With more than 140 billion emails that are sent daily, email marketing is still a core business communication channel. But what can we do to make our company email stand out? The key is to craft a stand-out message. Next, you have to settle on an inbox-tested email marketing strategy that has successfully compelled receivers to click and open your email.

Personalized email

Forget all about emails that begin with “Dear …” and try to get more personal. Personalized email greetings are a lot more efficient than meets the eye. The secret is to steer clear of generalized emails that don’t make any sense, or that might only appeal to a specific audience. Considering that cyber security concerns have gotten to extremely high levels, most people just don’t want to click on emails sent by someone they don’t know; or worse, receive emails from bogus addresses without a clearly specified name.

Credit card fraud, phishing, identity theft, and all kinds of different cyber-attacks are everywhere. This means it’s only natural to have concerns. In email marketing, it’s fundamental to create a relationship with the receiver. Does the recipient know you or your company? Does he trust what you have to share? However even though it’s highly recommended to connect with prospects, it’s not a very good idea to be too pushy. Since real intimacy can only be obtained in real life; online, the exact same thing applies.

 

 

Subject lines

Short subject lines are just as bad as long subject lines. Recipients don’t want to get bored or remain in the dark when opening an email.  When your subject line is between 60 and 70 characters, you’re in a “dead zone”. You should avoid this length when crafting email subject lines. Adestra performed a recent study where it analyzed more than 900 million emails. Open rates for emails between 60 and 70 characters in the subject line’s length didn’t get opened. Subject lines with less than 10 characters had an astounding open rate of 58%. In fact, short subjects became widely popular throughout President Obama’s email fundraising campaign.

The best time of the day to send emails

Believe it or not, the best time of the day to send emails and see them get to opened, is not between 9 and 5 pm. Just think about it: between these hours most people are at work; not all will have the time to open your email, because they might be busy opening emails that are strictly related to their work. In email marketing, specialists have realized that the most productive time of the day to compel people to open your email is after 8 pm. The best open rates are between 8 pm and midnight. Needless to say, it all depends on what you have to share with your audience.

 

 

Giveaways – free content matters more than you think

Everyone loves free stuff!  Believe it or not, you may have a lot to win from offering something for free to your customers. Whether you’re new to the world of business, or you have been doing it for quite a while, it goes without saying that free stuff grabs people’s attention!  Don’t take this the wrong way – when we refer to “free stuff” we don’t necessarily mean offering tangible products. Use the power of the written word to entice your audience, and send them your best content as an exclusive newsletter or press release.

 

RELATED: Why Corporations Refresh Their Brand and How to Update Your Logo

 

Go mobile

Today’s technological developments have completely changed the way people access the internet.  More specifically, their email. At this point, 47% of all emails are opened from a smart device and not from a computer or laptop. It’s very important to be responsible when it comes to email design and the way that email looks on a smart device. Also known as responsive design, the following tips should help you craft the best emails:

• For the easiest mobile fix, you should convert your email into a single column template.
• For improved readability on smartphones, you should bump the font size (but try not to go over the top)
• Adhere to the general iOS guidelines of a minimum of 44 pixels wide and tall
• Calls-to-action should be easy to tap and obvious
• Ergonomics are important – since most users use their thumb to scroll and tap, keep fundamental tappable elements on the center of the screen.

 

Bottom line is, if you want to connect with your customers via email, it’s fundamental to adhere to several key elements. Keep things short and informative; pay close attention to subject lines, and focus on top-tier content. With hard work, you’ll have to land the most efficient direct mail marketing campaign for your business.