Last updated on August 2nd, 2023
This quick checklist was created to help you assess your email marketing campaigns and look for common mistakes that hold back performance. This way you can optimize your campaigns in an effort for lower bounce rates, higher open rates and better conversions. There is no fool-proof method, but these tactics have worked for many and are a great place to start.
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1. Your List
The quality of your email list is crucial for the success of your campaign. A critical metric that you should always analyze is your bounce rate – which can indicate that your sending practices are bad. If your list contains outdated data, it can lead to nasty consequences, like getting your emails redirected to the SPAM folder. Therefore it is crucial to keep your list clean from all undeliverable emails. Thanks to VipeCloud’s integration with Bouncer, you can remove the potential bounces from your list quickly and free of charge (up to 10k emails in Enterprise plan).
2. Subject Line
Your subject line must be well thought out in order to bring you the highest open rates. On average, professionals receive 120 new emails each day! In order to stand out in a crowded inbox you need an eye-catching title that will tempt the reader to check out your content. However, never mislead them with a deceptive subject line. Nobody likes clickbait! Once the recipient opens your email, there must be relevant content to the title readily apparent within the message. Don’t risk losing the reader’s trust. You might also consider running an A/B test (two different subjects sent to two different sample groups), where you measure which subject lines perform better. VipeCloud makes A/B testing easy for email campaigns.
3. Email Message
Content and length
Keep the content of your message relevant and interesting for your audience. Make it visually appealing and easy to read. Use short paragraphs, bullet points and subheadings. Images should complement the content, and not distract from it, so make sure it is not too big and/or too intense. The length of your copy is also crucial! People tend to skip long emails, so keep your email short (50-150 words) and straight to the point.
Personalization
Personalization is your key to success! According to Accenture, 91% of consumers are more likely to shop with brands who recognize, remember, and provide relevant offers and recommendations. That is why you should send personalized emails! The absolute minimum is adding a first name of the recipient in the copy. Additionally, you can send them personalized reports or recommendations based on previous purchases or interests.
Call to action
When planning your campaign, you should know what you would like to achieve with it, as well as what action your subscriber should take after reading your email. Every campaign that you send should have a specific call-to-action included. No matter if your emails are focused on converting your reader, or on sharing some valuable content – never assume that the reader will understand what the purpose was of the campaign.
4. SPAM Alert!
Another step to take is to check your copy for any content that might trigger spam filters or cause your reader to mark you as spam. Don’t use deceptive subject lines, spam words (free, cash, earn etc.), attachments, excessive caps lock, too many images or exclamation points. You might also test your copy with tools like Mail-tester or SendForensics.
5. Test It!
Always test your email before you hit ‘send’! Send yourself a test email and:
- Verify if all the links are working correctly and lead to the right site
- Check if the layout is displayed correctly both on desktop and mobile
- Proofread the copy, and look for any typos or grammatical errors (you can use Grammarly for spellcheck)
- Check if the ‘reply to’ address is right and if the merge tags are displaying the correct information (i.e. name)
There are many factors that might impact the success of an email campaign, but by following the steps in this checklist you can get off on the right foot, and hopefully boost the performance of future email campaigns!
