You likely have heard of email marketing. But do you know what it really is? It’s a commercial message sent via email, usually to a large group of people.
As more and more people are online and part of the digital world, email marketing has become essential for businesses of all types. Gone are the days when companies would print advertisements and solicitations and mail them out to a bunch of different people. Email marketing is a way to directly reach your clients and target audience and can be cheaper than what traditional printing and mailing could cost. The content of the email can vary from advertisements to showcases of products and services to business requests to donation solicitations and more.
Email marketing can seem intimidating, especially if you have never done it before. Here are some email marketing for beginners tips that are sure to help you get started right.
Create an Email Marketing Strategy
The first step is to create a strategy for your email marketing campaign.
First, figure out who your audience is so you know who you need to target. Your email campaign should be tailored to them and the type of information they want to receive via email.
Next, establish the goals of your campaign. Goals should include open rates, click-through rates, click-to-open rates, and unsubscribe rates. Be sure to gather some industry norms for these rates so you have something on which to base your numbers.
Build Your Email List
An email list is a bit different than identifying your target audience, as not everyone who is part of your target audience may be a good fit to receive this particular email.
This list should be a group of users that you have permission to email, who are interested in whatever you’re sending, and who are likely to open the email. If you only have a small list to start with, that’s okay. These lists can take some time to build.
A good way to help build them is by having a subscribe option on your website (and in the emails you send out too). When you do get a new subscriber, treat them like royalty to make them feel good, such as welcoming them to your list with a special email that has an offer for them to use, like a discount for your product or service.
Choose an Email Campaign Type
There are different types of email campaigns to choose from.
For instance, will this campaign be a weekly newsletter or a monthly one? Is this campaign centered around a new product announcement or a new blog post that’s posted on your website? Keep your audience in mind while you are answering these questions.
Additionally, if not all members of your audience fit with the campaign you are planning to implement, that’s okay too. You can set up different lists that get different emails that are better suited for them.
Make a Schedule
Not only should you decide the frequency with which you are planning to email this list, but you should also let them know in the first correspondence so an expectation is set and they can be on the lookout for emails from you.
If you do not let them know, it tends to lead to more people unsubscribing because they are unaware of the frequency, or it could fall into their spam folder. Once you figure out this schedule and let people know what the schedule is, be sure to stick to it. Consistency is key when working with an email list.
Send the Email
There are many great email marketing providers out there to choose from.
You should use one of these systems rather than personally sending out an email marketing campaign from your own inbox for many reasons. For starters, if you use your own email from your inbox, you can’t track open or click-through rates. Additionally, lots of email providers may mark your email as spam if there are too many people in the “to” field, and you don’t want that. Then no one will see your emails.
Measure Your Results
Remember those goals you set as one of the first steps? Now it’s time to evaluate them. One big lesson of email marketing for beginners is that it’s always important to measure the success of an email. Looking at the results will show you what worked, what didn’t, and what you can change in future email marketing campaigns to help you reach more people.
Be sure to pay attention to deliverability, open rate, click-through rate, and unsubscribes, as these are the four most common key metrics when It comes to email marketing.
There are a lot of basics when it comes to email marketing for beginners, but don’t be intimidated. When it comes down to it, the most important thing to remember when you begin an email marketing campaign is that your subscribers are real-life humans, so treat them like they are. Ask yourself if you would enjoy receiving the email you’re about to send out or not. Always put yourself in the shoes of your subscribers. Even though you are sending a communication digitally, it’s still a real person that’s going to be receiving it.
If you are still wary about starting an email marketing campaign on your own, you may want to consider hiring a digital marketing agency to help you out. Professionals know email marketing well and can handle all aspects of the campaign for you.
At InnoVision Marketing Group, we know the importance of investing in your digital presence, email marketing included. We call ourselves an “anti-agency” because we like to challenge the stigma that is ingrained in most people’s heads about traditional marketing agencies. We’ll work with you to get your emails into the hands of your target customers and expand your network. Contact us today to get started.
