In today’s digital age, email marketing continues to be a powerful tool for businesses to connect with their audience and drive conversions.
However, crafting an effective marketing email is not as simple as it may seem. It requires careful planning, strategic thinking, and a deep understanding of your target audience.
In this blog post, Dolma will walk you through the step-by-step process of writing a marketing email that engages your readers and boosts your conversion rates.
Step 1: Prep your email campaign
Before diving into creating your marketing email, it’s essential to lay the groundwork for a successful campaign. Taking the time to plan and prepare will not only increase your efficiency but also improve your conversion rates.
Here are five important steps to consider:
Know your customer personas
To create an effective marketing email, you need to know who you’re writing for. Customer personas are fictional representations of your ideal customers.
They include characteristics like age, location, job title, interests, favorite brands, and psychographic details such as values, goals, and challenges.
By creating customer personas, you can tailor your email content to resonate with your target audience and use the appropriate tone of voice.
Define your brand voice
Your brand voice is the personality and style of your brand’s communication. It sets the tone for your marketing emails and helps establish a consistent and recognizable image.
Take the time to define your brand voice, considering factors like approachability, formality, and friendliness. A clear brand voice will make your emails feel more authentic and connected to your audience.
Research what your competitors are doing
Understanding your competition is crucial when it comes to crafting successful marketing emails. Sign up for your competitors’ email lists and analyze how they communicate with their audience.
Take note of their messaging, tone, and the offers they provide. This research will help you differentiate your emails and find unique ways to engage your audience.
Know what types of campaigns you’ll be running
Before creating your marketing email, it’s essential to determine the type of campaign it will be a part of. Some common types of email campaigns include sales drip campaigns, welcome or onboarding nurture sequences, abandoned cart or browse sequences and ongoing emails like newsletters and announcements. Each type of campaign requires a different approach and content strategy.
Set a goal for your email
Every marketing email should have a clear goal. Whether it’s to get a review from a new customer, promote a seasonal special, or share a white paper, setting a specific and actionable goal will help guide your email content and call-to-action (CTA).
Your goal should align with your overall email marketing strategy and support your business goals.
Step 2: Build your email
Now that you have laid the foundation for your email campaign, it’s time to start creating your marketing email. This section will guide you through the process of crafting an engaging and conversion-focused email.
Craft an irresistible subject line
The subject line is the first thing your subscribers see when they receive your email. It plays a crucial role in determining whether your email gets opened or ignored.
To craft an irresistible subject line, consider the following elements:
- Appealing: Your subject line should stand out and avoid blending in with other emails. Tailor it to your specific recipients and make it appealing to them.
- Concise: Mobile devices typically display around 30 characters of the subject line. Keep it short and to the point, front-loading the most important information.
- Self-evident: Your subject line should align with the content of your email. Avoid making readers guess why you’re messaging them to ensure your opens result in clicks.
- Compelling: Motivate action by offering something of value in your subject line. Appeal to your subscribers’ self-interest, emotional interest, or relational interest.
By creating subject lines that resonate with your audience and provide value, you can increase your email open rates and encourage readers to engage with your content.
Choose a sender name that readers want to hear from
In addition to the subject line, the sender’s name plays a significant role in determining whether your email gets opened. Choose a sender name that recipients recognize and want to hear from.
If it makes sense, consider using a person’s name in the “from” field to add a personal touch. However, ensure that it aligns with your brand and doesn’t confuse or mislead your subscribers.
Complement your subject line and preview the text
The preview text is the snippet of text that appears next to the subject line in an email client. It provides additional context to entice readers to open your email. Use this space to complement your subject line and further engage your recipients. Make sure your email content aligns with your copy and avoid generic or irrelevant copy.
Follow email marketing design best practices
The design of your marketing email plays a crucial role in capturing your reader’s attention and encouraging them to take action.
Here are some best practices to consider:
- Make it easy to read and skim: Use a standard typeface with large typography and plenty of negative space. Ensure your email is mobile-friendly and adapts well to different devices.
- Stay on brand: Use fonts, colors, and images that align with your brand identity. Consistency in design helps build brand recognition and trust.
- Use email templates: Most email service providers offer templates to ensure proper alignment and proportions. Using templates can save you time and prevent formatting issues.
Remember to use images sparingly and optimize their size to avoid slow loading times. Add alt text to your images for visually impaired subscribers and ensure proper display if the images fail to load.
How to write your email copy
The content of your marketing email needs to be concise, compelling and focused on driving action. Keep the following tips in mind when writing your email copy:
- Be concise: Respect your subscribers’ time by avoiding unnecessary fluff and getting straight to the point.
- Fulfill the expectation set by your subject line: Deliver on the promise made in your subject line and provide additional value to encourage engagement.
- Promise more value in your CTA: Motivate action by promising additional value that can only be obtained by clicking your CTA.
Use vivid language, tell stories, and keep your tone conversational. Make your readers feel like they are part of a conversation rather than receiving a generic email. Avoid jargon unless it aligns with your target audience’s language.
Include actionable CTAs
The call-to-action (CTA) is the most critical element of your marketing email. It directs readers to take a specific action that aligns with your email’s goal.
When crafting your CTA, keep the following tips in mind:
- Keep language actionable: Use verbs that encourage readers to take immediate action. Optimize your CTAs by using words like “get,” “sign up,” or “shop now.”
- A/B test your CTAs: Experiment with different wording and phrasing to determine the most effective call-to-action for your audience.
- Design high-contrast CTAs: Make your CTAs stand out visually by using contrasting colors and fonts.
Ensure that your CTAs are aligned with your email content and provide clear value to the reader. Use CTAs to guide readers toward the desired action and make it easy for them to engage with your content.
Give your emails a personal touch
Personalization is a powerful tool in email marketing. It allows you to tailor your emails to individual subscribers based on their preferences, behavior, and past interactions. Personalization can be achieved through mail merge tags and dynamic content blocks.
Mail merge tags allow you to insert personalized information like the recipient’s name, while dynamic content blocks enable you to show different messages to different segments of your audience based on their characteristics or actions.
By personalizing your emails, you can create a more engaging and relevant experience for your subscribers, leading to higher open rates, click-through rates, and conversions.
Include legal requirements
When sending marketing emails, it is essential to comply with legal requirements. Every email must include an unsubscribe link that allows recipients to opt out of future communications.
Additionally, ensure that your emails are sent from a valid email address attached to your domain name. You can improve your email deliverability by adhering to these legal best practices.
Step 3: Ship it
Once you have built your marketing email, it’s time to review, test, and send it out to your subscribers. This section will guide you through the final steps of the email creation process.
Proofread and test your email
Before sending out your email, take the time to proofread and test it thoroughly. Proofreading ensures that your email is free of typos, grammatical errors, and formatting issues.
Send a test email to yourself and review it on different devices and email clients to ensure proper display and functionality.
Check all links, graphics, and alignment to provide a seamless experience for your recipients.
Send it out
Once you are confident in the quality and functionality of your email, it’s time to hit the send button. Schedule your email to be sent at the optimal time, considering factors like your audience’s time zones and their engagement patterns.
Remember to analyze your email marketing performance regularly and make data-driven decisions to optimize your future campaigns.
By continually refining your email marketing strategy, you can improve your open rates, click-through rates, and conversions over time.
Final Thoughts
Building an effective email marketing strategy is an ongoing process. Stay proactive, adapt to your audience’s preferences, and provide valuable content that resonates with your subscribers.
Remember, email marketing is a powerful tool that, when used effectively, can drive significant results for your business. Follow the steps outlined in this guide, experiment, and iterate to find the best approach for your audience.
With dedication and strategic thinking, your marketing emails will become a key driver of growth for your business.
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