Top 8 tips to nail your email marketing strategy

More than 347 billion emails are sent and received each day.

So, how can businesses stand out in the sea of emails their target audience receives every day?

A solid email marketing plan is a good start.

Check out some of the top tips for a successful email marketing strategy in 2024.

8 actionable email marketing tips for a winning campaign

#1. Create irresistible lead magnets

No matter what type of marketing you do, the goal is to grab attention and generate interest.

And the best way to do that is to answer one of the biggest questions in marketing, "What's in it for me?"

Lead magnets help solve this challenge because they give prospects something valuable. Whether it's an ebook introducing them to a topic or a how-to guide showing them how to solve a problem, lead magnets can really work wonders in helping brands build their subscriber lists.

Depending on your industry and expertise, you can offer your audience different resources to help them solve their pain points and challenges, meet their goals, speak to their interests, or target their motivations.

When people know they’ll gain something, they usually don't mind giving something in return.

In this case, they're giving up their name and email address via opt-in forms. In return, they get something of value that makes their lives easier in some way.

Possible lead magnets‌ — ‌other than ebooks and how-to guides‌ — ‌you can create to attract more email subscribers include:

• Contests, quizzes, and giveaways

• Cheat sheets and checklists

• Webinars/virtual summits

• Early access/waiting lists

• Discounts and bonuses

• Free consultations

• Product demos

• Whitepapers

• Newsletters

• Calculators

• Swipe files

• Templates

• Free tools

• Courses

• Reports

• Toolkits

In this email, Salesforce offers its audience a free ebook that includes some of the best tips and best practices from legendary email marketers.

#2. Segment your email list

According to HubSpot, email segmentation is the most effective strategy for email campaigns.

Why is it so effective?

Because it allows you to deliver targeted messages to the right people instead of taking a one-size-fits-all approach to email marketing.

Segmenting your subscribers involves separating them into different groups or customer segments based on different factors, such as their demographics, behavior, purchase history, previous campaign data, or email engagement history.

This data lets you send more relevant content to your subscribers' interests and preferences.

You can also split up your list of subscribers based on where they are in the customer journey. For example, for a lead still in the consideration stage, you might send emails that include educational content like webinars or how-to guides.

On the other hand, if an established or active customer is in the retention stage, your emails could include support resources, Q&A conversations, or newsletters.

#3. Personalize your content

96% of marketers say that a personalized experience increases the likelihood of buyers becoming repeat customers.

Who doesn't want to feel special, almost like a message is specifically crafted for them? By providing this level of personalization, you can stand out from other emails vying for your audience's attention.

One way to personalize your emails is to include your subscribers' names in the subject and/or the email copy.

You can also take things up a notch by using hyper-personalization. This takes simple personalization to the next level using data, consumer insights, analytics, and automation.

For example, if a site visitor was viewing one of your product pages, you can send a personalized email that might say, "We saw you lurking. Here's 15% off your first order with us".

To leverage this level of personalization, you'll need an email marketing tool that allows you to set up smart workflows based on data.

#4. Send timely messages with automation

Marketers using automation tools are 95% more likely to say their marketing strategy is effective than those without.

Save time while making your emails more targeted and relevant with email marketing automation workflows.

Email marketing software is great for crafting ‌email series, helping you automate their delivery. Let's say that you created different emails to cater to the needs and interests of people at different stages of the buyer's journey.

So, you might have:

• A few in-between emails that show the value of your products and showcase testimonials/customer interviews or reviews

• A couple of sales emails that include calls to action (CTAs) to shop your product or take advantage of a discount

• A welcome/thank you email that introduces your brand and tells new subscribers what to expect

This is known as a drip campaign.

You can also create automated emails based on triggers, such as when a lead or prospect:

• Adds your product to their shopping cart and doesn't make a purchase within a certain period of time (abandoned cart)

• Hasn't purchased from you or engaged with your product for a while (a.k.a. inactive subscribers)

• Crosses a certain milestone with your brand (e.g. 1-year anniversary)

• Has a birthday (e.g. happy birthday email)

• Signs up for your email newsletter

• Unsubscribes from your emails

• Clicks a link on your website

• Purchases your product(s)

  Here’s a welcome email from the popular movie streaming service Vudu. The email includes new releases to spark subscribers’ interest.

Source: Vudu

#5. Write subject lines that grab attention

Your subject line is one of the first elements of your email your subscribers see.

So, if it isn't enticing enough to make them click on your email, they'll likely scroll right past it.

Add a sense of urgency to your email subject lines to increase your email open rate. Incorporate actionable language like "Get your..." or "Take advantage of..."

If you send promotional emails that provide subscribers with special offers or discounts, you can create a sense of urgency with phrases like "limited time" or "X days/hours left."

It's also important to keep your email subject lines short and sweet. They should be long enough to clearly get your message across but short enough to stay under the character limit.

Consider using emojis to stand out in the inbox. Convey emotions like excitement, surprise, and humor to add a touch of personality to your messages.

#6. Optimize for mobile

46% of emails are opened on mobile devices. That's why nearly 60% of marketers utilize mobile-friendly emails in their email marketing strategy.

Here are some tips for optimizing your emails for mobile devices:

• Consider using responsive email templates to take the guesswork out of creating emails that display seamlessly on mobile devices

• Keep the text within your subject line (35 characters) and preheader (85 characters) within the character limit.

• Plan for an "image off" experience and test your emails to make sure they still look good without images.

• Use lots of white space around links and CTAs to make them clickable.

• Place your CTA near the top of your emails.

• Test your emails across multiple devices.

• Use a single-column layout.

Chuck E’ Cheese regularly sends its subscribers promotional emails to boost foot traffic. The brand’s emails look stunning on mobile devices, thanks to bright colors, plenty of white space, clear CTAs, and a simple layout.

Source: Chuckecheese

#7. Use A/B testing to identify the perfect email

You really can't perfect your email marketing strategy without knowing your target audience's preferences.

This is where A/B testing gets its value. It involves sending different types of emails to subscribers in order to see which one performs the best.

The one with the highest click-through or engagement rate is likely the most effective email. As a result, you can adjust your email campaign to include the elements of the winning email that performed the best.

Not sure how to conduct A/B testing? Email marketing specialists have expertise in this area. They can help you set up strategic A/B tests that deliver data-driven results.

#8. Tell a story

When it comes to emails, it's all about grabbing attention. Your subscribers probably have tons of brands in their inbox trying to get them to make a purchase.

Often, people either just scroll right through those emails or hit the "delete" button. So, you only have a small window of time before a lead loses interest, which means your email needs to be compelling enough to stop scrolling in its tracks.

You can with an interesting, relatable story. 75% of consumers believe brands should use storytelling in their marketing.

Whether it's a narrative about your brand or a tale about how your product changed a particular customer's life, telling a story is a great way to make your emails more engaging.

Some ways to include storytelling in your email marketing include:

• Gamifying your email content with interactive storytelling elements (e.g. encourage subscribes to make choices that influence the narrative)

• Showcasing stories from your customers or followers who have shared their experiences with your products or brand

• Sharing stories about your team, their expertise, and the passion that goes into creating your products or services

• Crafting a series of emails that tell a single story, leaving subscribers yearning for more

• Sharing a brief version of a success story and linking to the full story for more details

• Telling a short story about how your newest product or service came to be

• Telling the personal journey of your company's founder

Collaboration tools like Zoom alternatives can also be effective for storytelling and email marketing, especially when it comes to real-time engagement and interactive sessions. They offer dynamic ways to host virtual events, webinars, and interactive sessions that enhance the overall engagement and effectiveness of your campaigns.

Conclusion

Email marketing is one of the most effective ways to engage and build meaningful connections with customers.

However, if not executed properly, it can be difficult to achieve the desired results.

Follow the tips in this article to build an effective email marketing strategy. And just like with any marketing strategy, it's always smart to track your email marketing performance. Then, tweak your email marketing plan accordingly.