5 Tips for Increasing Your Email Deliverability
Introduction
Good email deliverability is a critical part of your marketing strategy. It helps you connect with your customers, build trust and promote brand awareness. The more people open and click on your emails, the higher their lifetime value will be.
So how do you get there? Here are five tips for improving email deliverability:
Focus on good content.
You want your email to be read, right? Of course, you do! The best way to ensure that your emails get opened is to make sure they're well-formatted and easy to read. There are a few tips that can help you achieve this goal:
Make sure the text is readable. Use a font size of at least 10pt, or use an image or two instead of words if necessary (but do not use them too often). Also, make sure that the color contrast between text and background is sufficient (at least 4.5) so that people who read with impaired vision can still see it clearly.
Stick with conversational language instead of a formal writing style (like "you"). This makes it more personal and less intimidating for readers who don't know each other very well yet—but it also means there's no room for error when it comes time to reply back with questions/comments!
Avoid Purchased Lists
One of the best ways you can ensure that your email reaches the inbox is to avoid purchasing lists. Purchased lists are often filled with invalid email addresses and other problems that will cause it to be flagged as spam.
The people on purchased lists have not opted-in to receive emails from you, so they are less likely to open or click on your emails.
They may not have heard of you, which means they aren't interested in what you're selling and won’t respond to your message.
Rethink Giveaways
Giveaways are a great way to get people’s attention. But the point of giveaways is not to build email list subscribers, it’s to build loyal customers who like your brand and trust what you do. If you run a giveaway just because it’s trendy or fun, then yes, you may increase your subscriber count but at the same time, you might also increase unsubscribe rates and end up with a bigger headache down the road when those people never buy anything from you again.
What if instead of always trying to collect email addresses for future marketing efforts (and probably increasing unsubscribe rates) by offering giveaways that aren't relevant or useful for your target audience? Why don't we focus on giving away things that actually help people solve their problems? Giveaways are just one-way businesses can bolster lead generation; there are many others!
For example:
A free ebook download could be an excellent giveaway if it contains useful information about how someone can achieve their goals faster than previously thought possible.
Exclusive access offers have been proven time and time again as effective ways of building trust between businesses and prospects by offering them something special first before anyone else gets their hands on them.
Only email people who want to hear from you.
It's not enough to just gather a list of email addresses; the best way to ensure that your emails reach the inbox is to only send them to those who have opted-in for them. There are two ways that this can be done:
A double opt-in process, which requires recipients to click on a link in an email in order for their contact information to be added to your database and used as part of future campaigns. This method helps you avoid sending messages out into the world unnecessarily, as every person on your list has confirmed that they would like messages from you sent directly through their inboxes.
An appended lead capture form. This allows users who enter their information into a form hosted by your website or landing page (such as an online survey) before being redirected back over towards another location where further instructions are given regarding how they will receive future communications (like a newsletter).
Better email deliverability leads to more opens and clicks.
Email deliverability is the percentage of emails that reach their intended recipients. It’s important because it directly impacts how many people see your message, which means it also impacts how many people click on your links and buy from you. The better your email deliverability, the higher number of subscribers who open (and read) your emails—which ultimately increases sales, customer loyalty, and brand awareness.
Conclusion
In a nutshell, the best way to improve email deliverability is by creating great content and sending it to people who want to hear from you. By focusing on these elements, an organization can dramatically increase the number of people that receive their emails successfully and read them as well.
Need help improving your deliverability?
Drop me a line.