Email Marketing Do's and Don'ts for 2018

As one of the oldest digital marketing methods out there, email marketing often doesn't get the attention it deserves.

However, the truth remains that despite all of the new and exciting methods of digital communication available to us, nothing has dethroned email marketing in terms of its return on investment (ROI) potential.

That ROI is the reason good marketers keep coming back to email – it simply delivers results. For every $1 spent on an email marketing campaign, marketers earn their brands an average of $38 back. Additionally, customer acquisition via email is much more effective than attempts using social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter.

Nevertheless, while email itself is old technology, marketers need to find fresh, modern ways to use it in order to guarantee success in 2018 and beyond. As people's relationship with technology changes, so too do their expectations concerning that technology, and marketers need to catch on to that to be successful.

Update Your Email Marketing Campaign for 2018

While the basics of email marketing have not changed, some all-important details have. Pay attention to these critical do's and don'ts for your email marketing campaign this year:

DO offer something of value. This can be an eBook, in-store discounts, or links to informative content on your website. Your emails need to stand out from the crowd and the best way to do that is to offer value.

DON'T forget mobile. For several years now, the majority of people read most of their emails on mobile devices. That number is growing, and the multitude of devices and displays on the market means you need to use modern email software to ensure that your messages display correctly no matter what devices your recipients use.

DO keep it simple. In a desktop-dominated environment, you could get away with large, beautiful brochures and text-heavy emails. Those times are long past – keep your messages short and to-the-point so that an on-the-move businessman can quickly skim the content on a smartphone and make a snap decision.

DO personalize. Just using the recipient's name in the subject line improves your open rate by 26 percent, on average. Imagine what happens when you use modern email marketing software to personalize body content as well. Doing this at-scale requires segmenting and categorizing recipient groups, but it's well worth it.

DON'T stop split-testing. A successful email marketing campaign is more like a marathon than a 100-meter sprint. Don't stop A/B testing different approaches just because you've begun to see the first signs of success – keep refining subject lines, button sizes, and specific word choices to optimize your campaign.

DO use drip email marketing. Instead of blasting off a single sales brochure to brand-new mailing list recipients and your oldest customers alike, use a drip email campaign to send a sequential series of emails introducing each new lead in a consistent manner. Drip email is much more effective for lead nurturing than ad hoc email campaigns.

Leverage Transactional Emails for Relevancy and Timing

With almost 270 billion emails being sent everyday, it's more important than ever to remain relevant and consistent so that your company avoids the dreaded junk mail filter. Fortunately, there is a reliable and surprisingly simple trick for doing this – relying on transactional emails.

Transactional emails include purchase receipts, shipping notifications, password resets, and billing confirmations. In an environment where getting to the customer at the right place and the right time is the most important aspect of marketing, there is no better place or time to address your customers than when they need something.

Typically, developers simply use standard templates when sending off these automated emails. Most developers are more interested in the actions that trigger the email than in the email itself – but marketers who seize these emails as key opportunities to build rapport with customers have much to gain.

Transactional emails have a much higher open rate than any other email class, and the reason is simple. Customers need the data they contain. Whether it's a tracking number or a link to receive a new password, marketers are essentially guaranteed that transactional emails will get read. Use that knowledge to encourage brand loyalty and get your email recipients to read all of your emails.