Email Marketing continues to be a very relevant tool in the marketing world. Although it might seem like other strategies are taking over the world of digital marketing, emails are holding up pretty well.
So you know what they say “Don’t fix it if it ain’t broken”. There is no reason to change or exclude something that works well. Statistics also work in favor of email marketing. The average expected ROI (return on investment) for the following years is 40$ for each dollar invested in email marketing. That means that 100$ invested in this tool will eventually make a 4,000$ return.
The problem when using email marketing in 2023 is that, what used to work five years ago, doesn’t anymore. For this type of marketing to continue being successful it must be constantly updated to keep up with the evolving trends in the field.
People’s inboxes are overflowing with marketing emails, so your emails must stick out if you want them to make a return on investment. To come out of the fog your emails need to provide highly valuable, relevant information and content.
How to do this? Stick with us as we offer you a list of the ten most creative email marketing ideas that will increase your ROI.
10 Best Email Marketing Ideas
It’s not easy to reinvent and revitalize something that has been used for so long. You would think that most of the things that could’ve been done were done so far. However, you would be surprised to hear how tiny little things can make a big change in the whole situation. Here are our top ten picks on how to keep things fresh.
1. Spice up the ‘just checking in’ emails
People’s inboxes are now full of follow-up emails coming from different sources but with a very common purpose. They usually all have a hidden request and agenda behind the ‘just to check in’ subject. So instead of being monotonous and boring with the regular follow-up emails try some other just checking in email alternatives.
The variety of choices to what you can do with an email like this is quite large. Most of the options include turning your email into something more tangible and opening up with more precise content. Some of the alternatives include:
- Offer a gift or a discount
- Invitation to an event or opening
- Invitation to an online event, live video, or webinar
- Send them a relevant blog post or information that would grab their attention
- Send them simple instructions for a relevant product
All of these can be tailored to suit the needs of your company and your customers. The main point is that you remain subtle with the message and the number of emails you send and leave them wanting more.
2. Personalize, personalize, personalize…
Most registration forms require personal data such as first and last names. So why not use this data to make your landing page more personalized and actually talk to the one who receives the email?
Using first names in the email subject also works wonders for increasing your ROI. Here are some great simple examples.
This is very important since 47% of the email recipients open emails based on the subject alone. It might sound silly since we all know what the email will probably be about in the end, but still, once you see your name written down it subconsciously makes a difference.
3. Segment your subscribers
It’s 2023 and segmenting your subscribers is taken very seriously. It’s not about the number of sign-ups but it’s about the targeted audience that is going to open the email and act upon it. Targeted emails lead to a higher number of opened emails and lower rates of unsubscribers. This means sending emails that subscribers are interested in.
In order to efficiently do this it’s best to ask for more specific information while you’re asking for a visitor’s email address. At this point, you can add a little survey that will give you an idea of their purchase preferences. It will make a world of difference and spare you the time and energy of sending emails to people who aren’t really interested.
4. Customize your CTA
A CTA (Call to Action) is a marketing term used for a design whose purpose is to trigger immediate reaction and response to achieve sales. A CTA should be included in all marketing emails, no questions asked.
However, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all formula for this. Your CTA should be tailored according to the type of email and the response you want to encourage.
For example, product promotion emails should have a CTA which is very easy to identify and should immediately link to the shopping page. In a newsletter on the other hand, the focus is on the content first, and the CTA should be subtle and towards the end.
So make sure you customize different CTAs for different purposes in order to achieve the highest ROI.
5. Optimize for mobile phone users
A staggering 81% of people open emails on their phones. So what used to mean sending emails to be open and actually read, utilized, and revisited on laptops and PCs now has to be transformed into a mobile phone version that really works.
Subscribers must be able to click the links, open the pictures, fill in the forms, whatever they are asked to do from their mobile phones.
This is not to forget all other devices. The same email has to work perfectly on a computer or a tablet. It’s just that preference is given to a mobile phone-friendly version.
6. Visualization is everything
People are now more drawn to the visual effects than the actual content they’re reading. Good visualization is everything. It’s what will make the subscriber want to stop and read the email and even do something as a consequence (buy the product, visit the website, download the document, etc).
So, the answer is very simple. Invest in graphics! Putting together an excellent marketing email really requires professional graphics that will draw and keep your customers attention. It’s an investment that will be worth it in the long run.
7. Gate downloadable content
It’s not as easy as you may think to get people to give you their personal data and email. This is however the first and inevitable step into achieving communication and getting potential leads.
So luring them in with a symbolic prize once they fill in their info is a good way to ensure people are subscribing. This is called gating downloadable content and it means that for people to download certain content they first need to fill in specific forms. Here is a good example of gating content.
8. Send sneak peeks and announcements
Make your audience feel special and relevant by sending them a sneak peek of a product that’s yet to be released. Boost excitement with pictures and information that reveal just a little bit about the product to make them want to hear more.
9. Remind about rewards and program milestones
Emails are a great way to remind customers about rewards and program milestones. Starbucks do a great job with this and they know people love having something to look forward to. They offer one of the best loyalty programs.
This type of email should include visuals such as graphs, lists, or anything that helps subscribers easily keep track of their progress.
10. Timing is key
It’s not enough to just compose the perfect email, and find the right people to send it to, but the frequency and timing of the emails is a whole philosophy on its own. There has been a lot of research done on the topic and the conclusions are as follows:
- The best day to send an email is Tuesday, if you want to send it twice a week then Tuesday and Thursday
- The worst day to send an email is Saturday
- The best hours of the day are 8-11 a.m and 4-6 p.m
If you have any specific client groups or types of email please do more thorough research and adjust the timing accordingly.
Over to you
We hope that you feel more confident now to use email as a digital marketing form. We also hope that we’ve managed to assure you that email is not dead and is here to stay if done properly and updated to serve your needs.
It’s now up to you to use these ten remarkable and easily applicable ideas to improve your ROI through email marketing.
