mail marketing is still one of the most successful ways to build a bond with your own target group and to maintain contact with customers over the long term. The success of the implemented newsletter marketing campaigns can be easily measured. Due to the low costs and the quick implementation of communication and advertising measures, e-mail marketing has become indispensable for companies, online shops and clubs. So that you can get the best out of your email marketing, we will give you our top 10 tips for high-performing newsletters that are convincing.
Tip 1: Know who you are dealing with – know and understand your target group
One of the most important prerequisites for successful e-mail marketing is to inspire interesting content , but unfortunately this opportunity was not used. In short, there are numerous possible reasons why we eventually stop paying attention to a newsletter. recipient’s interest in your newsletter content . Numerous newsletters and e-mails now land in our inbox every day. If we’re being honest, we move many of them directly to the trash without even opening them, for example due to lack of time or lack of interest. But why is it that we are often no longer interested? That newsletter subjects are repeated too often and we conclude that the e-mails tell us nothing new? Or that the newsletter always ends up in our inbox when we don’t have time at work? Another reason could also be that we gave the newsletter a chance to get through
In most cases, this is due to email marketers not taking the time to really get to know their newsletter subscribers, understand their – often diverse – needs, and create content that excites them. But that’s exactly what matters in direct marketing . Instead, many senders see their newsletter subscribers as a homogeneous mass. In fact, however, the target group often consists of different, heterogeneous subgroups . In order to create relevant newsletter content , it is therefore advisable to assign these subgroups to so-called “ buyer personas ”. Personas are models of imaginary, “typical” customers, to which specific behaviors, desires, expectations, goals, and abilities are ascribed. These are derived from knowledge that you as the sender previously had, e.g. B. by surveying your actual customers – or in our case your newsletter recipients. Your personas are also given a name, appearance, job position, and traits .
You’ll see that it ‘s much easier to create relevant newsletter content when you have in mind “real” people who have lives, likes, interests, and specific skills, rather than just the homogenous mass of “all newsletter recipients ”. Because you can more easily put yourself in the position of the subscribers and assess your newsletter from their point of view as you create it: you know what your readers hope for, what they expect and what they are happy about. By segmenting your recipient list for your email marketing or giving recipients different tags depending on their persona , you can send different newsletter content for each personathat are precisely tailored to the respective needs.
Since this makes the content much more relevant and more relevant to the interests of your subscribers, your mailings also achieve more conversions than newsletters that are sent to the masses. At the same time, getting to know the readers better helps you to add new, important contacts to your list of recipients : Already in the newsletter registration form on your website, you can go into the description text about the content that is useful and of interest for your defined personas, or e.g . B. Advertise with discounts for products that are regularly bought by them. It also makes sense to give prospects different newsletter topics when they sign upoffer, which simplify a segmented dispatch depending on individual interests. Another important advantage of narrowing down your target group is that you reduce the costs of your e-mail marketing: by only sending the newsletter to the recipients for whom the content is relevant, you have lower shipping costs on the one hand and on the other hand less wastage.
Tip 2: Send e-mails according to plan
The basis of successful e-mail marketing is a campaign plan that gives an overview of which holidays, events or other important mailing dates are coming up and which newsletters should therefore be prepared. At the same time, you can note other relevant information about the newsletters in the dispatch plan, e.g. B. which target group or buyer persona the newsletter is aimed at, which employee takes on which tasks (e.g. importing the recipient list, newsletter design, content, tracking, etc.) or in which languagesthe newsletter is to be translated. So that you know shortly before sending what content needs to be worked out, you should also record in the dispatch plan what you intend to send the newsletter with , such as:
retain existing customers , e.g. B. through a loyalty gift
Gain new customers , e.g. B. through a discount campaign "Register today and save 10%"
Reactivate former customers e.g. B. through free shipping or voucher codes
Introduce new product
Entertain newsletter recipients , e.g. B. through employee interviews, behind-the-scenes insights, etc.
Inform subscribers e.g. B. by providing support material, overview of upcoming events, etc.For the first year, creating a newsletter sending plan naturally requires a certain amount of effort. But it’s worth it! You can then easily reuse the plan for the next year and see immediately when you can send what. You should just remember to include the dates e.g. B. to update for Black Friday . To save you some of the work, we have prepared a template for your campaign plan. Just complete and get started!
Tip 3: Outshine your competitors with the email subject
Only a few newsletter senders manage to arouse enthusiasm for the newsletter content in the recipients with an original subject line text. You need a subject line that says “snacky” in order to draw your subscribers’ attention to your newsletter and convince them to give their valuable time to your mailing rather than to the competition. Use the subject line and the preheader to whet your appetite for more: Don’t reveal everything just yet (e.g. “New Summer Collection 2020”), but arouse curiosity by addressing the interests and needs of the relevant persona (e.g. “Still looking for THE garden party dress?”).
More subject line tips for successful email marketing:
Don't already answer the question in the subject: You have taken the trouble to provide your website visitors with a help article on the topic " Should videos be included in newsletters?"” provided on your blog. Now you want to inform your subscribers about the new blog article via newsletter. You should definitely avoid providing the answer to the question in the subject line. To get a response, subscribers need to open your newsletter - Step #1 to a successful newsletter!
Avoid cryptic formulations and jargon: Don't scare off your recipients with incomprehensible subject lines. You should only use technical language here if you are sure that your recipients are familiar enough with the respective area. A newsletter subject like “ DKIM-Keyfor your domain in the DNS - how it works” requires that your subscribers know what a DKIM key and a DNS are. Otherwise, there is a risk that the recipients will classify your newsletter as too complex and move it to the trash before opening it. If you have doubts as to whether all recipients understand what the newsletter is about, you should instead choose a simpler, clearer formulation, e.g. B. “Would you like to increase the deliverability of your newsletters?”.
Keep subject short : Try to keep your subject line text as short as possible. By not exceeding 35 characters for the subject, you ensure that it is fully visible to all recipients - no matter what email programs or devices they use.
Address recipients personally: With a personalized newsletter subject , your subscribers feel addressed directly, which means that you as the sender build a bond with your recipients - even before they open the e-mail! This increases the likelihood that your newsletter will achieve a high opening rate. In addition to the first and last name, you can also include the recipient's place of residence, e.g. B. when the newsletter announces upcoming events in the subscriber's local area.
Stand out with emojis: Smileys and emojis create a visual stimulus in your email recipients' inboxes, motivating them to open the newsletter. Of course, the emoji should match the subject line (e.g. a star or a Christmas tree for your Christmas campaign ). Also, don't overdo it with an emoji smorgasbord, instead limit yourself to a single emoji per subject line.4th tip: Limit the number of topics per email
Your newsletter has been opened – you have cleared the first, difficult hurdle. The next challenge is: offer content that is useful, inspires, strengthens the connection to your brand or your company and, at best, leads to a newsletter conversion .
To achieve this, you should concentrate on one central topic in the newsletter instead of touching on different topics. Put on the subscriber glasses and before editing the content, think about what your readers hope for from the newsletter , what difficulties you might have or what they would be happy about.
Wrap the chosen topic in interesting, easy-to-read newsletter text . The trick is to keep it as short as possible and still include all the relevant information. Similar to the subject line, your newsletter content should intrigue readers and motivate them to take action and click the final call-to-action button that will take them to your website, online store, or similar. directs. Your readers are one step closer to your desired newsletter conversion!
5th tip: Optimize newsletters for mobile devices
Unlike at the beginning of the history of e-mail marketing , the majority of all e-mails are now read on smartphones . Since mobile device screens are much smaller than computer screens, you should ensure that your newsletters and marketing emails are displayed responsively on mobile devices.
The key points to consider for mobile-friendly email marketing are:
Choose a short subject with a maximum of 35 characters
Set a sufficient font size: 22px for headings, 12px for body text and a line spacing of approx. 17px
Enable easy touch navigation for links and other interactive elements
Choose high-contrast colors for good readability outdoors
Limit the number of images to avoid long loading times
Display content in one column to avoid unnecessary scrolling
Test the correct display before sending using a display test, a preview function and sending test emails