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Email Marketing Basics

Email marketing is a great way to proactively reach out to customers and  prospects, but doing so means walking a fine line between spam and offering  value. But if done right, e-mail marketing is a great way to sell your products  and services as well as build on your brand.
Permission-based email marketing is the ideal way to reach out to your customers  to communicate either information that is useful to them or that helps your  bottom line. Acquiring your customer’s permission can be as simple as including  an opt-in (as well as an opt-out) during the purchase process, whereby your  customer populates a contact field that includes an email address you will use  to further interact with them later in the relationship. The key here is that  you want your customers to want to receive emails from you, because they know  you aren’t just trying to make a sale–you’re also trying to help them be more successful in their business.

What Content Should I Include in Email Marketing Campaigns?

• New, discounted products and services
• News and tips that help your customers and prospects in their daily business
• Good, informative content about their industry

How Should I get their Attention & What Should I Always Include?

• A compelling, catchy headline
• Always use a consistent brand and company name
• Always include a Call to Action
• Always provide contact information, including email and, if possible, a phone number

List Services

Beware of companies that sell email lists. While there are plenty of businesses that sell email lists legally, there are plenty that do not. The last thing you want to do as a business is anger your prospects and potential customers by initiating a relationship via SPAM.

Opt Out?

Always give the recipient of your email marketing activities a way out. If you’ve ever been on an email list that you couldn’t get off of, you understand the annoyance and why it’s a good idea to provide people a way to opt out of the list.

A Few e-mail Guidelines:

• Don’t send email to people who don’t want it
• Make a point to let your reader know you aren’t sharing their email address
• Do not over-email your readers. Email them once a week at most, depending on the situation
• Be very clear and concise in your emails. Make sure you don’t confuse your readers
• Provide the option of HTML or TEXT

Following the rules of the game for email marketing is not that difficult, and doing so creates a clear, pleasant experience for your readers. Before sending out an email campaign, make sure you ask one basic question of yourself, namely, Would I want to receive this email? If you wouldn’t, why would your readers?

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