Mail Chump to Mail Champ in 3 simple steps
About 8 years ago, I was at a business conference and one of the guest speakers was from a telemarketing agency. Nothing unusual about that, but what was unusual was his opening statement...
“Email marketing doesn’t work!”
Wow, quite the claim there. He went on to talk about the many companies and marketing professionals he had met who have had bad experiences when using email marketing. Many, allegedly, complained that it was too complicated to set-up, too difficult to find the right contact data and the results gained didn’t warrant the time, effort and money to run email campaigns.
After the 40-minute slot bemoaning the use of email marketing and extolling the virtues of investing in telemarketing instead, I managed to bump into the speaker during a short coffee break. I said that I found his introduction fascinating and at odds with my own experience of using email marketing. I then posed this question to him...
“Is it that email marketing doesn’t work, or perhaps how people are using it doesn’t work?”
He conceded that in the right circumstances and applied in a certain way, email marketing could work.
So why does email marketing not deliver the results that most marketers and business owners expect?
Well, in my experience there are several reasons, which can be broken down into Who, What, When and Why.
Who?
Having quality, accurate contact information that can be imported into an email marketing system or service is vital to the success of any campaign. Rubbish in, rubbish out. If I had a pound for every time a client sent over an Excel sheet full of contact information that is over 2 years old and full of formatting issues, I’d be a rich man. What do you expect using old, poorly formatted data? Would you consume old or poor-quality food and expect to feel healthy?
Information is the life blood of targeted campaigns, so before investing time and money in developing ideas for an email campaign, start with the contact data. The better the data, the better the delivery rates. But it’s not just about accuracy. Having a proper record or profile of each contact allows campaigns to be more personalised to individuals and their specific needs or desires. For example, if you receive an email addressed to your name versus one addressed to ‘Sir or Madam’, you’re more likely to open it. And it’s the little things too. Making sure the name you have for them is correctly spelled and formatted. It just looks lazy if you send to john instead of John.
As lists get larger, the facility to segment them into smaller groups is also crucial in keeping your campaigns relevant to your contacts, and therefore more engaging and likely to be opened and read. So think about how you might want to divide up your lists from the start. This could be by region, county, industry, or some other profile trait that makes it easier to send certain information to the right people (e.g. domestic vs commercial clients).
You may be tempted to buy or rent lists, but in my experience the quality is sacrificed for quantity. My recommendation would be to start small and use lists you already have that you know to be up-to-date, or hire an admin freelancer to help you build a targeted list. The delivery rates will be much higher, which is always the first hurdle.
What?
The content you create and use in your campaigns must have the recipient in mind. All too often I see draft email campaigns that are generic and purely focussed on selling and telling the recipient about what is on offer. Instead of thinking about what you want to say to potential clients, think about what they might want to hear or read. Nobody likes being sold to. Exclusive offers and deals might work in certain cultures, but more often than not people are just looking to be informed.
Over the years, I’ve found an approach to structuring email campaign content that has worked well for my clients, resulting in above-average open rates and ultimately more replies and enquiries - as well as minimal unsubscribes.
First, I start with who the email is from. It might be tempting to send your campaign with your Company Name as the display name when it lands in the recipients inbox. However, unless you’re a well-established brand like Marks & Spencers or Tesco, chances are the recipient will just see it as yet another company trying to sell to them and send it straight to their trash or deleted folder. Remember you’re sending a message to a person, so why not send it from a person? And if you want to include your company name then that’s fine but let’s compromise by displaying the sender’s individual name first, then the company name (e.g. Jane Smith, JS Consultants).
Next, let’s talk subject lines. It’s best to avoid words like ‘Offer’ or ‘Free’, or using symbols and emojis in subject lines, as these automatically get flagged as sales emails. If they manage to get past the spam or junk filters, recipients are still wary of what the message is about and it is easier for them to just discard and move on. It’s worth remembering most people are busy and get bombarded with emails all the time, so yet another message that looks like it is trying to sell something is just going to get sent to the bin.
Sometimes it is easier to come up with the subject line once the main body of the email has been written. Chances are there will be some nugget in there that can be used to link the subject line to a key message or information that the email sharing. And that’s another important point. Instead of trying to sell, think about what you can share with the recipient regarding your product or service that might spark their interest. They’re more likely to be interested in the benefits of your product or service rather than its features or functions.
This leads me on nicely to the structure of the main email text / content. I tend to break it down into 4 main parts.
1. Empathy line - one sentence / statement that demonstrates you understand the target’s situation, challenge or problem. Make it about them, not you or your business / offer.
2. Solution line - one or two sentences succinctly saying how you can help them. It doesn’t have to be all the detail about what you’ll do to help them, just a simple overview.
3. Credibility line - recipients find it easier to buy if there is evidence that what you have to offer to fix their problem actually works. Perhaps a short testimonial from a past client or a genuine statistic that proves what you provide can deliver the results they want.
4. Call-to-action - don’t leave them hanging or guessing what to do next, tell them. Do you want them to reply to the email, pick up the phone, complete a qualifying questionnaire, or visit your website? Remember the email campaign isn’t the destination, it is a part of a buyer’s journey and you need to be clear about what you want them to do next.
When?
Timing can mean the difference between high or low response rates in an email campaign. There is no substitution for testing, and most email marketing services will allow you to send the same campaign to segments of your target contact list at different times. But also bear in mind that optimum sending times can change or shift. For example, summer months are typically quieter and result in much more out-of-office replies or bounces compared with other times of the year. B2B campaigns tend to work best mid mornings on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and mid-afternoon on Wednesdays, whereas B2C campaigns can be more effective mid-morning on Saturdays and Sundays. The more you can learn about your contacts and their behaviours, the more likely you can predict when they’ll be receptive to your campaigns.
Why?
If used in isolation and with limited investment in contacts, contacts and consideration, email campaigns will not yield the best results. However, take the time to build your contact lists and profiles, craft your content and plan your campaigns within a promotional mix and customer journey, and email marketing can play a key role in generating new leads and retaining customers.
Interested in developing email campaigns for your business? Why not get in touch and see if we can help?
Author: Neil Corrigan
Branding and marketing specialist helping businesses grow their client base, market share and turnover.
