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1. Set up a dedicated sending domain

Before you draft the perfect campaign and hit the button on your database that you’ve worked so hard to build up - set-up a dedicated sending domain.

This is a sub-domain rooted from your main website - essentially is allows you to build trust and sending authority with both your customers, but more importantly, the email clients, such as Gmail, Yahoo and Apple Mail to ensure that more of your well crafted emails actually LAND in the inbox of the intended target.

No idea where to start with your dedicated sending domain? Get in touch and speak to an expert.

2.  Have an engaging subject line

This is the first thing that people read when scanning through their emails and a lot of emails will be deleted based on their subject line. Make sure you grab your subscriber’s attention with something that will be interesting to them to avoid getting cut at the first stage.

Try no more than 9 words so it can be read quickly. Time-pressured offers for your best-selling products, or informative emails letting customers know how to get the most out of your brand are popular.

‍3.  Know who you are sending the emails to

If you know your subscriber base, the chances are you will be able to sell them something that you know they need. Think about your brand and the people that buy from it; are they into great deals, long-standing quality products, how old are they, do they need more information on your products or are they self-explanatory. 

Keep your customer at the forefront of your mind when writing the email and you are more likely to see a higher click-through rate.

4. Have a plan (linked to your wider content plan)

Your email marketing campaigns should be planned. Using a combination of different emails will keep your customers and subscribers engaged for a longer period; don’t just plug your products and your business.

Make sure each email has a specific message: promoting a service, a product, increasing traffic to a certain page on your website, directing to your blog. This stops your subscribers from getting overwhelmed with constant instructions to buy.

Check out our blog on the 4 Main Types of Email Marketing to keep your email marketing campaigns exciting and varied.

5. Explore the use of plain text emails

Email marketing usually uses HTML formatting that includes images, moving parts, and live links however there is a growing interest in plain text emails that may be worth exploring.

They are less overwhelming to your subscribers, and they display the same on every device, so your message will reach your subscribers in a consistent manner. You could also create the option for subscribers to choose plain text emails rather than HTML emails.

6. Optimise for mobile

Always make sure you optimise your emails for the mobile experience - this is so important as now 85% of users use smartphones to access their emails (Adobe 2022).

In the present world of super-fast phones, if your email doesn’t open fast enough, or your images aren’t formatted correctly, or your links don’t take your subscriber to a website immediately, the likelihood of you losing your subscriber increases. 

7. Create segments of your email list

This breaks down large groups of general subscribers into smaller groups of individuals who have specific interests. This can make your emails more personal and often create a higher click through rate because the individuals are interested in the products you are selling.

Here are some great ways to segment your data;

• Subscribers
• First time customer
• Multi-purchase customer
• Lapsed customer (hasn’t purchased in a given amount of time relevant to your buying or replenishment cycle)
• Product or service interest - maybe they have viewed a product page or purchased a product

8.  Entice with a clear Call-ToAction (CTA)

Let your copywriting and graphics sell your products but make sure to end your email with clear instructions for where to go next. Use a large button to ‘subscribe now’ or ‘buy now’, or hyperlinked images to your website to call your customers to action.

9.  Don’t have long emails

People don’t have time to read long paragraphs about why they should buy from your business, they want short and snappy eye-catching graphics and copywriting that sells products immediately. 

Bullet pointed lists and subheadings help to break up long emails. Aim for 50-150 words in your emails to allow your subscribers to read everything you want them to in a short amount of time.

‍10.  Make use of time pressure

Use an offer expiry date to incentivise your customers to click on your email. Phrases such as ‘ending soon’, ‘stocks limited’, and ’24 hours’ are most effective as they tell your customer how long they have left to seize the opportunity.  

 11.  Show the recipient others are doing the same

People are like sheep. We love to know that the products or services we are buying have been vetted and loved by other people (especially people like us). If you can demonstrate that your business is well-loved in a solid community then you are well on your way to building a loyal and captive subscriber and customer base. Include your reviews or user-generated content in your emails to do this.

 12.  Use email automations

Automation will ensure you do not miss out on revenue. Email automations will catch customers who have abandoned their cart, subscribers who are yet to be converted into customers, and can incentivise lost customers to return to your brand. There is the added bonus that you will have more time to think about other parts of your business once these email automations have been set up.

See our blog about Key Email Automations Your Brand Should Be Running

13.  Be personal and personable

You know information about your subscribers so use this to make sure your emails are tailored to what they are interested in.

An informal tone in your email, as though you were talking to a friend or colleague, has been proven to be effective. Make your email conversational and avoid using jargon that could lead to your email being deleted.

‍14.  Use A/B testing

Test elements of your email marketing campaign by sending different emails to two different groups of people. Check your statistics to see which email gets the higher click-through rate and it will indicate what style of email your subscribers respond to better.

This will enable your business to be constantly improving. Knowing what works for your subscribers in real time will keep your content refreshing and relevant.

15.  Be clever with your email pre-header

This is the preview text that your subscribers will be able to see below the header. Pre-headers give you the opportunity to add more information that will hopefully convince your customer to open the email.

Most email previews will allow for up for 90 characters but limit your pre-header to around 50 characters to ensure your message isn’t cut off on some devices.

‍16.  Check for errors

As simple as it sounds, spelling and grammatical errors in emails are jarring and can lead to a swift un-subscription. Erase the possibility of this from happening by proofreading a couple of times to ensure that there are no errors in your email at all before pressing that send button.

Interested to learn more about Klaviyo or even sign-up for a free account to get started - simply follow this link: Sign-up to Klaviyo.