Mistake 1: Unsolicited Emails
No one wants to receive a sales email from someone they don’t know. The offense is less if the unsolicited email is purely useful content. It is always a better idea to lead with value in the beginning, when starting your relationship with the prospect.
Because recipients of unsolicited emails mark your email as spam much more than those who are expecting your email, one of the main downsides is your reputation as a sender lowering; and more and more of your emails going straight to the Spam folder and not the recipient’s inbox.
Mistake 2: Not Introducing Yourself Properly
Your email must not go straight into your offer. Especially if it is the first email your subscriber has ever got from you. You need to reaffirm in your first email the following:
- Who you are
- How you got their email address (by signing up, or from a third party)
- Why they should not mark you as spam, and instead add you to their ‘safe senders’ list
The memory span of the consumer is short, so even if they just signed up an hour ago you still have to re-orient them.
Just like in relationships, a proper introduction is necessary. It helps to make you more real to the prospect, and sets the stage for a better relationship.
Mistake 3: Sending Emails to an Old List
The longer you put off sending your first introduction email to your subscriber the lower the chances are of him opening it.
Once someone subscribes they must be sent their first introduction email within twelve hours. Waiting any longer allows time to enter in and they will become disinterested, and their attention will drift off and go elsewhere.
If you do have an old list that has never or rarely been sent to, don’t just send a flash sale email or an offer. Create a new re-introductory email, explaining what happened, and making no assumptions that they even remember your brand.
Mistake 4: Just ‘getting something out’
Never just send something off to your list without careful thought. Television channels don’t do this, magazines don’t do this, and neither should you.
Your email is a communication and should be carefully considered before sending it out to your list. A few of the things you should consider are:
- Are there any PR violations in the email?
- Is the email focused to one message and one CTA?
- Is the email confusing and unclear, as to the purpose?
- Do all the links work?
- Has it been spell-checked?
- Is it actually relevant to your audience?
- Is it congruent and coordinated with your company’s internet marketing strategy?
Mistake #5: Not Knowing the Anatomy
The anatomy is very simple but must be followed, if it is not you will never get any results from your email marketing efforts.
The anatomy:
- The subject sells ‘the open’ (of the email)
- The body/text sells ‘the click’ (of whatever hyperlink you are directing them to, in the email)
- The landing page or wherever you sent them ‘sells the offer’
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