Don’t let other marketers trick you into their programs and courses – email marketing is far from dead.  In fact, with over 306 billion emails sent every day, it’s safe to say email marketing is going to be around for a long time!

Email marketing is an essential marketing avenue to take complete advantage of and it’s no surprise why.

• Every dollar invested in email usually brings a return between $38 – $42…
• Emails are a fast and easy way to generate trust and build relationships with your customers….
• And of course, emails are probably the easiest way to resell to repeat clients and make recurring sales!

When done correctly, a solid email strategy can generate up to 23% of a businesses total revenue, which means if you aren’t already sending updates, campaigns and promos regularly, your business is missing out!

You will (most likely) get some clicks just by putting together an email with a subject line that says “25% off storewide” and a couple images of products and a ‘buy now’ button in the body. But like every other marketing resource we use to improve our business, we want to maximize it so we can grow, scale and make an impact. 

Many eCommerce businesses are not utilizing the full potential of their email marketing, which means a lot of money is getting left on the table.

As business owners, we must be proactive and seek solutions. There are a couple things that you can do to take your email marketing to a whole new level, and it’s not always about writing killer sales copy or having HD graphics (although those definitely help a lot!)

If you’re ready to get cracking on boosting your email marketing, then let’s go into 5 simple principles that can drastically improve your email marketing!

Your List Is A Community

Can businesses get away with sending 10% off coupon codes and BOGO promotions every other day? Perhaps, but remember that we want to maximize our email marketing. This means building a relationship with your current list members while continuing to build your email list.

A foolproof email strategy doesn’t just sell with promotions and campaigns. Share content, new updates, offer giveaways and introduce other fun-themed messages so your audience has something to look forward to. Check out the lovely email from Bark – It didn’t sell anything, it didn’t even promote a product. Just wholesome, genuine care email that comes as a digital hug at a trying time.

Image courtesy: Bark

This principle is especially important if you treat your eCommerce business as a brand! You don’t want to be known as the company that just wants to sell; by offering useful and relevant content, you’re providing value in more ways besides your products. 

At the end of the day, treat your email list like real people. (That’s because they are real people!)

Email “Nets” That Catch Revenue

Most websites have the infamous pop-up window or a small area on the footer of the page that asks for an email address and a name. When a person enters their email address, they typically receive a series of emails known as ‘Welcome’ emails. Besides these, there are other emails sequences that get triggered after certain actions take place. 

You can create emails that get automatically sent out after actions like if someone exits your store after loading their cart, if they purchase something, and even if they haven’t opened any of your emails after a period of time.

These emails are ultimately designed to get the person back to complete a purchase or interact with you in some way. There are many kinds of automated flows and if done right, it can salvage a lot of revenue that would be otherwise lost.

Keep Your Emails Succinct

Most people want to conserve as much energy and time as they can. They don’t have time to read your emails word-by-word. This is why so many copywriters and marketers advocate for shorter emails.

Some copy elitists will tell you don’t make your email any more than 500 words, but at the end of the day you have to consider not just what (if) you’re selling anything, but (1) the intention of the email as well as (2) who is the email intended for. There isn’t any ‘hard’ rule on the length of an email, but the most important thing is to keep your message as succinct as possible.

Another thing to keep in mind when selling via email is that it’s NOT a sales letter. Emails aren’t designed to sell the reader and overcome objections (although you can do that without writing a 10,000 word sales letter.) The main goal of the email is to get them to click onto the next page.

Don’t Assume People Will Read Your Email

No matter where we look, we are bombarded with dozens upon dozens of businesses trying to sell us things. It has taken its toll on today’s generation of people to the point where we are all fatigued. Getting someone to open an email and actually read through it is much more difficult. 

It’s more practical to be a realist than 100% optimistic in business. So keep in mind that no matter how good your email copy and design is, not everyone will open it. But that’s not a reason to be discouraged!

When you start writing your email with that in mind, you can strategize and come up with better subject lines, copy and designs that will be more engaging. 

Your Message Comes From The Heart

Business owners may not want to hear this ugly truth, but the general public typically doesn’t view businesses as people. Between the thousands of companies out there and all the claims companies they make about their products, winning people’s trust isn’t always easy. No matter how good your intentions are, prospects will have their doubts.

When a person gives you their email address, this is your chance to win that trust: share something interesting about your company, entertain them with stories, send relevant content that’ll help them use your product, and offer recommendations that will enhance their experience of your product.

All you have to do is remember that behind every email address, there is a real person with a real life. As a business, you can use emails to share something useful to help them overcome a challenge in their life and add value! 

After all, that’s what a business intends to do, isn’t it?