To help you maximize email marketing, I'm sharing how to know if what you're currently sending is working- or not, and how to improve open and click-thru for maximum success. You are looking at your data, yes?
I'm also starting something new - Three-Second Synopsis. Don't have time to read the full email? I got you. Giving you the quick summary straight up.
Now, let's dig in…
First: Is your email marketing working?
Every email platform offers analytics data of every email you send - even CRM platforms. While most include more detail as you keep digging, there are really two top-priority metrics that you should review, for every email you send; Open Rate & Click Rate.
Open rate is the percentage of total recipients who opened your email. Click-Thru rate is the percentage of total recipients who clicked on a link within the email. To demonstrate, below are performance metrics for the email I sent last week, from Flodesk:
What results am I aiming for when I send an email?
A minimum 30% open rate, and a click-thru rate between 2.5-3%. I exceeded target opens, but fell short on click-thru. Why? It's likely that my Call-to-Action(CTA) wasn't of interest, or I need to nurture my audience further before I get more clicks.
What target open and click rates should you aim for? At lowest, an Open Rate of around 20% and a Click-Thru Rate of 2%. If you efforts fall below, just evaluate and re-work for the next email. If lower more regularly, take a harder look at your audience and content.
Here's a step-by-step of where and how to find email results on Mailchimp:
Next: Get better results from email you send.
Here, a few of the "low-hanging fruit" strategies we recommend you start with to realize better results:
1. Make sure your current email list is active and engaged.
What's the easiest way to know? Run a report within your platform sorting for subscribers who have opened an email within a period of time - say 3-6 months, or opened the last 5-10 emails. That result will show, broadly, “engaged subscribers.” I would consider those not on that list "unengaged."
Next, email unengaged folks and ask if they are interested in remaining on your list. If they don't respond within one week, consider them unengaged and archive them. Before you archive, create a segment with those emails and label it “Unengaged.” You are now left with an active list of subscribers who should be considered interested.
2. Personalize and segment emails.
Adding your recipient's first name or location in the subject line of your email has been shown to increase open rates by up to 14%! Also, make sure your subject lines are really engaging. Need ideas? Open your Inbox and find subject lines that enticed you to open - then borrow and customize!
Segmenting entails categorizing your email subscribers based on specific criteria, such as demographics, industry, or interests, usually grouped with “tags” in your database. Use these segments to create and send emails specific to that audience.
3. Provide value.
Focus on your customer first in your emails. Remember, "Serve before sell." Ask yourself, “What issues or challenges do my subscribers face where I can provide value?” If you're not sure, ask a few for their input. Then, use email to offer advice, insight and ideas- giving away expertise and information. You can insert a CTA within the email to “Learn More” or “Schedule a Call,” but make that second to the serve.
4. Make it visually appealing.
Finally, make your emails visually engaging, consistent and on-brand. Use a branded template that includes space for images, and insure fonts are clear, content is brief and spacing is uniform. Not sure where to source images or short-form video? Most email platforms offer free integration with image sources, or grab free images on Google or even ones you've snapped yourself, and add them to your email.
Unlike social media or Google search, the beauty of email is that you own your subscriber list and there's no algorithm to limit who sees your message. Given this captive audience, I encourage you to prioritize email, or if you're not yet convinced, implement a trial email effort, to see what results you can achieve.
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