Running a successful email marketing campaign does not have to be difficult. The goal is to fit regular email campaigns in to your normal marketing schedule as a helpful addition to reach more customers in a more personal way. That's why we have given you a basic outline for getting started with FireMail Marketing.
Provide a Way for People to Opt-In
First things first, you need to set up a way to build your list. Don't worry if you have never collected email addresses, here are some ideas that you might want to include in your future marketing efforts:
Place a sign-up form on your website homepage with an incentive like, "Sign up for our newsletter and receive a coupon in your email for 15% off your next online purchase!" Just make sure your first email you send to them is the coupon that you promised. Then you will have a high-value, loyal user in your mailing list. The easy way to always remember to send that coupon is to set up an autoresponder that sends it right away after they sign up.
Include an email address space on your feedback cards that people fill out in your store or after events. Make sure to mention that by entering their email that they will receive messages from you. You don't want them to be surprised or agitated by your emails.
Collect email addresses when you meet prospects at trade shows and industry gatherings. These are great networking opportunities and email marketing can help you solidify a relationship.
Partner with trade associations or other local businesses to run a joint campaign that each of you can benefit from. This will reduce your costs and possibly increase the rewards if the partnership is well-positioned.
Make a Schedule or Calendar
It is easy to succumb to email marketing paralysis, during which you are not sure what you should be sending or how often, so you opt to send nothing at all. This can destroy your email list! You don't want your prospects to forget about your business because you took too long to send the next email. This is why you need a regular interval between messages and a plan for what content to send. If you own a restaurant or bar, maybe each Thursday you send an email about what is on your menu for the weekend or about what live entertainment you have planned for the week. And then you include a little incentive like, "Make a reservation for this weekend and receive a free dessert!" or, "Mention this email and receive the special 'Chef's Special Menu' for our loyal customers only!"
Focus on a Clear Call to Action
Each of your messages should have one, and only one, call to action. Email is a brief chance to pique the interest of the reader, sometimes you only have the subject line to do this! If the subject does not grab them, they won't even open your message. So keep it simple and appealing. Always have a goal for your messages. Whether that is to visit your website, buy a product, call you, or simply inform your users. Make sure you stick to that goal for the entirety of your message or you risk losing them to distraction, confusion, or disinterest.
Follow Up
Sometimes one email is not enough! Our internal data from hundreds of small businesses that use our conversion tracking shows that the average contact is emailed more than 5 times before they complete the goal the business was aiming for. Frequent emails are not a bad thing, they actually decrease complaints and opt-outs! It seems counter-intuitive, but frequent messages also increase click-throughs and conversions. Do not be afraid to remind your contacts that you are here and you offer something of value to them!
Provide an Easy Way to Opt-Out
Even the most successful email marketing campaigns have unsatisfied contacts or people who just no longer need your messages. This is a natural occurance in all campaigns, so do not worry that people want to opt-out. Think of it this way -- for every person who successfully opts-out of your list, that is one person that is not hitting the 'spam' button or complaining to their ISP. You absolutely do not want complaints or unhappy customers, so provide them with a clear and straight-forward opt-out procedure to keep your list clean and high-quality!
If you follow these steps, you will be running a high-value and powerful email marketing list in no time! Your customers will want to receive messages from you and they will spend more money with you. If this excites you, sign up for a free email marketing trial today!
