Email Marketing - Communicate Properly With Your Subscribers

List of Good Email Marketing Practices

1. Build a list of people that will benefit from your message. Your campaign starts with a list of emails. The more contacts that you have on your list the better. But what is the good of having 100,000 contacts if 90% of them are not interested in what your message is?


2. Capture 100% opt-ins by giving your prospects the option to sign up through trade shows, website or social media newsletter sign-up.


3. There are some pretty cool email marketing softwares for purchase out there but I prefer to use online email software. Its cost-effective, scalable and created to be very user friendly. When it comes to these platforms some are good and some are bad. I prefer i-Contact.


4. Build a branded template to represent your companies image. You usually have the option to choose from pre-built templates or for a more customized design you can hire an expert to build your vision.


5. Schedule specific messages to coincide with key events you want to highlight.


6. Run click-through reports to find out what groups are interested in what service or product you offer. Then bundle those groups into specific lists that receive those specific campaigns.


7. Link your messages with any social media accounts you have set up. this increases your visibility.


8. Educate yourself with CAN-SPAM Act. Always give your recipients the option to opt-out of your messages.


9. Utilize the multiple reporting features you have at your disposal. This is how you will refine your marketing and find out what is workin and what isn't.


10. Create a interconnected web-work online. Link you campaign to you website, social media, blogs etc.

List of Bad Email Marketing Practices

1. Don't purchase your list. This is a big no no and can get you black listed. There are plenty of companies on the web that will sell you email lists. The problem is that they sell those same lists to hundreds of other people. Imagine being one of the people on those lists and getting bombarded by all these companies. Someone will complain and that's when people get blacklisted.


2. Send your messages using a business email. When your message comes across and its sent from [blahblah@gmail.com] it just doesn't seem as professional.


3. Do not add people to your list without them knowing. Its against the CAN-SPAM Act. and the law.


4. Most email messaging software requires that you have an opt-out option on you email, however if there isn't, make sure you don't send without it.


5. Don't try to jam too much content into one blast. This could overwhelm the recipient and turn them off.


6. Keep your design consistent. Don't send out a circus of images and content. Your message should revolve around the brand of your company.


7. Try not to message to often. Once a day could make people angry.


8. Don't send with just images. Most email providers have images turned off by default. If you have text the recipient will at least know what the message is about until they can activate images.


9. Don't send without an online link to your email message. If people cannot see the message in their email they will be redirected to an online version where they can see you message.


10. Don't forget to study your reports to see what your market wants.