If you’re doing any marketing through email (which you almost certainly are), then you probably know that it’s just not as easy as typing a message and hitting “send”. You have to dig a little deeper than that! Here are the best practices you should follow to make the biggest impact and get the best response from your prospects and customers!
Keep it Short and Sweet
Many folks are tempted to load as much information as possible into their emails to make them as informative and convincing as possible. But the fact is, most people quickly checking their inbox are not prepared to read anything more than the equivalent of a paragraph or two in one email. It’s much better to make your emails an exciting teaser that draws the user in and makes them want to click to learn more- not an intimidating wall of text that will make them want to nope out of there with the utmost haste. Save the details for the landing page - once the user has clicked the CTA, the sunk cost fallacy will make them more likely to read a little more there.
Check Your Spelling and Grammar
The best email design can instantly lose all credibility if there are spelling or grammar errors present. Use tools like Grammarly to ensure your grammar is checking all the boxes, and consider having a co-worker give the copy a read before locking it in. When users see typos and incorrect grammar, it can make the message feel spammy and suspicious.
Make Sure The Images Load Correctly
Optimizing your images is crucial for email marketing. You need to make sure the image loads without issue, and that the file size isn’t too big. Loading too slow or a broken image link can leave a bad impression within seconds of viewing, so don’t take the chance!
People Love Dark Mode
Another aspect of your images being the best they can be is ensuring that they can be viewed clearly in dark mode. This can be as simple as making sure that your logos have a white outline, so they stand out against a dark background. People find dark mode to be easier on the eyes, so make seeing your logo easy for them as well!
Double-Check All Your Links
Nothing is worse than capturing someone’s attention and then having them click a link that leads nowhere, or to the wrong page. Don’t let it be you! Test all your links, and if you’re tracking clicks, make sure they’re attributed to the right campaigns!
Mind Your Design Basics
Your designers know what they’re doing, and you need to trust them! If your text is one big block, that’s going to overwhelm the reader. Break it up with images or whitespace. Is there too much empty space in your header? Is the CTA buried at the bottom? Are there too many sections and not enough alignment of elements? Everything should be aesthetically pleasing, and a lot of the time, that comes down to basic formatting!
Are The Dynamic Tags Set Up Correctly?
Dynamic tags are a powerful tool for personalizing your marketing messages, but if they pull the wrong information or don’t pull any information at all, it can have the opposite effect. We’ve all gotten that email that says, “Great to see you again, [FIRSTNAME]”, and we bet you rolled your eyes immediately. It feels so fake! Make sure the info you’re trying to pull is available for everyone on your list, and check your previews to avoid this all-too-common stumble!
Make Sure It Works For Every Provider
Different email providers are going to render your email in different ways. It’s a pain, and we’re allowed to be mad about it, but we still have to account for it. Do your proper testing (even for the dreaded Outlook) and ensure that your formatting, images, and every other visual component comes through cleanly and completely no matter where it’s being displayed.
Your Data is Your Friend
Is this email going out to a specific list that you’ve reached out to before? What about a similar list with a comparable demographic? Look at the data from those campaigns! Did you do A/B testing? Which subject lines performed better, and how can you apply those lessons to your current campaign? You’re collecting the data for a reason, so leverage it!
Keep It Out Of Spam Territory!
We can’t provide legal advice, but we strongly recommend you familiarize yourself with and comply with the guidelines set by the CAN-SPAM Act. Your recipients need to be able to unsubscribe from your messaging, your physical address needs to be in the footer, and you can’t have any fraudulent or false information in your “From,” “To,” “Reply-To,” subject line, and routing information. Additionally, did you know that practices like sending emails with more images than text, emails with too many links (including header and footer links), or messages containing lots of spam trigger words can contribute to email providers marking your emails as spam? Check out our article about avoiding the spam folder.
