Choosing the appropriate marketing communication channel to deliver your message to your customers is crucial for a successful marketing campaign. With the combination of a strong message and the proper media channel, you can persuade customers to do business with you.
One of the most widely used marketing channels to this day is email marketing. A well-thought-out email marketing campaign is a productive way to gain an audience’s attention and deliver results.
While there are several other marketing tools, email marketing is effective in both relationship building and profit-building.
Below is a complete beginner’s guide to the email marketing process and how it works.
What is Email Marketing?
Email marketing is a coordinated set of emails that are delivered to a list of contacts. These people have previously given their permission to receive email communications from you.
An email marketing campaign is designed to:
- Build relationships
- Boost awareness
- Promote your content
- Generate leads
- Market your products
- Increase sales
Every successful email campaign includes a specific call to action that encourages readers to take action, further increasing conversion rates.
Types of Email Marketing
Here are four types of popular email marketing campaigns that have helped small and large businesses grow:
1. Digital Newsletters
Digital newsletters are used to educate subscribers and provide them with helpful tools for a specific industry. Add value to your customers by including engaging content, how-to’s, and relevant news about new products or services. If your digital marketing newsletter is effective, you will notice increased customer retention, engagement, and loyalty.
2. Promotional Emails
Promotional emails include offers that persuade customers to buy a new product or service, which increases sales and sign-ups. You can use this email marketing strategy to provide loyal subscribers with exclusive deals or market new products/services. They have a clear call to action that encourages customers to make a purchase.
3. Transactional Emails
This email marketing campaign is triggered by a certain action and allows customers to complete that action. The goal of transactional emails is to increase click-through rates. Transactional emails include thank you emails, confirmation emails, welcome emails, or lead nurturing emails.
4. Re-engagement Emails
Re-engagement emails are used when inactive subscribers need to be re-engaged. A great way to do this is by asking for feedback so you can work to improve your processes. According to Active Campaign, restoring an inactive subscriber is 5 times cheaper than obtaining a brand new customer.
Getting Started with Email Marketing
There are two things you need to begin the email marketing process – email marketing software and an email list.
Follow these 8 steps to develop a successful email marketing campaign:
1. Choose the right email marketing software
The first step in the email marketing process is finding the right email service provider to send out your message. There are hundreds of ESPs to choose from, so it can be challenging to decide what is best for your business.
You must evaluate your needs and determine what features you want to include in your email marketing campaign. Consider things like budget, how often you plan to send your emails, and how many customers you plan to reach.
It is also important to think about your future needs. As your subscribers continue to grow, you need to ensure your ESP can support your business.
2. Create an email list
Before you can send emails to your customers, you need to build a list of interested subscribers. Almost all ESPs allow you to create subscriptions forms to insert on your website. Always be clear about what content your subscribers will receive and how often. If you start sending unrelated content to your customers, they will unsubscribe or mark your emails as spam.
Your subscription form should be easily noticeable to all visitors to your website. You can include an opt-in form on your homepage, blog posts, or contact page. You can even create a pop-up form but make sure you don’t disrupt the user experience.
Use lead magnets, such as trial subscriptions, white papers, or e-newsletters, to grow your email list. By providing valuable content, your email list will skyrocket.
3. Send out a welcome email
When you gain a new subscriber, send out a welcome email to engage them even further. This is the perfect chance to introduce any content to your customer and will enhance your relationship with them.
According to MailMunch, 74% of subscribers expect a welcome email, and welcome emails produce 320% more revenue than other promotional emails. A welcome email creates a fabulous first impression and will help increase customer loyalty.
4. Define your goals
A crucial element of the email marketing process is defining your short and long-term goals.
Some common email marketing goals can include:
- Advertising a new product
- Attracting new users
- Engaging current subscribers
- Guiding subscribers to your website
- Informing customers about relevant company news and updates
Your goals should align with your company and your audience. Clear goals will help you create effective email content that will grab the attention of current and potential customers.
5. Ensure your emails are responsive
Your subscriber might decide to open your email on their mobile device or desktop. Therefore, it is essential that your content automatically adjusts to fit the device they are viewed on. Focus on keeping your email clean, simple, and hassle-free while encompassing everything your brand stands for.
You can use email marketing templates and personalize them to correspond to your brand’s preferred font and colors. This makes it quick and easy to update content and maintain your image.
6. Write email copy
Write copy that interests your targeted audience while embodying your tone and voice.
Start your email with an engaging introduction to grab your audience’s attention and encourage them to keep reading.
To create persuasive and compelling content you should:
- Reveal your brand personality
- Tell a story
- Use an informal tone
- Develop a captivating call to action
- Use short paragraphs and bullet points
Always end your email marketing campaign with a signature to make it more personable.
7. Increase clicks and conversions
A key aspect of the email marketing process is to convert email recipients into customers.
You can start this by using an identifiable email address so your audience knows where the email is coming from. This increases trustworthiness and brand recognition.
Write an engaging email subject line to get your audience to click on your email. Keep it short and simple and appeal to their emotions. Create an email header that works together with your subject line that creates value for your subscriber.
8. Test your email marketing campaign
Before finalizing your email campaign, ensure there are no mistakes that can harm your business. Check for typos, incorrect links, or formatting and design errors.
Test your email marketing campaign on desktop and mobile devices to guarantee it is responsive on both.
9. Schedule the email, send it, and monitor the results
Avoid sending your emails at any random time. Deliver your email marketing campaign at a time that is appropriate for your specific audience to increase open rates. According to Sendinblue, the best time to send out an email is on Tuesdays or Thursdays around 10 am or 2 pm.
Analyze your performance to improve your email marketing process. Keep track of open rates, click-through rates, unsubscribe rates, and bounce rates.
The Best Email Marketing Process
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We will work to catch the attention of potential buyers to coordinate meetings with your team. Our high-quality technology will maximize your email marketing performance and improve your conversion rates.
Start seeing your business grow the way you’ve always imagined.
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