In the previous post, I talked about how you can increase engagement with your emails and to follow up in this post I will be talking about how to encourage your audience to interact with your emails and some of the best ways to convert them into customers.
STRATEGY, SCHEDULE AND CONSISTENCY
We all receive a huge amount of emails every day, and mostly they get deleted because they either don’t provide any value to us or maybe we haven’t even subscribed to them. A lot of emails I receive seem to be very sporadic. The obstacle that this presents us with is because of the sheer amount of emails, we need to make sure that our content in the inbox is recognisable and consistent. If someone signs up to a monthly newsletter, for example, we need to make sure they get it as close to the same day as possible every month, otherwise, it will get lost in the noise. The best way to build trust with your viewers is to have a set plan, also known as a strategy. Strategies include metrics such as goals and targets you want to hit, schedules of what and when things will be deployed such as the monthly newsletter previously mentioned. As much information as possible should be considered that can help you grow your database of contacts because the more contacts you have, the further your next campaign will be able to reach.
CALL TO ACTIONS, DON’T LEAVE THEM GUESSING, GIVE THEM DIRECTION
Call to actions or CTA’s are an essential part of every email campaign. They usually come in the form of “buy now” or “read more” buttons, the main purpose of these is to act as a bridge between the customer’s inbox and your website. Once a CTA is clicked, the viewer is sent to a landing page on your company’s site for a product or service that was featured in the email.
The ideal scenario goes something like this:
- The customer receives an email.
- The email contains all of the information on the product.
- The customer wants to find out more or purchase the product.
- The CTA button is clicked and they land on your website.
- They purchase the product or service you are offering.
Although this is ideal, there are a few things that I have seen companies do wrong that really affects the customer’s journey and could lead to losing a sale.
The first mistake companies make is that they seem to hide the CTA away, like putting a single button at the bottom of a long email. Or, they add it into the text and don’t make it stand out enough. To counteract this, make sure your links are visible. I always advise adding it to a button rather than in the text. Also try more than one CTA to the same destination, especially in long emails.
The text on CTA buttons is another important point. Make it precise and to the point, so people don’t misinterpret it. I have seen some emails that have two lines of text on a button. Most people wouldn’t read all of the text so keep them short and easy to understand
Another mistake I see often in emails is multiple CTA’s. Unlike in my first point where there are multiple CTA’s linking to the same place, some companies seem to add in multiple CTA’s for different products and services. This is fine if you have multiple services, however, try and keep it to a minimum and make sure you clearly lay them out in a way that is obvious at a glance what button is for what service.
BONUS: LANDING PAGES, ALWAYS HAVE SOMEWHERE FOR YOUR AUDIENCE TO GO
Following on from the CTA section of this article, I would always suggest having a dedicated landing page for your campaign to land on. This gives relevance to your customer and reinforces trust. I have seen many links in the past that lead to the homepage of a site or a product page that has been recycled. A dedicated page for a new product or a well designed category page works wonders and will ultimately help to convert more visitors into customers.
Similar to the design of your email, make sure your landing page has the following important elements:
- A strong, relevant headline that makes the visitor want to read further.
- A sub-headline or USPs (Unique selling points) that support the headline and the message of the email.
- A supporting image or video that explains the purpose of the landing page in under a minute.
- Social proof such as customer logos, testimonials, etc.
- A call to action that converts your subscribers into customers.
Consistency is key so make sure to keep in mind that the message that you convey with your email should match the one on your landing page. One more thing to note with your landing page is to not add more information or products than necessary. Keep the focus on the subject of the email and try not to lead the customer astray by including different CTA’s or a tonne of related products.
