Avoid Email Marketing Mistakes

by James Shaw  

If you are dappling into email marketing for the first time, let us save you from making any mistakes.  Here's your chance to learn from some common mistakes before experiencing them yourself! It can be so easy to hit that big "Send" button only to realize seconds later that you it was not ready to be sent at all!  Below are things to ensure that you check before blasting out your campaign to your email database.

From Line

Make sure that the from line uses both your company name and your company email address.  If your company has multiple email addresses be sure that you use an email address that will be checked in the event that you receive replies from your customers.

Subject Line

Your subject line should be short and to the point using around 5 to 8 words.  Be sure that your subject pertains to the content inside the newsletter and isn't too vague or disconnected like "Sale!".  Give your reader some sense of urgency to open your newsletter and read it.  On the note of urgency, try not to use overly used words like free, guarantee, etc, or excessive punctuation like "!!!".  You do not want people to mistake your newsletter for spam.

Email Copy

First things first, make sure to address the email specifically to the person rather than a generic "Hello".  Constant Contact allows you to use this functionality in their newsletters. No one knows your customers better than you so keep them in mind when writing the content for the newsletter.  What tone of voice do they use?  What would interest them and make them want to come into your store? Are you offering a promotion or contest in your newsletter?  If so, make sure that it is easy for the person to understand.  How do they participate in the contest?  When does the sale start and end?  Do they need to print off a coupon or mention a promo code?  Make sure that you give them all of the information that they will need so there is no confusion. If you have a length email newsletter you should divide up the content in sections.  Many of Constant Contact's newsletter templates allow you to layout your content into a variety of text areas that will make sense for the reader.  Most templates use a sidebar and this is a perfect area to showcase contact information or the company's social media accounts. Finally, if the newsletter is text-heavy you can easily add in images that fit around the text to make it easier on the eyes.

Final Checks

Through Constant Contact you can send a preview of the newsletter to yourself or fellow coworkers.  Make sure you do this before you send out the newsletter to your customers! When you receive the preview check the From field and the Subject field.  Are you happy with it?  Is it spelled correctly? When you open the newsletter spellcheck the newsletter.  Does the newsletter look good?  Does everything make sense? Finally, if you used any links in the newsletter test each one to make sure they go where they are supposed to. If you need to make any changes go ahead and do that. And Voila!  Send out your newsletter to your contact list! Want more ideas to expand your audience and increase engagement?  Contact us today to set up an integrated marketing campaign that is the perfect fit for your business! Twin Creek Media uses Constant Contact to manage client email campaigns and was recently named one of Constant Contact's 2010 All-Stars.