Are you excited to let the people know about your up and coming product? Would you like to keep your customers up-to-date with your company newsletters? Are you offering a limited-time sale here in Denver? Email broadcasting is one way to deliver your message on time. It can be highly cost-efficient and can give you substantial returns if done properly. It seems, however, that far too many people make common errors that reduce their chances of gaining new business. Before you hit the “send” button, review your email for the following mistakes:

  1. You did not ask for permission to send. Bombarding their inboxes with messages from out of the blue is annoying and once you get tagged a spammer, there’s a good chance you lose a future sale.  To avoid this, Forbes.com suggests adding only people who have transacted with you in the past, your LinkedIn connections or those who’ve exchanged business cards with you. You can also have clients and prospects “Opt In” to receive your communications. Once your list is compiled and you’ve sent your email, consider a direct response marketing company to help you analyze response rate and determine adjustments to future efforts.
  2. You lack proper timing. There’s always an ideal time frame in which to send a broadcast email. If you promote a sale too early and give people time to “think about it and get back to you”, you’re likely to lose  a sense of urgency which is a key component to direct response marketing. Conversely, you may lose potential buyers, too, if they simply learn about the promo too late. Determine what period is best before you cast the hook.
  3. Your subject line is just wrong. Quite a few people give some thought in writing their subject lines. Some write bland, improperly truncated or even worse, misleading subject lines. If your subject line isn’t properly crafted, your target isn’t likely to read the rest of your email. You don’t have to go far and be overly creative, but do write something better than “unlimited free doctor visits” or “Our Summer Newsletter”. The subject line is a lot like the outer envelope or package for direct mail. The more interesting it is, the more opens and reaction you’ll get.
  4. You’re sending one email to everybody. Rather than treating your emails like stray bullets, take time to segment your list. Customize your message to appeal to a particular group of target buyers will produce greater output—lower opt-out rates and higher engagement. Some ways to sort your email list include by location, purchase behavior, age, gender, product interests and many more. With today’s technology, you can program your emails to contain variable data and content that is relevant to each recipient.

Email blasts, as in the game of chess, follow a touch-move rule; once you hit send, there’s no taking them back. Thus, it makes sense to brush them up and avoid mistakes that can drive away potential business. If broadcast emails play a crucial part in your marketing campaigns, consider working with companies that provide expert marketing services, like Denver-based Plumb Marketing.

Source:
11 Common Email Marketing Mistakes, Web
6 Rookie Email Marketing Mistakes Your Business Must Avoid, Forbes.com

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