| In This Article…If you're considering implementing an | | | | know will be important to your users and clients. Too |
| email marketing program or are currently emailing but | | | | much text will get your email deleted just about as fast |
| experiencing underperformance, this article provides | | | | as anything, and it creates more risk for triggering |
| you with a list of ten best practices that will assure | | | | spam filters. |
| improvement in your email marketing campaigns. | | | | Takeaway Message: Less is more! Content may drive |
| The Top TenDespite what you may hear, email | | | | the internet, but it doesn't improve email performance. |
| marketing is a complicated process with many moving | | | | Write concisely, user trigger and keywords and make |
| parts. But that doesn't mean that you can't have a | | | | sure that your most important messages are |
| successful email marketing program or campaign while | | | | highlighted or bolded. |
| keeping things relatively simple. We've narrowed down | | | | 7. Keep Your Email List CleanThere's no value to not |
| the ten best practices that you absolutely must | | | | taking the time and making the effort to make sure |
| remember. If you follow them, you certainly won't fail! | | | | that you're removing bad email addresses from your |
| 1. Make Sure That Your Email Has Many Obvious | | | | house list. Making sure that incorrectly formatted email |
| LinksThe purpose of your email is to drive traffic to | | | | addresses are caught when somebody signs up and |
| your landing page, product page or website. It's really | | | | then "pruning" addresses that are returned as |
| that simple to define the main purpose of an email. | | | | undeliverable, non-existent or with full inboxes from |
| Without driving clicks to your page or website, users | | | | your list before the next send isn't optional if you want |
| can't convert to sign-ups or customers. They key to | | | | to have a successful email marketing program. If your |
| accomplishing this is, quite simply, capitalize on every | | | | list starts to show a higher percentage of undeliverable |
| moment where a user may feel compelled to click. | | | | email addresses, email providers will flag you as spam. |
| Include lots of links (at least one per paragraph of text) | | | | Takeaway Message: Even if it creates more work for |
| and make sure that your links look like links. Using | | | | you, make sure that you're pruning your list and |
| strong calls to action and even authoritative "click here" | | | | removing bad emails from it. The result if you don't will |
| messaging will also help you. | | | | put you in the spam folder! |
| Takeaway Message: It's a best practice to have | | | | 8. Properly Use Alt Text, Title Text and Linking with |
| many links and to make sure that those links are | | | | ImagesBecause using images in email can create dead |
| obvious to the user. | | | | space, maximizing the code behind those images is |
| 2. Minimize Your Use of ImagesWe've covered this in | | | | critical. Make sure that ALL of your images have both |
| great detail in a previous article, but always keep in | | | | alt text and title text as different browsers will read |
| mind that an email is not a print mail piece. Many (if not | | | | those two types of text differently (Alt text and title |
| most) of your recipients will not see the images | | | | text are the text messages that appear when an |
| included in your email, which means that every image | | | | image doesn't load or when somebody hovers over |
| you include can be wasted space. Use well-coded | | | | an image with a mouse). Also, make sure that all of |
| html instead of image heavy design. Never send an | | | | your images are actually links to your landing page or |
| email that is simply one big image and certainly don't | | | | website. This way, at a minimum, your potential image |
| put any messaging in an image that a user must see | | | | dead space can still drive traffic to your destination. |
| to complete the action you want from an email (i.e. | | | | Takeaway Message: Make sure that all of your |
| "click here" or "order now" messages). | | | | images are properly coded. This means not only |
| Takeaway Message: Use images sparingly, rely on | | | | making sure that the image height and width is properly |
| html to enhance the look of your email and never use | | | | defined but also that the image has alt text, title text |
| an image to convey a critical or important message. | | | | and is linked to a webpage or landing page. |
| 3. Make It Easy to UnsubscribeIt may seem counter | | | | 9. Send Test Emails BEFORE You Send to Your Main |
| intuitive to make it easy for a user to leave your | | | | ListThere's nothing worse than sending an email and |
| mailing list, but the other option is much less appealing. | | | | then finding out that it went right to the spam folder or |
| When users get frustrated while trying to figure out | | | | that something in your email layout broke in Hotmail's |
| how to remove their email from your list, they | | | | email viewer or Outlook's preview pane. Before you |
| eventually just start to flag your email as spam. Every | | | | send an email to your entire list, send a test version to |
| user who notes your email as being spam counts | | | | a test account using each of the big email providers |
| against your sender reputation with email providers | | | | (Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail/Live/MSN and any account |
| and makes it harder (and sometimes impossible) to get | | | | using an Outlook client). If there are any significant |
| your email into the inbox instead of the junk folder. | | | | segments of your list using another email provider, you'll |
| Takeaway Message: Have clear, easy-to-find | | | | want to include that in your test as well. If you catch |
| unsubscribe links that require minimal action from the | | | | any errors, there's still time to start disassembling your |
| user to complete the task of unsubscribing. | | | | email and fixing them, or remove a problematic |
| 4. Follow Spam Tips From the Beginning and EVERY | | | | segment of your email list. |
| Time That You Send Email!We've also covered in | | | | Takeaway Message: Catching an error in an email |
| detail the best ways to avoid getting flagged as spam | | | | sent to a seed address is useless if it happens after |
| and removed from your users' inboxes, but we can't | | | | you've already sent to the main list. Use your seed |
| emphasize enough how important it is to follow those | | | | addresses to test send to and check formatting and |
| steps. More importantly, it's important to follow them | | | | deliverability before you send to the main list. |
| from the beginning of your email marketing effort and | | | | 10. Make Sure to Piggyback a Text Version of the |
| to follow them every single time you send. We know | | | | EmailWe've previously discussed how to decide if you |
| that it's tempting to send a harder sales email that | | | | should use an html email or a text only email, and our |
| trends against some of our advice for staying out of | | | | recommendation is that you use both. But, at a |
| the spam folder, but it only takes one email that looks | | | | minimum, if you are using an html email you must |
| like its high spam to keep you out of the inbox for | | | | piggyback a text only version of the email onto your |
| weeks, months or years afterwards. | | | | send. A number of people do opt to view email as |
| Takeaway Message: Even if it means your email isn't | | | | text only, and, increasingly, people are reading |
| as effective as a sales tool, following all of the steps | | | | text-based email only on mobile phones. |
| to avoid being flagged as spam is absolutely, | | | | Takeaway Message: Make sure, no matter what, that |
| unquestionably critical with every send. | | | | your html email has a piggybacked text email attached |
| 5. Maximize Your Email Template DimensionsYou don't | | | | to it! It's that simple! |
| have a lot of space in a person's inbox to convey a | | | | Bonus Tip! Always Ask Users to Add You to Their |
| message, and most of your users will be viewing your | | | | Contact List!At every opportunity, remind users that |
| email in a preview pane with the images turned off. | | | | they can be assured that they won't miss out on the |
| Make sure that your html email template isn't more | | | | valuable information that they love receiving from you |
| than 600 pixels wide and that you clearly get your | | | | if they add your send address to their email contacts |
| value proposition and at least one link into the first 100 | | | | list. The more people you get doing that, the better |
| pixels of height. It won't look as nice as putting a shiny | | | | your deliverability will be! |
| header graphic up there, but it will yield better results. | | | | These ten best practices won't make you a perfect |
| Also, consider a secondary column on the right or left | | | | email marketer, but they will certainly make you better |
| hand side in order to get more information above the | | | | than most! Just use these tips as a checklist when |
| fold of an email preview pane! | | | | putting your email campaign together and you'll be fine! |
| Takeaway Message: Design for what your email will | | | | The first step to getting started with email marketing, |
| look like in a 600x200 pixel space without images | | | | whether you've got your best practices down or need |
| loaded! How it looks in those dimensions with that | | | | to work to implement them into your program, is to |
| restriction is how must users will see the final email. | | | | select a quality email sending partner. Comm100, who |
| 6. Keep Your Text Short and Easy to ScanMost | | | | provided you with this complimentary list, offers a |
| users aren't going to read the full text of your email. | | | | completely free, hosted email and newsletter solution. |
| They're going to scan it for key points that they may | | | | It's both a great long-term and short-term solution to |
| be interested in. Keep your text short (very small | | | | getting your email marketing off of the ground to just |
| paragraphs or bullets) and use font bolding and | | | | about any type of customer or client email list! |
| additional colors to highlight words or phrases that you | | | | |