7 Email Marketing Tips

Email marketing has been around long enough that I didn't think this kind of info would be necessary. Apparently it is.

If you want me to act upon your message, forward to friends, or at the very least READ your email, please follow these basic tips:

1. Pictures are fine. But if your message is embedded in an image I will not see it. I don't get email images on my mobile device and my Outlook prevents them as well. Use pictures/graphics to augment your message, not to be your message.

2. Send messages more often. Addresses change, people forget they signed up. Sending messages more often helps engage people and lessens the risk of unsubscribe.

3. Don't send messages too often. Really. You're not THAT important in someone's life. Send messages that are useful to your customers, don't keep sending just because you feel the need to talk all the time.

4. Make your messages timely. I got an email from a fast-casual place letting me know about FREE sandwich day. Great, that's useful info. But the message was 27 days before the date. If you want email to be an inexpensive communication channel, send me a reminder a couple of days ahead of time. This is a message I will forward.

5. It's not all about you. What have you done for the community? How have you contributed to your neighborhood? People get tired of hearing about "Marsha, Marsha, Marsha!"

6. Give me an action item. What behavior do you want to effect? What reason have you given me to act on your message? Use dayparts and added value, not just discounts.

7. Email is just one channel of communication. Use it to reinforce your advertising, your in-store messaging, your local store efforts. It's part of a marketing mix, not a really large hammer that solves all problems.