[col size="2"]Sarah
Sarah is the Content Creation Expert at Sark eMedia.
An email marketing campaign starts with getting names and emails, remember we gain permission first. But that’s not the end of your email campaign, not by a long shot. People need to be emailed in order to read them! I know too many businesses that collect the emails but get too scared to email their customers!
Once you have your customer’s email address the next challenge is to get those people opening, reading, and taking action on your email messages. Otherwise, it’s a bigger waste of time than just sitting on the email addresses.
If you’re getting a zero or low open rate and you’re not getting your customers eyes on your email messages, here are 5 possible reasons why and how to fix it.
Your ‘From’ Line
One problem could be the ‘from’ line. Send a message to yourself and see what it looks like. If the ‘from’ line doesn’t clearly state who you are, the recipient is unlikely to open the message. In fact, your emails are probably getting relegated to the spam folder. Your ‘from’ line should be the name of your company and not an email address. It needs to be instantly recognisable as your business (in other words, the list the customers signed up for). I brand all mine Sarah Arrow / SarkeMedia.com so there’s no confusion.
Subject Line Problems
Most often, it’s the subject line that gets people to either open or ignore your messages. The subject line needs to capture the readers’ attention and do it quickly. They’re likely to give it a few short seconds of their time at most. It needs to be compelling enough to urge them to open the email in that short period of time.
Your messages also need to deliver on what the subject line promises. If you say in the subject line that you’ve got some secrets to share with them, your email had better deliver some secrets. If it doesn’t do this, the customers will quickly start tuning out your messages, no matter how compelling the subject lines. Worse than ignoring you and making your list unresponsive – they’ll unsubscribe, and you’ll be caught in the perpetual cycle of chasing subscriptions.
Boring Content
If people aren’t opening your emails, you may need a content upgrade. If you offer good, valuable content that truly helps customers out, they’ll be eagerly awaiting each email. If each email is a sales pitch or just plain boring, they’ll quit opening after a few. Put yourself in your customers’ shoes – what would you like to gain from the messages? It also helps to mix up your email messages. Don’t only offer promotions, but sometimes give helpful tips, multimedia content, or other things people can use.
Read: Tips To Grow Your Digital Audience: Email, Mobile And Social Audience
Too Little or Too Much
Frequency also factors into whether or not people will open your emails. It’s hard to strike a perfect balance. If you send too many emails, people will get sick of you. If you don’t send enough, they’ll forget they signed up for your list. As a general guideline, most people recommend sending two to three messages per week maximum, but it depends on the nature of your email list. There’s also the time of day to think about. Certain times have higher open rates.
It’s All About Testing
It can be a long hard slog to figure out just where your email messages are failing, and that’s why testing is essential. If you experiment with different subject lines, message frequencies, types of content, and other factors, you’ll start to discover exactly what works. Testing gives you a realistic idea of what your subscribers like and don’t like, and when you know that – you keep giving it to them.
So there we have it message your list, and keep them captivated, If you don’t they’ll treat you like junk mail and throw you in the bin!
Also Read: Planning The Next Big Email Marketing Giveaway
What tips can you share in the comments about getting your emails opened?
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PS if you liked this post you will also like my book, instantly downloadable on Amazon – Zero to email marketing success.
