Our guide to creating rich emails for marketing only requires 3 things… and stress isn’t one of them.
Not all email campaigns are created equal; some brands have a tight grip on email marketing and can create robust emails that capture their target audience from the subject line down to the tiny disclaimer text at the bottom of the message. Other brands… not so much.
If you feel that you might fall into that “other brand” category, don’t get yourself down. One of the fun things about marketing is that there’s always something to learn which means there’s always room for improvement. This EMFB process is about getting you to produce emails that produce results without complicating the process.
We studied what the Big Dogs are doing across various industries and have observed that current successful email marketing boils to these 3 things:
Type of marketing you need
Current trends
A beautiful email template.
With these 3 things, you’re on your way to robust emails (and robust sales).
1. Types of Marketing Emails that Your Business Might Not Be Using, But Should
Each day we receive dozens of emails prompting us to reserve something, update something, try something, support something, and maybe even win something. Go ahead… check your email… the proof is in the pudding (you might even have an email trying to sell you pudding right now).
What you might not have noticed right away is that each email you receive likely falls under at least 1 of 4 following marketing email types:
Information emails
Digital newsletter
Product update
Transactional email
And each type of marketing email has a specific objective in mind. Your email should also have a specific objective.
Information emails typically focus on a specific offer, such as an upcoming sale or event or a new product announcement. A clear and easily identified CTA is usually included that will lead the reader to a dedicated landing page for that offer.
Digital newsletter emails are sent regularly, maybe weekly or monthly, and typically include a summary of recently created content such as a recent article or podcast you’ve published. This type of email can include a visual element such as an image with each title or description to help with visual appeal.
Product update emails alert your customers about a new product or an update to an existing product. These can be kept simple and straightforward because the product should sell itself. Simple copy and a brief description of the product is really all that’s needed.
Transactional emails confirm a customer’s purchase. Other information such as billing and address are also included.
More information about types of email marketing is available here.
2. Adjusting Popular Trends to Work for You and Your Audience
Alongside the type of email you should use, there are trends that need to be considered. A successful email campaign today has to include several “dos” and exclude several “don’ts.” Consider some below.
Do create meaningful interactions with each email. In this age, people are looking for connection more than anything. Statistics also show that someone is more likely to remain loyal to a brand that makes them feel like family. Don’t get emotional with each email; just connect with your target audience in a way they understand.
Do learn more about your audience. These days, people are vocal about wanting to feel heard. Have your audience complete surveys or answer a simple yes/no question to gain more insight on their likes and dislikes, specifically on what you’re doing. Listening to your audience feedback = your future success.
Do create irresistible subject lines that speak to your audience directly. Emojis are in. And so are discount codes. The goal is to promise your audience something that stands out from the other emails in their inbox. For example, a subject line as simple yet catchy as “🍕❤️ 2-for-1 V-Day Pizza Special For You And Yours” gets the job done. It’s beneficial for the audience (money-saving), inviting, and trendy with the use of emojis. Also, we all love food.
Don’t email without providing value to your audience. Many people don’t just read emails these days just for entertainment. They want to know what’s in it for them (and wasting their time isn’t the answer). Give your audience something that benefits them in some way, whether it’s saving them money, educating them, or something else. The email needs to show that it’s about them, even if it’s also about you.
Don’t have text-heavy emails. Most people these days simply don’t want to read too much. A clean, crisp email with short copy, CTAs, and images are likely to increase your chances of clicks. Use short paragraphs with relevant keywords and bullet points for easy readability.
Don’t flood your recipients with too many emails. Send email messages sparingly and make sure you send worthwhile content. If you want to share more frequently, use your social media accounts.
A list of additional tips are available here.
3. Utilizing Templates to Make Your Email More Appealing
You now understand the type of email you want to use and you now understand what current trends you want to include in your email. All that’s left is to choose a template to create a visually appealing email that will attract your audience (from subject to disclaimer).
This final step could go hand-in-hand with not having text-heavy emails. Keep in mind that you can simply paste clean, crisp copy, CTAs, and images into the body of an email; however, a template will bring everything together in a way that your audience will respond to.
It’s similar to handing someone a gift as-is or placing it into a box with tissue paper, wrapping it up, and adding a bow on it. Doesn’t your audience deserve a gift that’s equally beautiful as it is beneficial?
You can use a free email marketing template, such as the templates available here.
Did we mention that there are free templates everywhere on the internet? Google it… seriously. We believe it’s important that you save money while saving your sanity and audience and email campaign.
Produce Emails That Produce Results… Easily
Remember what we said earlier: once you have these 3 things set up and ready to go, you’re on your way to robust emails (and robust sales). And setting up email autoresponders based on either the actions of your company or that of your audience/customers makes email marketing much easier.
Learn additional details about how to set up autoresponders here.
While we know these 3 EMFB tips aren’t all-inclusive, they are super easy steps to take for a decent grip on successful email marketing. This isn’t about creating unnecessarily complex emails; this is about creating surprisingly simple emails that appear complex but follow the less-is-more formula.
Try it out and let us know what you think! If these tips work, give us a shout out on social or reach out to us (via email for fun) and we might give you shout out!
