Have a product, an event, or just something you want to say? Email marketing can be a great way to get your messages out there. But - from the blank page with a cursor blinking to the technical steps needed to send - the whole process can be a bit intimidating. Get yourself psyched up for the task with this confidence-boosting list of 10 things to think about when it comes to your B2B email marketing.
Here are 6 “dos” and 4 “don’ts” to consider as you get your email campaigns underway.
Don’t wait until everything’s just right. Start where you are, use what you have, do what you can. The earlier you’re collecting learnings, the more improved your content will be by the time you reach the bigger audiences.
Do dot your Is and cross your Ts: You know, use a proper email platform, send only to people you have explicit permission to contact, offer the requisite unsubscribe option and make sure it functions, plus get the legal stuff right in your footer. This is actually all law, and you can get in major trouble if you don’t abide by it.
Do recognize the importance of your subject line. Keeping it short and interesting - perhaps by introducing a numbered list or asking a question - will get people to open your email. We’ve got more tips for that over here. Don’t bother with boilerplate content titles or business names taking up space - you should rely on your “send from” name to create recognition. Use the subject line for content that counts.
Don’t overthink your email content. So much of the stuff I read today - on websites, emails, articles, and blogs - feels like it’s written by people who are trying to impress me. The writing is verbose, the tone is overly uptight, and the whole thing reads as unrelatable and inaccessible. Do you know what writing draws me in best? The kind that feels like it was written by a friend. B2B doesn’t have to mean formal. Write what you want to say “the easy way” and refine it from there but stop before it reads like a doctoral dissertation.
Do have someone proofread it. Doesn’t have to be a professional editor (although I’m here if you need me). Any decently literate friend or colleague will do. Have them check your work through two lenses:
The lens of “does this make sense?” - note that if they’re further removed from the subject you’re describing, they’ll be an even better fit for this job.
The lens of “typos, grammar errors, and ‘hey this sounds weird’” - basically, make sure it’s passable for a broader audience.
Don’t forget a related CTA: A call to action (CTA) is probably the most important part of your email. After all, why send anything if it’s not driving your recipients to action? You’re likely linking to whatever resource, product, event, or news your email is sharing. Keep the wording concise and to the point and place the link somewhere visually distinct so it’s easy for readers to find and to click. We've got some CTA examples here.
Do make sure the right things are clickable: The main body of a single-topic email should have just one or two links (your CTA and maybe one other thing). But the number one most clicked item in emails is almost always images, so take the time to make sure your headers, icons, and imagery are all linking somewhere good (probably your homepage).
Do send your email at the right time and on the right day: If you’ve sent emails before, you can check past performance for ideas about what’s likely to work for your audience. If there isn’t enough past data to go by, pick a combination that looks good according to outside data. Research suggests midweek and during business hours is a good place to start.
Don’t forget to look at your email blast data. It can be tempting to call your job done once the email has reached readers’ inboxes, but a whole new round of fun begins when there’s insights to learn from. Your metrics become useful about 24 hours after your send and they’re “fully baked” within 4-7 days. Take a look at delivery rates, open rates, and click rates to glean everything there is to be learned.
Do build on learnings and try, try again. Whether your first send was a case of “at first you don’t succeed” or “wow that went even better than I thought,” know that there’s always room to improve. Take the insights and learnings you got from this deployment (whether it was your first send or your millionth) and use them to build out your future approach.
Of course, I could keep writing about email marketing forever (and I suppose I will, given that this is my career). But I hope this is enough to get your inspiration juices flowing.
Want to talk with the team here at Wheels Up Collective about your approach? Drop us a line. We’re always excited to chat.
