On a quest to grow your customer base? Email marketing is an asset in a marketer’s toolbox which, if approached in the right way, can help you reach out to your customers on your terms.
If you’re not already investing in an email marketing strategy, there’s no better time than the present.
According to polling from Econsultancy carried out in 2016, both agency professionals and in-house marketers most frequently stated email marketing as a tactic able to provide a strong ROI, at 80% and 73%, respectively. This may be true, but for an email marketing strategy to really produce results, you need to back it up with a chunky email subscriber list, powered by creative, original content ideas. Read on for great insight into doing exactly this.
As experts in copywriting services, here are some useful tips to build your content ideas.
Make use of website pop-ups
When encouraging people to sign up to your email list, live by the mantra “less is more”. The premise is simple – keep your content clear and concise and leave prospective leads willing to give you their email address. Do this by telling them exactly what they stand to gain by signing up, then offer them something to make their heads turn, whether 10% off their next order or unique offers delivered straight to their inbox.
Virgin Holidays show how it’s done by opting for a clean, well-presented pop-up box, punching home the key benefits of signing up to their mailing list:
This is a great example of “less is more” in action, both in terms of language and visuals. Clever use of the phrase ‘Don’t miss out’ elicits a sense of urgency which is swiftly supported by the benefits of signing up.
American owned Pier1 Imports have also opted to use a pop-up box to grow their list of email subscribers, offering them 10% off their next order:
Notice both Virgin Holidays and Pier1 have aligned the overlays with their brand’s colour scheme, pulling the eye towards the CTA. Pier1 have also cleverly opted for a single field, which clearly states the desired action ‘Enter your email address’.
If you’re keen to trial pop-ups but have no idea where to start, don’t panic. There are a number of tools available to help you build anything from pop-ups to responsive emails. Email marketing connoisseurs Benchmark Email help you create pop-ups and embeddable forms according to your specifications, amongst a range of other elements.
Go social
Over the years, social media platforms have been working hard to develop tools specifically designed to help businesses gain email subscribers. Facebook Ads are just one example of this. Used correctly, they’re a great way of targeting your audience based on demographics, behaviours or contact information before you go on to grab their attention with a series of great ads.
While Facebook Ads can be an effective way to gather leads, it’s by no means a simple ‘throw a bit of text and some images into a post’ scenario. There’s a formula involved in putting a successful ad together, backed up by a suite of Facebook-owned reporting tools. The rules are here are very much the same as for standard pop-ups, and include:
- cutting waffle out of your copy
- clearly explaining the benefits of providing an email address
- offering something completely irresistible in return
It’s vital to first research your audience and competitors to help guide your campaigns. From there, test, test and test some more to see what works. Gather your results and refer to them to help measure the success of future campaigns and set objectives.
Don’t sit in traffic. Drive it to your blog instead.
Blogs are a brilliant way of building your email database. Unlike social media posts, content posted to your blog won’t disappear into the ether the day after you post it. Harness the power of blogging by ensuring your content is fresh and relevant, with a design that’s eye-catching and user-friendly.
Blog tip #1
Carefully position multiple opt-in points throughout your blog so readers are aware you have a mailing list. An opt-in point could be a form requesting an email address, positioned in your blog’s sidebar, for example.
Blog tip #2
Use visuals to offer discount codes or freebies in return for joining your mailing list. Visuals are a great way to emphasise coherence with your website, so remember to use your brand’s signature colour scheme and brand style throughout.
The internet is teaming with tools to help you grow your email subscriber list, from pop-ups and embedded forms to blogs, making it easier than ever to drive engagement and capture email leads. Pair these tools with relevant, well-positioned content to watch your subscriber list grow.
WooContent is an expert in providing brilliantly written, original content. We have a range of expert writers from financial copywriters to insurance copywriters for businesses with high expectations.
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