It might sound obvious, but the key to successful email marketing is relevance.
Relevance is a common theme in SEO and marketing. A recent report covering email marketing in the United States found that the main reasons people unsubscribe from email lists are:-
- 73% because the email was irrelevant to them
- 23% found they received more emails than they could manage
- 16% didn’t like the clutter it created in their inbox
- 16% likened them to spam as they originated from a non-trusted or unknown source
Taking each of the above points in turn:-
- Know your market and who you are emailing. It is common to “blanket bomb” email broadcasts, playing the numbers game. Aim for quality email lists that have high returns.
- Follow best email marketing practices. Make the content compelling. Your subject line will either draw in readers or alienate them.
- If you are talking to patients or about medical treatments, your emails need to be doubly correct, compelling, and accurate, without making a spurious claim.
- Our client, Tudor House Dental in Chester, uses email marketing to connect with their patients, encouraging new appointments with a mixture of offers and gentle oral health reminders.
- Again, make sure your email frequency is right. Research the best times to send emails – Monday mornings are not a good time, but lunchtime works well.
- Make sure your recipients know who they are receiving the email from and why they are getting your communications. Adhere strictly to all anti-spam guidance, earn trust and never violate it.
The report published by the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council also found that the most popular, in terms of open rates, were:-
- Monthly bills 72%
- Bank statements 60%
- Promotional offers 41%
- Email newsletters 40%
- News Alerts 37%
- Dental/health Newsletters 11%
As an email marketer, you may not be able to address the first two points above, but the last items are certainly areas you should focus on to achieve relevance and subsequent success. Here at The Digital Diggin, we send tens of thousands of emails monthly for our marketing and for our clients. We are email marketing veterans and know how to achieve and measure email marketing ROI, an area often overlooked by email marketers.
