Email marketing has come a long way in just the past few years, but with all the fancy new functionality brands are utilizing, well-written text seems to have been forgotten in the process. A well-written plain email can perform just as well, if not better, than a highly designed email filled with bells and whistles. No matter how fancy your marketing emails may be, if they’re lacking well-written content, your subscribers will stop opening and start deleting your messages, and your lists will quickly decrease in value.
When it comes to writing a great email, email marketers tend to examine three key areas: purpose, audience and context. In simpler terms, it comes down to the application of the subject line of your message, the message body itself, and its grip on your target audience. Next time you draft a message for a lead campaign or business promotion, ask yourself whether your copy meets all of these guidelines first:
- Effective email content
For almost everyone, time is of the essence, and yet we are all too familiar with email newsletters that waste our time, pitches that annoy us, and the issue of spam. These emails don’t work. What works is giving your email recipients valuable information that’s concise but also gets your message across effectively. Good email content helps to deepen your relationship with your customers.
- Clear and catchy subject lines
Write a subject line that is clear first, and catchy second. In email marketing, clarity should always be your first aim. If you've drafted a clear subject line and you’ve successfully managed to also make it catchy, funny etc. then go for it - but never sacrifice clarity for the entertainment value. This also ties into the context of your email message. As you are attempting to draw customers to read your email, be sure to phrase subject lines according to your email content – what are you trying to get across? How will your recipients react?
- Be brief
One of the worst mistakes an email marketer could make is trying to shove an entire story into one email message. Think about when you open a marketing email in your inbox. Do you read every single word in there? No - It's more likely that you scan for important points so you can understand the message, and decide whether you want to take any action. So if you're sending emails with hundreds of words of copy, you're making it difficult for recipients to decide whether they want to click through. As stated earlier, time is of the essence. If recipients cannot quickly sift through all of the information in your email, then they will most likely delete it.
By following these simple guidelines, any user is made capable of producing email copy that is seen as effective. In remembering the simple factors of purpose, audience and context, your email will be more relatable to the majority of your customers/clients.