There’s no need to worry about your first email campaign. Email marketing is now more accessible than ever thanks to the various platforms and tools at your disposal. But before rushing to click the send button, you need to check out our expert advice for masterminding your first email marketing campaign.
1. Select an Email Marketing Platform
At this stage, you need to think about the level of complexity you require. Basically, does your business intend to send out engaging content or do you need to send out and track offers?
A service provider is likely to be happy with less advanced email platforms that are available free or at low cost. Look for a platform with database functionality as well as campaign management options.
Sellers of goods should consider a more sophisticated platform that can send out promo codes and track conversion rates.
2. Add to Your Email List
Ideally, you will at least have some addresses on your email list. Your website should have well-positioned capture forms that allow for users to add their email addresses to your list. As time goes on, the list will hopefully increase in size (assuming you get regular visitors and that they like your site).
There is no excuse for not having an email capture form. WordPress has downloadable plugins that will let you set one up in minutes. Alternatively, talk to your web designer about adding a capture form.
3. Choose an Overall Approach
This is the first email you’re going to send, so start as you mean to go on. Do you wish to focus on providing engaging content or to share special offers? Combining both will only cloud the overall message and compromise the campaign.
For the content route, your goal will be to build and strengthen relationships. Do this by sharing helpful content that is relevant to your industry, but don’t talk in-depth about your own company in every other line of text. Displaying such an obvious agenda is unlikely to win anybody over.
In contrast, an ecommerce site wants to turn first-time customers into loyal customers. A campaign to thank first-time customers and send them an offer on their next order could prove to be extremely effective. Rather than search multiple sites next time, they would be more likely to come back to yours.
4. Create Your First Email
To share content, think of a valuable resource that is focused on benefiting the user. For example, this could be a starter guide on how to cultivate your own marijuana supply. Basically, anything that will draw interest is what you want to send. Write the content honestly and with the intention to help. Forget about reeling out sales terms. Focus on engaging.
Sending out an offer is somewhat different. Here, the ideal approach would be to include an enticing image that clearly displays the offer and its promo codes. You can accompany it with a couple of lines talking about the offer and provide encouragement, but keep it short and sweet.
Never settle for a bland subject line. This is the first thing the user will see. At best, a bad subject line will leave your email unopened. At worst, you will earn a place on their junk mail list. Think about the message you want to send and then do your best to write a subject line that demands attention.
5. Monitor Results and Plan a Follow-up
Use the analytical software in your email marketing platform to see the opening rate of your first campaign, plus the click-through rate to any links included. Make a note of these for comparison with your next email campaign.
At this stage, you will not know exactly why your campaign succeeded or was met with indifference. For the next one, try using a different subject line. Another strategy might be to increase or decrease the number of images, depending on how many were use in the first campaign.
After sending out the second campaign, you can monitor results and compare performance with the first one. Just please bear in mind that email marketing is a constant work-in-progress. You have to regularly analyze and tweak campaigns to ensure that you are achieving the best-possible results.
ReeferMail.com has many other resources and articles to help you get better at email marketing. Click here for more free advice.
