TLDR
Don’t have the time to stick around and read the entire article? Not to worry! Here six of our top email marketing tips to optimise the performance of these emails;
1.Make sure your emails are completely mobile friendly! 70% of all emails are opened on mobile so make sure all images, videos, links, buttons, etc, are formatted correctly to mobile.
2. When writing out these emails make sure they are speaking directly to the recipient. Use codes to include their name in the opening. Use words like “you” and “your” throughout. Make them feel as though the email was written specifically for them!
3. Write a really attractive subject line. If the email contains a specific CTA, information on a sale, discount codes, etc, make sure you include them in the subject line. This will drive your open rates and keep people more engaged!
4. Conduct A/B tests. Learn what your mailing list likes and dislikes by sending out variations of the same email. Text only versions. Different sized images. CTA buttons in different locations. This will refine what your mailing list likes and ultimately will increase click-through rates.
5. Find the right time to send. Similarly to A/B tests, find out when your emails are best received. According to research, Friday mornings are the best times to send emails.
6. Keep your mailing list warm and don’t neglect their loyalty. There is no exact right or wrong answer as to how often you should be emailing your list. This very much depends on the industry, the size of the list, the purpose of the emails, etc. However as a general rule, you should be sending at least an email a month to your mailing list.
Introduction
Email marketing is often one of the most overlooked aspects of digital marketing. We are not overly sure as to why that is? But what we are sure of is that the benefits of email marketing can be huge! This blog will outline some very simple but hugely effective email marketing tips that can transform your digital marketing campaigns. Looking at some industry research, the stats are there to back-up claims that email marketing could be one of your most effective digital marketing tools;
- In a US-based study, email marketing had a return on investment of $42 for every $1 spent.
- Worldwide the average B2C email open rate is about 20%.
- 21% of emails sent are opened within the first 60 minutes of delivery.
- 37% of people believe that emails are the most effective channel for customer retention and loyalty.
But what if these stats are being heavily skewed by large multinationals who have huge budgets, massive mailing lists and a whole marketing team working on email campaigns? Fair enough! These are some stats and results that we have seen from some of our own email marketing campaigns that we have ran with clients in recent months;
- In a single month, revenue from email marketing for a client made up 26% of their overall digital sales.
- Over a different 30 day period, we achieved a cost per email of just €0.20, when dividing revenue generated by the amount of emails sent.
- A coordinated January sale email marketing campaign saw an increase in sales of over 70% compared to December for a client.
Why companies compile a mailing list will vary, depending on industry, overall marketing objectives, budget, etc. More often than not it involves creating an inner circle of their most loyal customers and rewarding them with first preference or exclusive news or offers. These customers are the most valuable to any business and keeping them engaged with the brand is a very worthwhile exercise. 
There are two key figures to look out for when it comes to email marketing;
- Open Rate
- Click-Through Rate
Keeping an eye on the number of spam complaints and the number of unsubscribes are also important when assessing the success of a campaign. Here are our top six email marketing tips that are sure to help you increase open rates, increase click-through rates and ultimately achieve your digital marketing objectives.
1. Mobile Friendly Emails
This might seem painfully obvious and less like email marketing tips, more like common sense! Any email being sent has to be 100% mobile friendly! 70% of emails you send to your mailing lists will be opened on a mobile device. All of the major email marketing platforms will have a preview option before you send an email. Usually this preview comes in the form of desktop and mobile. Make sure you take the time to ensure the email is optimised on both, but especially mobile! The most important things to look for when ensuring mobile compatibility of the email;
- The text is formatted correctly
- The images are sized correctly
- Any CTA button or link to an external site is fully visible and functional
2. Speak Directly to the Recipient
Again, this might seem a tad obvious, but it could really help improve those key email marketing metrics. Look at these two sentences; “We are offering 20% off all jeans to everyone on our mailing list today!” “We are offering YOU 20% off all jeans today!” Which do you think is more likely to spur the recipient into action? The second one speaks directly to them, makes them feel special and conveys a sense of exclusivity. Personalised subject lines can generate 50% higher open rates, according to research. A top email marketing tip – write the email as if you are sending it to one specific person on that mailing list. Use “you”, “your”, “you’re” as often as possible. Another top email marketing tip – don’t make your emails too salesy or formal. These people exist on your mailing list and are therefore already very familiar with and are loyal to your brand. Treat them as such.
3. Write Attractive Subject Lines
A really attractive subject line is often the key difference between an email getting opened or not. Which in turn, could be the difference between making a sale or not. The subject line is the most important piece of text in the entire email! When an email arrives into your inbox, either on mobile or desktop, you can see a limited number of characters in the subject line. This is the sales pitch as to why people should bother opening the email. You need to include the key point or purpose of the email in here. Examples of compelling subject lines could include;
- “70% off Ireland deliveries today only!”
- “Here’s a 10% discount off your next order for being amazing!”
- “Here’s an exclusive peak at our winter collection…”
- “You can enter our exclusive draw to win a trip to…”
- “Our top 3 tips on how to fully optimise your…”
Make it impossible for the recipient not to open that email! Of any of the email marketing tips here, this is arguably the most important one.
4. Conduct A/B Tests
In a previous blog post we have spoken about the importance of A/B testing when it comes to your online ads. You can read about it here. Well, you should treat your emails the same way you do your ads. How? By constantly trialing different emails until you find the one with the most optimal performance. Create two versions of the same email and have one sent out to half your mailing list and the other sent out to the second half. What kinds of things should you be testing?
- Text-only v Media-heavy emails
- Image v Video
- The location of the images/videos
- The size of the images/videos
- The location of the CTA button
- The message included in the subject line
After a few rounds of A/B emails you should begin to see what your mailing list is responding well to. Which subject line led to better open rates? Did the CTA button at the top of the email lead to more clicks? Did the sales-heavy email lead to any spam complaints or unsubscribers? Learn from the data and watch the performance of your emails improve. 
5. Find the Right Time To Send.
This is quite similar to the A/B testing spoken about above. Finding the sweet spot in terms of the time and day to send an email to your list is absolutely crucial! Think about it. If you have an ad running, it may be shown to the same people two, three, four times over a period of time through retargeting. With an email, you have one real chance to get the attention of the receiver. If they are too busy at that exact moment the email rolls in you have missed the window of opportunity and the email will likely be never opened. The optimal time to send very much depends on the industry, the product or service itself and the demographics of the mailing list. The optimal time to send an email for a late-night cocktail bar in Dublin, will be different to an organic food shop in Kilkenny, which will be different from news on the newest brand of football boot by NIKE. Having said that, according to research done by Campaign Monitor, the best time to send an email is on a Friday morning.
6. Stay In Regular Communication.
According to HubSpot, 35% of marketers send their mailing list 3-5 emails a week. The people who have signed up to your mailing list are your most loyal and most important customers. They have decided they like your brand enough that they want to be informed of regular news and updates, so give them what they want! Like with the timing of the email, how often you should be sending them totally depends on the industry, the product or service itself and the demographics of the mailing list. An email from a golf club about course updates sounds like a monthly email. An email informing people of an upcoming shoe sale sounds like it could be bi-weekly or weekly. Whereas email updates about a charity fundraiser and the money that has been raised could be daily. There is no “one show fits all” approach in terms of timing. As a general rule of thumb, do not leave your mailing list without a new email for more than a month at a time. You want to remain relevant and in their minds all of the time.
Conclusion
None of these email marketing tips will break the bank and can be easily implemented by any business who is already up and running on an email marketing platform. Want to grow a loyal and active customer base through an email marketing list? The time and care put into looking after your most loyal customers can be as beneficial as the time and care put into attracting new customers via ads and other digital marketing methods. Is email marketing something you have wanted to get started with for your business but are not sure where to start? Talk to us today and let’s see if Escalate can help your business grow through email marketing and other digital marketing techniques. We promise you we can deliver a lot more than just a few email marketing tips!