Here’s how to up your email marketing game right now
This post is a part of our digital audits series – a closer look at what it takes to improve your digital strategy.
There’s no question about it – email marketing is a game changer. Not only are email subscribers some of your most valuable audience members, but sending out regular email communications is also a great way to bring visitors to your website and meet your organization’s digital goals.
Unlike social media posts, you don’t have to worry about algorithms hiding your content – it gets delivered straight to your subscribers’ inboxes, after all. And with all the tracking capabilities included with most email platforms (like Mailchimp), you can get real, solid evidence of just how well your email marketing is working – or not.
If your email strategy isn’t having a positive impact on your organization, it’s time to consider an email marketing audit. Below, we’ll cover the major issues you need to look out for.
5 questions for your email marketing strategy
1. Are you gaining subscribers?
Ideally, your overall number of subscribers should increase with each email you send. Make sure it’s easy for people to sign up, and give them a compelling reason to do so! Offer-codes, exclusive content and contests are a few popular tactics – and make sure you’re promoting your e-newsletter on your social media channels!
In your quest to gain subscribers, avoid becoming a spammer. Not only is it super annoying for unwilling subscribers, but you could get yourself in legal trouble. If someone didn’t intentionally join your email list, don’t take it upon yourself to add them anyway.
2. Are people even opening your emails?
A poor open rate could indicate that your subject lines lack appeal, your email preview text isn’t intriguing, or your audience just isn’t engaged with your brand to begin with. Try upping your brand’s reputation through all aspects of your digital strategy – social media, website, blog, you name it.
Plus, it never hurts to learn the basics of writing great subject lines. Keep them quick, add a sense of urgency, create intrigue, and make sure to deliver on the promises your subject line makes. And avoid all-caps and excessive punctuation, or risk getting labelled as spam.
3. Is the content in your emails worth a click?
Is your audience truly into the content you’re sending them? That’s what your click rate will tell you; it provides a glimpse into your subscribers’ actions. Take note of which links get the most clicks; that’s the kind of content you should focus on! If you really want to capitalize on this data, try writing a few more blog posts that deal with similar subject matter.
4. How’s your conversion rate?
Each email you send should have a goal. You might want to get more event attendees, boost your video views, promote a contest or spread the word about your blog. Whatever the goal is, include a clear call-to-action (CTA) in each email – and make sure it’s as simple and straightforward as possible.
Afterwards, keep track of your conversion rate. How many people acted on your CTA? If your numbers are looking dismal, you need to change your approach and add some appeal. Try optimizing your copy for email, or even update your e-newsletter template to make it more visually engaging.
5. When are you hitting the send button?
Everyone’s inbox is overloaded; don’t add to the chaos by sending too many emails. Instead, try playing around with frequency. Some brands do well with weekly emails, while monthly campaigns are perfect for others.
If you’re unsure what day and time is the best for boosting those open and click rates, CoSchedule recommends Tuesdays at 10:00 a.m.
Email is a potent form of content marketing, but only if you optimize your approach. A good digital audit will show you exactly what you’re doing wrong so you can learn from your mistakes and do better in the future.
Contact us if your organization could use a digital audit!