Email Marketing for Small Business | 6 Best Practices You Should Know
There are 101 ways to reach your audience, and one of the most talked-about is the power of email marketing, especially for small businesses.
If you're wondering why your inbox is always full of marketing emails? That should be the first indication.
Even in this social media heaven of a century, not everyone is online; however, find me someone who doesn't have an email account. With direct access to an inbox, reaching your potential or existing customer is as easy and pressing SEND.
Your mission? Generate more leads for your business.
Think of your marketing emails as a campaign. You are driving a message to your audience. You want to show them what you are about and why they should opt-in. You have a clear message, and you are offering your audience value. The intention is always to keep them engaged and subscribed.
To do this, you must first understand your message and make clear goals. There is a massive opportunity to drive more viewership to your blogs, social channels, and your landing pages by creating consistently engaging and entertaining emails for your audience.
Here are 6 of our email marketing best practice tips for small businesses:
#1: Build your following.
Earn your list, do not purchase. You will never receive engagement from a bought list. Period. End of story. It looks good in your analytics for a moment, but then it will severely drop; this is not real quantifiable data.
To reach a larger audience, you can include a 'share' or 'email a friend' button and the must-have 'subscribe' button within your marketing emails. Hyperlink your email signature to your landing and social pages.
Offer something for 'free' a tool or template your audience would benefit from. All they will need to do is sign up with their email address to receive this gift directly in their inbox.
Once they are signed up, they then have the option to continue to be a subscriber. You are adding value right off the bat. If you're invested in building your audience, you will do so by using your unique voice. Believe in yourself.
#2: Know your audience.
Suppose they have already subscribed, great! Keeping them interested is another thing. Offering content to your targeted audience starts with knowing who they are. What you are offering them is something that they want and, better yet, need.
So who is your customer avatar?
Build out who your customer is, based on what you offer.
What makes them tick?
What are their interests and hobbies?
What drives them?
How does my product or service benefit them?
Knowing how they subscribed to your email list is the key to keeping them engaged. You may need to alter your message based on what is driving subscribership. So a balance of always knowing who your audience is and keeping up to date with your analytics.
#3. Get personal & Stay consistent.
Build trust and be thoughtful. Staying connected to your audience requires that you are true to yourself first. They have 'opted in' because they like you, your tone, and your voice. The sales message can shift and alter, but your personality should always shine through.
This doesn't mean you need to be funny or casual; it means you are human, robotic, or generic, where your personalization comes into play.
Let your audience know when they are going to be hearing from you, and stick to that!
Build a schedule and automate your emails in advance.
Building trust is as simple as being there when you say you will be—proving to your audience that you are consistent and that your product or service will not fail them.
For example, how disappointed did you feel when you went out to your favorite coffee shop, ordered your favorite drink, and the quality was off, or perhaps the service was horrible? I bet you have not gone back in a while.
Do the thing you do, the best, and stay consistent.
#4. Get them reading and up your Click Through.
Write a clear and urgent subject line to hook your readers in and keep them reading. There may be some underlying issues if your emails are being opened but not read thoroughly.
Think about length and presentation; Is your email visually appealing, or is there way too much happening on the page?
Are my emails designed for mobile?
Understand your content better and what areas you can focus on by asking for feedback.
Boost your CTA by keeping it simple yet effective.
Perhaps they are not even clear to the audience?
You can make them more visually appealing with color or larger text. Make sure they make sense. Using generic CTA's will not make them click; it should be driving the message and purpose of the email.
#5. Get out of the spam folder.
Let's talk about Spam. The most common form that never hits a customer's inbox and goes directly to their spam folder is the 'no reply' sender email (noreply@such&such.com).
You will never reach your audience, and it looks shady.
Instead, keep it personal and directly linked to who you are; use the first name for your email. That way, it will hit the inbox and is more likely to get it open.
#6. Make it professional with your brand's signature.
Show your audience you know what you're doing and are on top of your game.
A professional email signature that is well designed not only has a picture to make you real but affiliate links to your landing pages and social media, what a bonus! This screams, I’m vetted I’m serious. Even if you don't pay for a professional email signature, there are many free templates to take advantage of that keep it clean and direct.
Your email signature is a powerful tool to keep you consistent and on-brand.
Conclusion:
Building connections authentically will ultimately lead to the monetization of your brand. Have a clear strategy, stay consistent with your message and invest in continually following and understanding your audience. Pivot, adjust, remain adaptable and always grow.
We are here to help. Healthy Dash of Social is a full-service digital marketing agency for product brands, female entrepreneurs, and nonprofits. Want to know more about us? Click here to view our services and schedule your free 30-minute chat.
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