Nowadays, there a countless trends in online marketing like automated phone dialer, email software (companies like PhoneBurner provides both) etc. Amongst all of them, email has proven that it’s here to stay. Because email is free and accessible for nearly everyone in the world, both large and small businesses have been able to harness the power of email marketing in order to improve their sales. Many things go into an effective email marketing strategy, but one of the most important is achieving high click-through rates. Without people clicking on the links you offer them in your promotional cold emails, you’ll lose out on valuable leads and sales. Here are four proven ways to improve the click-through rates of your emails.
1) Keep Mobile Readers In Mind
The vast majority of people today prefer to check their email using their phones or tablets instead of laptops or desktop computers. This means that every email you send needs to be optimized for viewing on such devices. Your email marketing service should provide you with the ability to create responsive designs for your emails that will adjust automatically depending on the device they’re being viewed on. If this is not the case, then seek an email solution that does offer this capability, as failing to do so will result in content that’s difficult for your subscribers to read.
2) Use A Straightforward Content Structure
The best structure for the content of your emails will include an enticing header that encourages the viewer to keep reading, followed by a few short and informative paragraphs containing the key information you want to get across. After this should come a single, clear call to action that will result in the reader clicking on a link of your choosing. One of the most common mistakes that marketers make today is overloading their promotional emails with images, multiple links and blocks of text that are difficult to browse quickly. Keep it simple by following this basic yet proven structure and your click-through rates will increase as a result.
3) Segment Your Subscriber List
List segmentation is arguably the most underutilized email marketing strategy out there. If you aren’t sure about where to start with these more technical aspects then you could outsource this to companies like RocketReach, which specialize in this field. You can get more info here, but here is a breakdown on why it’s useful to segment your lists. There is tremendous power in being able to separate your email subscribers into highly targeted groups based on their previous engagement with your emails, age, interests or any other metric you could possibly want. By placing the recipients of your emails into specific groups, you’re able to reach them with messages that are more relevant to their interests, and in turn, increase click-throughs.
Furthermore, considering that more than 10% of email addresses in a single marketing email are invalid, you may only be delivering half of your emails while paying for the entire list. Bounce rates and complaint rates rise as a result of bad emails, putting you in the bad graces of email service providers. All email lists should be cleaned regularly. However, if you source your leads through inbound marketing, send to your list regularly, and remove addresses that stop engaging, you may be able to maintain healthy deliverability without the use of an email verification tool. Aside from that, you can use email verification tools like mailfloss to scan for and remove invalid email addresses every day, increasing your email deliverability and getting more of your emails into the priority inbox.
4) Split Test Subject Lines
Split testing the subject lines of your emails is an excellent way to achieve better click-throughs. This is especially true if you have a series of autoresponder emails that are automatically sent to subscribers at set intervals, as finding a better subject line for these scheduled messages can create higher clicks on autopilot for years to come. By testing a subject line against several alternatives, you can also determine the types of subjects that your subscribers connect most strongly with, and then use this knowledge to your benefit as you craft future email campaigns.
By utilizing a simple and open content structure, segmenting your subscriber list, optimizing for mobile users and split testing subject lines, you’ll experience higher click-throughs, more sales and set your business up for the best possible results from your email marketing efforts. Email is showing no signs of slowing down anytime soon, which is why smart marketers are focusing more of their energy on this type of promotion than ever before.