Email marketing remains an important direct marketing strategy. However, irresponsible marketing in the last years created the problem of spam mail for customers, which made success in email marketing more challenging. Nevertheless, there are ways of planning an email marketing campaign to raise the chances of success.A marketing offer that is sent quickly via email and without spending on postage can have an impact only if it is read by the recipients. This only happens if an email sent is not flagged as spam. Similar to snail mail, recipients take interest in messages that they expect to receive and come from the people they know. Recipients only open email from senders not included in their address book if they find the message interesting, worth their time and comes from a trusted source.

Email Marketing Analytics

Growing Your Email List: 9 Components of a Great Opt-in Box

Sending marketing offers through email is easy and convenient. However, there is no absolute guarantee of achieving the expected marketing outcomes. Results largely depend on a well-planned email marketing campaign. To ensure success, be sure to keep these considerations in preparing for an email marketing campaign.

Create an email address that communicates your business name, company or brand. Custom email addresses are great in identifying the source of emails. The email address makes the message official, reliable and trustworthy.

Have an email listing by asking customers to leave their email address for them to receive promotional updates. Customers sharing their email address are likely to open and read your emails. A high open rate for emails sent by your email address prevents your emails from being categorized as spam. However, if new customers are being targeted, focus on the content, format and subject or title of the email.
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Build a positive reputation as an email sender. Request recipients to include your email address in the white list of their email service provider by adding your email address to their contact list or marking your email as not a spam. Building a good reputation as an email sender ensures that emails are not categorized as spam. This increases the chance that your emails are sent to the inbox of recipient and not the spam folder. Inbox messages are likely to be opened and read.

Communicate offers in a simple but engaging email content. Make your offer in just a few sentences. While elaborate designs may make your email more colorful and attractive, complex graphics mean more bytes that take longer to open. People are not likely to wait when a promotional email does not open within seconds.

Send the email as text and not as a file attachment. Place your text and graphics directly on the text box. Pictures can be copied and pasted on the text box or embedded on the email through a URL link provided by a photo hosting site. Regardless of the feature supported by your email service provider, the important thing is that the entire email content appears upon opening the email.

Optimize the email subject or title. Express the gist of your offer and the company or brand in the email subject or title. This will help recipients decide whether they will open the email or junk it. However, do not make the subject very long. A 6 to 10 word subject is sufficient.

Send emails in a way that prevents flagging as spam by email service providers. Refrain from using flagged words like “free”, “promo” and “sample”. Avoid using very large fonts, vivid font colors and highlights. Have an opt-out or unsubscribe link in your email that is easy to spot. Do not include IP address links in your email content. Send emails in a staggered manner, such as by twenties or fifties. Vary the subject or title for different batches of email that are sent in bulk.