After more than 40 years, email marketing is still a powerful and popular marketing channel. With over 4 billion email users worldwide, it’s no surprise that email marketing continues to deliver results.
Starting an email marketing campaign may seem daunting, but it doesn’t have to be. Here are five suggestions for new email marketers.
- Set goals
- Find a mailing list service
- Make a list
- Create your first campaign
- Track results and improve future campaigns
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Set goals
It’s simple to start emailing customers. But first, you must decide what you want to achieve with an email program, and then devise a strategy. It’s like going on a road trip with no destination. How do you know when you arrive?
Setting goals doesn’t have to be difficult. Begin by asking yourself two questions:
- What do you want? Want to increase sales? How about keeping your email recipients in the loop? Do you want website visitors or content downloads? Whatever it is, your email program should have a purpose. You can change it later. An email program’s functionality can expand over time.
- What will success look like? Email marketing has the advantage of being highly measurable. Many marketers used the email open rate to measure campaign success for years. This metric has always been flawed for technical reasons, but Apple added a new feature called Mail Privacy Protection to its email app in late 2021. The feature makes it difficult for marketers to track certain recipient interactions with emails, such as whether they open them. So, to measure campaign performance, use a metric like clicks (and click rate).
Answer these questions to create a basic email strategy.
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Find a mailing list service
No, you can’t send email marketing campaigns from your personal or business email account. It’s not scalable and you can’t make visually appealing emails. So join an email marketing platform. Many companies offer this service, ranging from simple platforms to enterprise-level SaaS solutions. As a new email marketer, you are likely to find a solution that meets your needs and your budget.
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Make a list
When collecting email addresses, let people know what kind of emails they can expect from you. Informed consent is often more willing to provide an email than uninformed consent. Hence, inform them of your newsletter or emails with special offers.
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Create your first campaign
Now that you have goals, a platform, and a list, it’s time to start building. There are many email marketing platforms that allow you to create a professional-looking email without hiring a web designer. This is important for newbies. Use these tools to create an email that you like.
As you create the email, keep in mind your goal and how you will evaluate its success. For people to click, make sure they understand what you want them to do. You have been prompted. It can be as simple as “click here” or more complex. The idea is to tell your recipients what to do next.
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Track results and improve future campaigns
Finally, after sending your email campaign, track its results. Surprisingly many companies have email programs but do not track campaign results. Your long-term goal should be to improve your email program and achieve better results. The only way to improve is to track results, learn from them, and adjust future campaigns.