When developing your marketing plan, don’t overlook the importance of email to the success of businesses. Email marketing allows you to reach out to numerous customers at once to ignite action, from RSVPing to an upcoming event to pre-ordering a new product.
Check out the following email marketing guide with steps you should take to create effective email marketing. These email marketing tips could help you better engage with current and potential customers and drive sales.
1. Get the green light
The first step in email marketing for beginners is to use email marketing responsibly. Be sure you have permission to contact the addresses you’ve obtained. As part of Australia’s Spam Act 2003, you can only send emails to customers who have expressly opted in to be on your email marketing list. Without permission, you risk customers unsubscribing or marking your email as spam.
2. Optimise your lists
Segment your email list so you can personalise content for different customers. For example, you might send an email to customers who haven’t purchased anything lately with an offer to get them back or send a special offer to your most loyal regulars.
3. Find a purpose
Based on the audience of your email list, decide exactly what you want to accomplish with an email and maintain that goal with whatever you distribute. You could be driving sales, reclaiming lost customers, or updating clients with a newsletter. Whatever your focus, keep it short and sweet—no one has time to read a lengthy email.
4. Encourage action
An important step in email marketing for small businesses is to make sure you include a call to action in your email; this should tell readers exactly what you want them to do. Whether you want recipients to join you in the store today or get excited for an event next month, an actionable element may increase engagement rates. With Square, you can even create a checkout link to encourage readers to take action and purchase through your site, driving engagement and sales.
5. Grab their attention
If recipients aren’t interested in the subject line, it’s game over. Do your research and check out email marketing examples from other companies to see what works. An intriguing subject line draws readers in and keeps them tuned in to what you have to say. Once they’ve opened up the email, the first three sentences should also be catchy enough to keep them reading.
6. Keep it fresh
If you haven’t done email marketing lately, avoid using a stale list by removing or reconfirming addresses. This helps you avoid sending spam and reduces the risk of people unsubscribing.
7. Test it out
Improve your email marketing by trying an email test with a small group from your email list. Divide the list and send each group versions with different subject lines or slightly different content. If you have a stronger response to one version, send that to the rest of your list. As time goes on, you’ll learn what resonates best with your audience and be able to improve your email marketing for small business.
8. Track your success
Choose software, like Square Point of Sale and marketing analytics apps and tools on Square Marketplace, to keep tabs on campaign reports, manage a customer directory, draft email, and track your hard work. There are many ways you can use your own computer to help grow your business, from building email marketing strategies to tracking progress.