Email marketing remains one of the most effective ways to reach your target audience and promote your business. It's a cost-effective way to connect with customers, build relationships, and drive sales by prompting your customers to act.

But as marketing teams lean on email to do much of the heavy lifting in their campaigns, it’s worth asking: what steps can you take to make email work even better for you?

In this article, we’ll explore why email marketing is important, metrics you should measure, and best practices to keep in mind – from crafting the best subject lines to analyzing metrics – to help you take your email strategy to the next level.

Why email marketing matters

 

1. It's cost-effective: Unlike social media platforms where you essentially "rent" your audience, email marketing allows you to cultivate a list of subscribers that you truly own. This means that once you've acquired these valuable contacts, you can reach them directly and repeatedly without incurring additional costs.

 

2. It's targeted: Through segmentation, you can tailor your messages to specific groups based on demographics, interests, purchase history, or any other relevant criteria. This ensures that your emails resonate with recipients, delivering content that speaks directly to their needs and preferences.

 

3. It's personal: Beyond simply inserting names, personalization allows you to leverage valuable customer data. It's a powerful way to nurture loyalty and encourage repeat business.  And when your messaging is relevant and personalized, it's far more likely to result in opens, clicks, and ultimately, conversions.

 

4. It's measurable: Email marketing allows you to measure results with pinpoint accuracy and refine your strategy over time. This data-driven approach ensures that your efforts are not only effective but also continuously improving.

 

Key performance indicators (KPIs) you should be tracking

 

By analyzing these metrics, you gain valuable insights into your audience's preferences and behaviors. This empowers you to make data-driven decisions, optimizing your subject lines, content, CTAs, and overall strategy for maximum impact. 

• Open Rate: The percentage of recipients who open your email is a direct reflection of the effectiveness of your subject line. A high open rate indicates a compelling subject line.

• Click-Through Rate (CTR): This measures how many recipients clicked on a link within your email. It reveals how engaging your content was and whether your call to action (CTA) resonated with your audience.

• Conversion Rate: The goal of many email campaigns is to drive specific actions, such as purchases or sign-ups. Tracking conversions allows you to assess the overall success of your pitch and identify areas for improvement.

Email marketing tips: How to improve your strategy

 

1. Craft attention-grabbing subject lines

The subject line is the first impression your email makes, and it determines whether your message gets opened or ignored. In a crowded inbox, it's competing for attention with other messages. 

Think of your subject line as the headline of your email newspaper. It needs to be so captivating that readers can't resist clicking to learn more. A boring subject line like "Monthly Newsletter" simply blends in and offers no incentive to open. Instead, craft click-worthy subject lines:

• Spark curiosity: Use intriguing phrases or questions to pique interest.

• Create urgency: Highlight limited-time offers or time-sensitive information.

• Highlight benefits: Clearly communicate the value recipients will gain by opening. 

Example:

• Bland: Monthly newsletter
• Engaging: Sneak peek: Our biggest sale of the year starts now! 

2. Focus on benefits, not features

When drafting the email content, highlight the benefits of your product or service rather than just listing its features. Clearly communicate how your offer can solve the recipient's problem or fulfill their needs. When crafting your email content, always ask yourself: "So what?" after mentioning a feature. This will help you shift your focus to the benefit and show your readers why they should care.

• Feature: This smartphone camera has a 50-megapixel sensor.
• Benefit: Capture stunningly detailed photos that make your memories come to life, even in low light. 

• Feature: Our mattress is made with cooling gel-infused memory foam.

• Benefit: Enjoy a restful night's sleep with a mattress that keeps you cool and comfortable all night long.

• Feature: Our financial advisors have an average of 15 years of experience.

• Benefit: Get expert guidance on your financial goals from seasoned professionals who can help you build a secure future.

3. Personalization is key

Personalization in email marketing goes beyond addressing recipients by their name. It's about crafting a truly tailored experience that speaks to their individual needs and preferences. By leveraging data insights, you can dynamically adjust email content based on a variety of factors, making each message feel uniquely relevant. By integrating these personalization elements into your email campaigns, you're not only increasing engagement but also fostering a deeper connection with your audience. 

Example:

• Weather: Imagine receiving an email with a discount code for a warm sweater on a chilly day or a promotion for sunglasses during a heatwave. This level of personalization demonstrates that you're not just sending emails – you're anticipating their needs based on customer-specific information.

4. Create a Clear Call to Action (CTA)

A clear and compelling Call to Action (CTA) is the compass that guides your email recipients towards your desired outcome. It's the decisive moment where you tell them, "This is what I want you to do next." But here's the crucial part: don't overwhelm them with too many options.

The key to a successful CTA is singularity. Focus on one specific action you want your readers to take. This laser focus increases their chances of following through. Remember, each email should have a single purpose, and your CTA should reflect that purpose.

5. Keep it concise and scannable

People have limited time and attention spans, so keep your email concise and easy to scan. Use short paragraphs, bullet points, and subheadings to break up the text and make the content more digestible.

By keeping your emails short, sweet, and visually appealing, you're respecting your recipients' time and increasing the likelihood that your message will be read and acted upon.

6. Test and Iterate

Testing is the key to unlocking the full potential of your email marketing efforts. Without testing, you're navigating in the dark, relying on guesswork and generic advice. But with a data-driven approach, you can transform your campaigns from hopeful experiments to proven successes.

By systematically experimenting with different variables, you gain insights into what resonates with your audience. This eliminates the need to rely on external sources or industry averages, as you'll have concrete evidence of what works specifically for your subscribers.

A/B testing, for instance, allows you to compare two versions of an email to see which one performs better. This simple yet powerful technique can reveal surprising insights and help you fine-tune every aspect of your campaigns. Remember, what works for one audience might not work for another.

Conclusion

Email marketing is a versatile and powerful tool that can transform how you connect with your audience, nurture leads, and drive sales. By understanding its cost-effectiveness, embracing the power of ownership, and prioritizing personalization and data-driven decision-making, you can unlock its full potential.

To get more tips for crafting successful email campaigns, download our ebook “Acoustic x MarketingProfs: How to make email work even harder for you.” For Acoustic customers, learn how to improve your strategy and apply these practices in email composer by watching our recent Academy training course “Compose emails that convert.”