If you’re new to email marketing, then let me say this: getting started is always the hardest part.
Obviously, you know how to write and send emails. But when you’re sending emails to entire lists of people, it can be overwhelming. Which is why we’re answering these FAQs – to help you navigate email marketing like a pro.
So let’s get started!
How often should I send my emails?
Bare minimum: once a week. You’ve got to commit to at least once a week. Otherwise, there’s really no point in emailing at all.
Having said that, when you get a new prospect, you need to nurture them a little bit more often. Because…if they’re ready to move forward, they may need a little nudge from you. If they’re not ready, you want to have that relationship firmly in place before you drop to only one email a week.
Here’s an email plan I like to use for new prospects:
Immediately: Deliver whatever they opted in to receive
Wait 1 Day Then Send: A reminder about the opt-in
Wait 2 More Days Then Send: A message about why your products and/or services are going to help this person
Wait 3 More Days Then Send: A special offer (discount to buy now, consultation, etc.)
Wait 2 More Days Then Send: A reminder about the special offer
Wait 1 More Day Then Send: A final reminder about the special offer and a breakdown of what your prospect can expect from you moving forward.
Now, it’s up to you. If one email a week is the most you can create, send one email a week. If you can send 2-3 valuable emails every week, then try that.
You can always change how often you’re communicating with your prospects.
What day should I send my emails?
Our target market is other business owners. We get the very best responses when we send emails on Tuesday morning at 10:00 PT. If you’re a B2B company, we recommend the same time. Wednesday mornings are dismal. And if we send emails on Friday, we get the same average open rates, but over 3 days time. Monday mornings rarely get opened. And we’ve never extensively tried Thursdays or Sundays.
If you’re a BtoC company, the statistics show this time frame works for you as well. Send your emails Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday mornings around 10:00 am (your time).
The nice thing about “when” is that you can always change it. If you’re not getting the open and click rates you were hoping for, change your day.
How long should my emails be?
If it’s a transactional email (appointment reminder, invite to a webinar, etc.) keep it short. Deliver your information, give them a few reasons to take action, and then end the email.
If it’s a relationship-based email, it can be as long as you’d like. If you have a story to tell, tell it. If you’ve learned life lessons and want to pass them along, do so. Don’t worry about the word count.
The only real measurement for how long your emails should be is whether or not you keep the reader engaged. Your email should end before their mind starts to wander.
What should I write about?
This one is a balancing act. Because your emails need to accomplish 3 goals:
- Build the relationship with your contact.
- Educate your contact and set yourself apart as an expert.
- Get your contact to take action.
If you’re emailing your list 3 times a week, then the answer is easy, write each kind of email once a week.
If you only email, say, once a week, then your month might look more like this:
Week 1: Relationship Builder
Week 2: Educate
Week 3: Invite to Take Action
Week 4: Educate
In your relationship-building emails, you could:
- Share lessons you’ve learned (as relates to your industry)
- Talk about why you do what you do
- Do a video tour of your office
- Include bios on you and/or your employees
For the educational emails, you could:
- Teach some of the tips and tricks of your trade
- Share success stories from your clients
- Create a resource that would benefit your contacts
- Link to a webinar, blog post or article
Finally, your action-based emails could:
- Get your contacts signed up for a consultation
- Promote a sale
- Take part in a challenge
- Sign up for a free trial
If it’s valuable, write about it. And don’t worry too much about getting the perfect message written.
What should my subject line be?
Subject lines are the most difficult part of writing an email. Because the subject line alone determines if the email is even opened.
Here are a few rules I like to follow:
- Be clear – don’t make people guess what your email contains
- Include a benefit – help your contacts see the value in opening your email
- Call out your target market – you can do that by using words your prospects would likely use
- Keep it short – short subject lines tend to have higher open rates
- Using numbers often increases open rates
- Use emojis (occasionally) to draw more attention to your subject line
Here are a few powerful examples for you:
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The report you requested
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Don’t overthink it. But it never hurts to write up a few (around 20) subject lines. And then decide which one is most likely to be opened. If you have the ability to split test your subject lines, do that too.
What should my open rates and click rates be?
There is only one place you can go to find the answer to this question: Mailchimp
Mailchimp compiles averages from each of their customers’ data. Then, each year, they compile that information into a report. And you can look at their stats to determine averages for your industry.
According to Mailchimp, hobbies and government get the highest open rates. While daily deals get the lowest.
Go compare your industry. Hopefully, it will reassure you that you’re doing awesome!
What should I do if someone unsubscribes?
It’s never fun to see your hard-won prospects disappear. But each “unsubscribe” is a benefit to you.
First of all, the person was nice enough to jump off your list without calling you a spammer. (Yep, a lot of people out there will hit that SPAM button just to get off an email list.)
Secondly, that person is weeding themselves out. Instead of spending months nurturing a relationship that would never benefit you, you can focus on people who are your target market.
Bottom line…don’t feel too bad about seeing them go. It’s better for both of you if they choose to move on.
