular cadence with subscribers
- Has confidence in subscribers being interested in a partner introduction/cross promotion
Demand Double Opt-In (disagree)
I think the double opt-in is something that definitely will help you better qualify, and strengthen your list. However, there are definitely some drawbacks to using the double opt-in method. Some drawbacks or reasons that go against double opt-in are as follows:
- There is no guarantee that the recipient will receive your confirmation email. In fact, there are many times I’ve seen it land in the SPAM folder.
- People are forgetful. I always receive emails that I forget signing up for and considering most people follow the double opt-in principle, it doesn’t help me remember.
- You’ll get SPAM complaints regardless. It happens and a double opt-in won’t prevent that from happening
Set Up Pop Ups and Light Boxes
Pop ups and light boxes are great and definitely will help you build your subscriber list. They are much,much more effective then having a sign up options in the footer or sidebar of your website. I’ve managed 100s of websites, and these just don’t get subscribers.
Create Responsive Templates
This is a no-brainer so if you aren’t using responsive everything in 2015 then we have a much, much larger problem. Always make sure you sign up forms, email templates, and everything the user touches during the sign up process is responsive.
Define the Perfect Timing for More Responses
Timing is key. If you have a subscriber base that stretches the world then it is even more important that you get your timing right. Most email service providers (ESP) like Get Responses provide you with a scheduling assistant. The scheduling assistant will help make sure your message gets delivered at the appropriate time for thee subscribers location and time zone.
Introduce Limited Time Offers During Initial Sign Up
When a user first signs up it is key to get them to commit to your list with some kind of special offer or incentive. The special offer can come in one of the following forms:
- Price discounts
- Free trials
- Ebooks and other downloadable media
Make Use of Email Intelligence
Email intelligence can refer to many things, but let’s consider it any of the reports, metrics, or analytics tools that your email service provider offers. For example, open rates, click through rates, conversions, “list health”, and much more. These will help you better understand your list and also ensure you are getting the most value from your subscribers.
Run A/B Tests to Better Understand your Audience
A/B tests are all the rage these days. Many of my clients were in awe knowing they could run multiple versions of a home page and test them against each other. Running A/B tests can be done on your email templates, the times you send out messages, and your landing pages were you are asking users to sign up. I highly recommend running A/B tests whenever possible.
Send Reactivation Campaigns
They may be dead, but they shouldn’t be forgotten. If your email service provider allows you to send reactivation campaigns it is definitely recommended.
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