{"id":7717,"date":"2016-08-08T14:27:59","date_gmt":"2016-08-08T21:27:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rivaliq.com\/blog\/?p=7717"},"modified":"2017-04-04T23:41:56","modified_gmt":"2017-04-04T23:41:56","slug":"email-best-practices-you-shouldnt-forget","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rivaliq.com\/blog\/email-best-practices-you-shouldnt-forget\/","title":{"rendered":"Email Best Practices You Shouldn’t Forget"},"content":{"rendered":"

Successful email marketing is deceptively tricky. We create and send plenty of emails, so it\u2019s easy to get sloppy\u2013even when you are paying close attention to your opens, clicks and CTO. Here are a few email best practices to help prevent those clumsy little mistakes:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Beware huge top images.<\/b><\/p>\n

Large images are, as you may have noticed, a big trend both in websites and, as I have noticed, in email. However, is this image the best way to get your point across? Those huge (300 wide X 400 high) banners are pushing down your compelling content out of eyesight. At a minimum, a headline needs to appear above it. By all means, if you have an epically compelling image, go ahead and super-size it. However, not every message lends itself to a visual, and your words drive action. Use large images wisely.<\/span><\/p>\n

Use the preview text.<\/b><\/h4>\n

I feel very sad when I see emails that have confusing preview text (the text that appears first, in the preview pane of Outlook\/other email application.) You can get very creative there\u2013it\u2019s a huge opportunity to pique interest, and that property should be used in <\/span>every<\/span><\/i> email. Please don\u2019t let these be the first words your audience sees: \u201cClick here to view in a web browser\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

You. You. You. <\/b><\/h4>\n

My personal best practice is have the word \u201cyou\u201d among the first six words in your email. Ideally in the first three. If you\u2019re having trouble getting the word \u201cyou\u201d in there, that\u2019s a big red flag that your copy isn\u2019t audience-centric. What\u2019s in it for <\/span>them<\/i><\/b>? Avoid chest-beating. It\u2019s easy to fall into that trap when your company is filled with pride for the product. Put the customer benefits first, then insert the \u201cwe\u2019re #1\u201d language later, and only if your boss insists (if they\u2019re good at their job, they won\u2019t.)<\/span><\/p>\n

Be a brand or be a person. <\/b><\/h4>\n

That is to say, pay attention to your voice, and let it match your \u201cfrom\u201d name. Don\u2019t be a robot\u2013be energetic (this is direct response, after all), and now\u2019s the time to totally embrace your voice.<\/span><\/p>\n

Button up. <\/b><\/h4>\n

Buttons work. Why? We\u2019ve all been trained to pay attention to buttons (large, colorful) as the sign of our next step. In the time-tested mantra of \u201cdon\u2019t make me think,\u201d make it more than obvious what they should do\u2013in the body of the email.<\/span><\/p>\n

Focus the call-to-action. <\/b><\/h4>\n

One action per email. Include as many links (and the aforementioned button) as you\u2019d like, but make sure they lead the reader to the same place. \u00a0It may be prettier to have only one or two links\/buttons, but let your A\/B testing show how more than one CTA increases click-throughs. Also, marketers without direct-response backgrounds are often tempted to add supplemental information\u2013links to several different pages, videos or other assets. Don\u2019t do it. If other links are necessary, you\u2019re trying to say too much.<\/span><\/p>\n

Relevance is everything.<\/b><\/h4>\n

You may have heard that the biggest driver of an email\u2019s success is the list you use. I\u2019d argue it\u2019s really about the match of the list to your content. Segmented and targeted emails generate 58% of all revenue according to the Direct Marketing Association.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

There\u2019s a lot to remember when it comes to writing good email. A\/B testing has a way of reminding us what works best. And, of course, success often varies according to your company, industry or audience. We hope these are helpful email best practices, and that your next email campaign is a roaring success.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Successful email marketing is deceptively tricky. We create and send plenty of emails, so it\u2019s easy to get sloppy\u2013even when you are paying close attention to your opens, clicks and CTO.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":55,"featured_media":11118,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[19,22,1,26],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nEmail Best Practices You Shouldn't Forget | Rival IQ<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Incorporate these 7 email best practices into your publication routine to help prevent common mistakes email marketers fall victim to every day.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.rivaliq.com\/blog\/email-best-practices-you-shouldnt-forget\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta 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