E-mail optimisation 101
The best thing about automated email campaigns? They only need setting up once. As soon as you’re done, you can rest easy in the knowledge your e-mails are being sent out automatically to consumers that fit your criteria.
What’s so good about that, you ask?
Here’s the 3 main advantages:
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You get to focus on campaign optimisation. Once the campaign is set up, you can devote your time and energy to improving the results. Things like subject lines, pre-headers, A/B tests, analytics, CTAs, etc.
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E-mail automation is easy to set up. With the right tools, automated campaigns require no more time or knowledge to develop than traditional e-mail campaigns.
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Your readers get more relevant content. Automation and segmentation mean you can fully adapt your message to the specific needs of each target audience.
A few examples are birthday offers, welcome emails and abandoned cart messages.
E-mail automation in 6 steps
1. First things first
Don’t opt for the big guns right away. Start small and work your way up. Begin with a welcome e-mail. Optimise it. And then start defining the next campaign, depending on your target group’s knowledge of your brand, available customer data, etc.
2. Align
Always think about the action you want the recipient to take. Is there a landing page you want to send them to? Then you better make sure you design and/or optimise that as well in line with your KPIs.
3. The right tools
Ar you sending out 3 or 4 automated emails with a relatively simple flow? Then Mailchimp, Campaign Monitor or Sendpulse might be your best friend. However, if the setup is more complex and you have a larger database (>200.000 consumers), you might want to opt for Braze or MAPP.
4. Set it up
Finalised the design, copy and development? You’re almost there! Now’s the time to start thinking about timing. If you’re not sure when to send emails, test the waters first and see which times give you the best results!
5. Define
Once you’ve decided on timing, the next step is segmentation. Who gets what? When? And this time, by ‘when’ we’re not talking about the time of day but rather at what stage of your customer journey. A welcome e-mail after signing up? A birthday voucher? A reactivation e-mail after 3 months of inactivity? Etc. Think about the consumer action that will trigger the e-mail. The possibilities are endless!
6. The dreaded opt-out
We get it, it sucks to think someone wants to unsubscribe. But making the opt-out nearly impossible, won’t exactly benefit your business. Quite the opposite, actually. When done properly, the opt-out can yield several benefits.
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Simplifying the unsubscription flow means you’ll be legally compliant.
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Removing consumers who aren’t really interested in your product or service will boost your efficiency
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You’ll be left with a richer, high-quality database full of consumers with genuine potential.
Flow fully automated? Then it’s your time to shine! Time to let your emails do the talking and test anything from content to subject lines, CTA to timing. And don’t stop now! Keep testing and optimizing your campaign to see the performance indicators skyrocket! Just be sure to always analyse those KPIs with a critical eye, constantly on the lookout for ways to improve. For more satisfied customers and better results.
Not sure whether you can handle it? We’re here to help! Reach out!