Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is an essential component of any digital marketing strategy. Regardless of industry, email marketing has proven to be an extremely effective technique for generating sales.
Leads who receive a product or brand solicited by email are more likely to buy, and more likely to spend more money when they do.
Research has indicated a return on investment on email marketing dollars of up to 43x. Like anything else, though, the caveat to this multiplier is “when done correctly”.
If you’re not seeing a significant ROI from your email marketing outreach, read on to see which of these common mistakes you’re falling prey to.
1. Sloughing on Subject Lines |
This pitfall is dangerously easy to fall into. We grow up hearing “don’t judge a book by its cover” and "substance over style”.
Conventional wisdom would tell us a well-worded email with an enticing promotion or exciting announcement enclosed should be enough to make an email campaign a winning one. Unfortunately, this is not the case.
A subject line falls only after recognizing the name of the sender in terms of likelihood to open an email. The best deal in the world won’t get your leads converting into customers if they never open the email to see the promotion.
Some basic tips to craft a winning subject line:
Keep it to 7 words or less.
The sender should be recognizable.
Make it broadly personal (words like “your”).
Continuously A/B test subject lines and variations to keep a finger on the pulse of what works.
2. Your Offers aren’t Enticing Enough |
Once you’ve written a click-worthy subject line, it’s time to ensure the content doesn’t put that click to waste. The beauty of email marketing is you will have a few seconds of the customer’s undivided attention, and they have chosen to open correspondence from you. Use this time and opportunity wisely.
One smart move is to retarget those who have already visited your site by sending them an email reminder. Even better, automate email marketing to those prospects who have added items to their cart but have yet to actually purchase. Sweeten the deal with a limited time offer, or a percentage off those items already in their cart.
3. You Stop after One Sale |
Your best leads are users who have already converted! Use Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software to engage with customers who have previously shopped with you.
Alert them when similar products become available. Odds are, customers who have had a good experience with your brand will gladly buy from you again if you help them keep your company top-of-mind.
Further, encourage them to head back to your site with a coupon for their next purchase. This code for a second buy can even come as early as with a receipt for their first purchase.
4. You don’t give customers a reason to refer you |
Gamification makes normally mundane tasks exciting and compelling with the use of points, rewards, badges, etc. Foursquare is a great example of quality gamification technique at work.
If not for badges and a “mayor” (top of the leaderboard), the idea of asking people to “check in” everywhere from the gas station to the grocery store to gastropub would be ridiculous.
Much like the infamous Tom Sawyer convincing his friends to help him paint the fence, you can put your customers to work for you for next to nothing. Put a referral program in place promising a coupon or freebie for every 5 friends who make a purchase, sign up for the newsletter, follow your social media, whatever.
Another effective route is to go the way of coffee houses and offer a free drink after a certain number of paid purchases with a loyalty card. This way, you get the customer’s information for future email marketing (and traditional marketing), and you also give them a compelling reason to patronize your business repeatedly.
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