It seems to many that email has lost its effectiveness in the marketing world. Part of this is because consumers are savvy to traditional marketing. They know a plain old advertisement when they see one. When those plain old advertisements flood their email inbox, they're apt to quickly delete them or hit the "unsubscribe" button.
As a marketer, you should be hurt that your audience considers any of piece your communication as junk mail. It's worth your time to make your emails more engaging, because this platform still has great potential if effectively utilized. In fact, 77% of consumers prefer permission based marketing communication through email.
So if you sometimes get the feeling that your company's emails are destined for the garbage bin, take a moment to understand the definition of why anything goes in the garbage bin: It's no longer useful; stale.
If you want to make your email communication fresh and effective again, address these common complaints about emails.
1) It looks like just another promotion
A subject line that simply says "30% off men's slack's" immediately signals "promotional" email reaction. This message is very easy for the reader to throw away. Instead, provide a clear benefit right away in the subject line. Something that promotes the benefits such as "Nail the Interview" should be more enticing. Make the language such that the reader can do something with your offer.
2) It's too long
This goes for your subject line and your body copy. According to the Adestra Report, subject lines with fewer than 10 characters had an open rate of 58%. Additionally, people have little time to do anything other than scan emails. Therefore, get to the point and summarize the most important information.
3) The reader doesn't know what to do with the message
The reader must be given direction as to where they should go next with the message. This should be in the form of a call-to-action. Communicate a next step such as a "Redeem Deal" button or a hyperlink to more information. Again, use actionable language so it's clear to the reader what specifically should be done next.
4) The content looks cluttered on an iPhone
80.8% of users report reading emails on mobile devices. So shape up and make sure that your email design is responsive to mobile and easier to digest on smaller screens.
Want more information on how email fits into an effective inbound marketing campaign? Feel free to contact us at Responsive Inbound Marketing. We'd love to help spice up your email!
