This was originally published on the MultiView blog. MultiBriefs is a division of MultiView.
How are your 2020 marketing campaigns going so far? Are you seeing higher conversion rates? Perhaps your website is receiving more attention than ever before. Or, maybe not so much? As marketing continues to evolve, staying in touch with your customers will help keep your business afloat and growing. If you’re looking to improve your outreach, consider revamping your email marketing strategy to optimize your company’s marketing efforts.
According to HubSpot’s Ultimate List of Marketing Statistics for 2020, it was noted that the number of active email accounts are expected to hit 5.6 billion. That’s a lot of people to market your products and services! Combined with the fact that 80% of marketers reported an increase in email engagement over the past 12 months, the time is ripe to be strengthening your email marketing plans.
Ultimately, the goal of email marketing is to connect with prospective and current customers in order to create a furthered awareness for your brand. However, there’s a fine tightrope to walk, as HubSpot’s report goes on to say that 78% of customers have unsubscribed from emails because a company was sending them too often. Equally damning? Emails that fail to display correctly are deleted within three seconds. Yikes!
Consider the following tips in order to revamp your email marketing strategies:
Keep it brief!
The number of individuals reading emails on their smartphones continues to grow at a rapid pace — and these readers don’t want to be scrolling through paragraphs, either! (Long-form content is still alive, just not in your email inbox!)
Streamline your content so that your message is upfront and clear. Short sentences keep readers’ attention without being overwhelming. Have more to say? Link to your website for further details with a call-to-action button. This not only boosts your chances of a successful conversion, but familiarizes users with your company’s website and other offerings.
Emails, regardless of whether they are designed for desktop or mobile users, should be cognizant of text and font sizes, as well as the use of photos. Your fancy font may not translate well on a mobile device, and multiple photos could look crowded.
Personalize!
Consider the audience you’re targeting. You may find that certain demographics are interested in a certain product or service, more so than others. For example, offering an entry-level certification course to industry retirees won’t be very successful. However, segmenting your list based on age, location, or career level will allow you to connect with those who want to hear from you. Individualized messages have also proven to be worthwhile, as recipients will note that this isn’t a “one size fits all” attempt at getting their attention.
According to Forbes, 72% of B2B buyers expect companies to personalize their communications to suit their needs. If you’re not capable of this, they will be quick to switch to a different service provider that better understands their needs.
Stick to a schedule!
You don’t want to annoy your email subscribers with too many emails, so stick to a regular schedule, and plan the content you will be promoting ahead of time.
Hubspot notes that emails sent on Tuesdays receive the highest open rates, and consider why: Mondays and Fridays are frequently disrupted with holidays and PTO days, while weekends are unlikely to find your subscribers in the office. Additionally, focusing on how often to send email communications will be of great importance. You may consider a biweekly schedule, or a monthly recap — this depends on the urgency of your content and how often your readership wishes to receive communications from you.
Monitor your email statistics over time, and see if there are any causes for concern. If you note that your unsubscribe rates are skyrocketing, you may want to reflect on the above points, and see what has gone wrong. Lucky for you, your email campaign is fluid, and can be refined over time in order to optimize future send-outs.
Evolving your email marketing strategy will require your company to reflect on past efforts, and rely on what will best suit your clients moving forward. Having a plan will allow you to communicate on a regular basis, and keep your company fresh in subscribers’ minds. Consider where you need to recover, and take those steps towards improvement — after all, you don’t want to end up in your clients’ trash folders!
