Source: Eric Del Agio, EzineArticles
Creating a killer email marketing newsletter or campaign is one step away from useless if no one is opening those emails. For businesses who are struggling to improve the open and conversion rates, these simple five factors can spell the difference between a campaign that’s a flop and one that will leave you flipping out in a good way.
Avoid These Three Words at ALL Costs
While many organizations understand that the word “FREE” in an email subject line will almost definitely get the message whisked away by SPAM filters, there are another three words and phrases that can be equally dangerous. The first of these is the word “help”. Whether the organization is looking for help from their audience or is looking to help their audience, this word is a no-no. Hit your thesaurus for other, similar words like “Favor” or something else to get your message across. The other two are “percent off” and “Reminder”.
Aim for Localization Versus Personalization
Many email clients will allow campaign creators to personalize the subject line with the readers’ names. However, this doesn’t show any real measurable, positive impact. So, instead of wasting your time and effort doing this, try using a localized technique. This is still applicable and will resonate well with readers who are in a specific geographic region.
Quit Regurgitating the Same Information
For those organizations that saw their newsletter or email launch open with stellar open rates, when the “new car smell” wears off, open rates begin to tank. If this situation sounds familiar, the problem for most audiences is that too many of the messages and communications are basically all saying the exact same thing. Look for new ways to share your message, new headlines to talk about, new statistics that are coming out or other fresh ways to repackage tired content and information.
Keep Subject Lines Both Short and Simple
While there are occasional exceptions to every rule, campaign coordinators need to keep subject lines short, simple and easy to understand. This means that you should keep subject lines under 50 characters and make sure that any pop culture references or similar text twists are easy for the intended audience to “get it”.
Ask Yourself – Is it Timely? Personal? Valuable?
Take the time to read your email marketing and messaging from the perspective of the intended audience. Look at every single headline and story and ask yourself, “If I was a reader of this newsletter, is this timely? Does it have a personal impact? Will I find this information valuable?” It’s better to edit yourself down to the bare essentials than it is to inundate your audience with worthless information.
While there are hundreds of other tips and tactics available, these five should be enough to make a difference in your email marketing open rates immediately.