Email marketing – using email to promote your business’s products or services – remains a powerful marketing channel, even in this age of social media and video. Why? Because it’s a direct line to people who actively want to hear from you. Get these communications right, and your business will enjoy all the benefits that come from having a loyal, engaged following.

But how can you get the best out of email marketing and ensure your readers don’t hit ‘unsubscribe’? Here are our top email marketing tips.

1. Keep it varied. Many companies use email to draw readers to their latest blog post, which is great. But you can also use email to share company news, inform readers on industry updates, alert them to special offers, send event invitations, or even compile an e-newsletter that includes multiple updates and stories.

2. Get your frequency right. You want to keep in regular contact with your audience, but not too regular! Unless you’re aiming at a consumer audience, don’t bombard people with weekly emails. If your readers are businesses, a monthly email is probably more appropriate. (That’s what we do at OCTOPUS.)

3. Plan your emails in advance. Bearing in mind your ideal frequency and the various content options, it’s worth planning out your email campaigns for the next few months at a time. This ensures you can stick to a regular email schedule, without scrabbling around for last-minute topics. You can always deviate from the content plan if, for example, some major news breaks in your industry.

4. Take care with formatting. Ensure your emails look inviting, with attractive imagery, eye-catching headings (and subject line), and a clean, professional layout.

5. Keep your mailing list up to date. Especially if people do unsubscribe (it happens sometimes), make sure they’re removed from your list immediately.

6. Track campaign success. Your mailing software should offer metrics to track the success of your email campaigns – typically by measuring opens and click-throughs. Use this data to do more of what works.

7. Follow up emails with a phone call. If you want to boost leads and sales, there’s really no substitute for a follow-up call. In other words, don’t just send out emails and sit back, waiting for leads to flood in. Be proactive and pick up the phone.

From planning email campaigns, to writing engaging content and tracking success, OCTOPUS can help you get the most out of this powerful marketing tool. Let’s get started.

(Photo by Brooke Cagle on Unsplash)