Email marketing remains one of the most effective ways to generate leads. In fact, the average return on investment for an email lead generation strategy is $36 for every $1 spent. Even for small businesses with a minimal marketing budget, investing in email marketing is worth it. When done correctly, email marketing can bring in new customers and increase revenue exponentially. The goal of email marketing is to establish and foster customer relationships. By providing unique information and sending personalized messages, you can make the customer feel closer to your business’s brand. Below, we have gathered the best ways to improve your email list-building strategies.
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Create a Mailing List
The first step in your email list-building strategy is to collect relevant emails and put them on your list. Creating a landing page on your website where people can sign up for emails is a great way to get started. That way, those customers who are most interested in your business are able to stay informed. Offering an incentive as a reward for subscribing is another effective email list-building strategy. A coupon code or access to an exclusive guide is a compelling incentive that will help you build your email list quickly. Most customers are willing to pay the cost of those incentives in the form of providing their email.
Social media is another great tool for email lead generation. Running ads on Facebook or Twitter can help you promote your email subscription, including the incentive provided upon signing up. Since so many people use social media every day, these ads will help you reach a wider audience and generate more leads.
Write a Strong Subject Line
In order for your email lead generation strategy to start working, you need to catch people’s attention with a well-written subject that will appeal to your audience. More than 306 billion emails are sent and received every day, and you want to make your business stand out amongst them. Think of the subject line as a book cover—it alludes to what is within without revealing the entire story. A strong subject line should hint at the message content and entice customers to open the email. Avoid subject lines that sound like clickbait or make outrageous claims to get the customers to open the email.
Customers are more likely to open an email if they are going to gain something from doing so. Subject lines such as “Today Only, 50% Off Denim!” or “Your Exclusive Guide is Here” are some of the most effective. Certain keywords, such as “upgrade” and “go,” are proven to be more effective at generating email leads. Depending on your business and the goal of your marketing strategy, implement optimized keywords to improve the chances of your emails being opened.
Keep It Short
The key to successful email lead generation is to keep the content short and to the point. Customers will not waste their time reading fluff that is aimed only to advertise to them. Instead, they are looking for value within the message, which must be concisely provided to them. Too much information can also overwhelm the customer. They may see a large block of text and decide that it is not worth their time to read it, rendering your email campaign unsuccessful. Be sure to focus on what is important and include a solid call to action at the end. Use action verbs to direct customers to your business, such as “Call us today,” or “Visit our website.” The goal of a successful email lead generation strategy is to write a persuasive message and compelling call to action in order to turn your marketing efforts into real business leads.
Automate Email Marketing
Automating your emails will be a huge help when building out your email list strategy. Once you have written and designed your emails, you can automate when they are sent out to maximize their effectiveness. Time your automation carefully and begin with establishing a regular sending cadence for campaigns. Avoid sending an email every day, even in the first week. After that, you can reduce the number of emails until you find the frequency that works best for your business. It is important to do research on your target market so you can figure out the best time to send out your emails. Time zones and work schedules, for example, will play a large role in determining when your average customer checks their email.
Automating email marketing allows you to send out emails in bulk. Most software provides email templates and allows you to edit your message, making it a versatile, easy-to-use tool for business owners. Once you have designed your email, you can schedule it based on your customers’ preferences, that way you know it will be sent out in a timely manner. Some of the best email software out there are Klaviyo, Omnisend, HubSpot, and ActiveCampaign.
Personalize Messages
People love the feeling of a meaningful connection that makes them feel special. Personalizing email messages for customers will make your email list-building strategy much more successful. To do so, include information that is specific to each client, such as their name or what they just added to their cart. This makes customers feel like they have a connection with your company. An example of personalization would be to have a subject line that says “Kai, don’t forget about these items in your cart!” This will catch the eye of the customer, since their name is in the subject line, and pique their interest, as they may have simply forgotten about their abandoned cart items. This turns what could have been a cold lead into a real sale.
Limit the Number of Graphics
Like most things, graphics are best in moderation. Including some images is a great way to capture readers’ attention and keep them engaged. Too many graphics, however, can cause the reader to lose interest. To make your email list-building strategy successful, keep the images to a minimum, only using them when they are relevant and enhancing your written content. When you do include images, make sure that they are high-quality, consistent with the content, sized appropriately for mobile devices, and include a caption.
While images may be all you need, videos are also a great way to create a personal connection with the customer. They can be more emotionally appealing and provide additional information that is not included in the written content. The call to action in a video can be more compelling as well since the customer can visually see how the product will benefit them. Just like with images, make sure that your videos are consistent with your content and are formatted for mobile devices.
To drive traffic to your video from an email, it is recommended to use an animated gif in the style of a video thumbnail playing a short preview on loop, including a play button graphic in the center. This graphic can then simply be linked to the URL where your video is hosted to play. This visual appeal helps to capture the attention of your user and get them to click through.
Make It Easy to Unsubscribe
Sometimes people change their minds, so it is important to make it easy to unsubscribe from your email list. Be sure to include a link somewhere within the email to allow customers to do so. Before sending out emails, look over the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003, which sets rules for commercial emails. Even if these guidelines did not exist, it is important to show your customers that you are giving them a choice when it comes to receiving your content. Doing this will establish trust in your brand and make it more respectable, making it a key step in your email lead generation strategy. Perhaps if a customer has outgrown their need for your product, but they trust your brand, they will recommend it to others. Maintaining positive relationships with customers is paramount and will always benefit the business.
Track Metrics
In order to understand how your email list-building strategy performed, you must track its metrics. Statistics such as open rates, click-through rates, and conversion rates are important for the business owner to understand. They can show you what the customer wants and how you can improve future email campaigns. Before measuring these statistics, be sure to establish a baseline that shows you how each campaign is performing relative to previous performance. Email automation software can help you measure these metrics and design tests to understand each campaign’s effectiveness.
Generate Excitement for Email!
These strategies are designed to generate leads for your business. Make it exciting and easy for new users to get on the subscription list by offering incentives and including a sign-up form on your website. When structuring your email, create a strong subject line that alludes to the information inside without seeming like clickbait. For the message itself, personalized content that is concise and includes minimal images and videos is the most effective. Making it easy to unsubscribe is another important feature, as it shows faith in your customers and adherence to federal guidelines. Finally, using email automation tools can help you design and schedule your messages so that they have the most potential to succeed.
For assistance with your next email lead generation strategy, contact the experts at Coalition Technologies! We have over 700+ case studies on ecommerce and lead generation B2C and B2B clients across several industries. Whatever your specific needs are, the team at Coalition is here to meet them.
