The most successful and effective of email marketing campaigns carefully consider their audience, goals and (when applicable) ROI, then track the results to build on best practices over time. And while doing all of the above is important with all email campaign elements, there are a few types of emails that can be especially impactful over the holiday season.
As the holiday season nears full swing, take the time to review and optimize these three types of emails — and be sure to take special effort to ensure that they are optimized for mobile devices:
- Welcome emails — Research shows that open rates for welcome emails are four times higher than for other email types. These emails, sent out after a consumer creates an account or joins your mailing list, help you kick off the personal connection with your customer, which in turn can have a significant impact on their customer lifetime value (how much they buy over time). They also offer an easy opportunity to inform your customers about any existing loyalty programs, promo codes/coupons, recommendations, etc.
A few tips for your welcome emails:
– The timing of this email is important. It should be sent immediately after a new customer subscribes or makes a purchase.
– Welcome emails are most effective if efforts are taken to make them stand out, and they should ask customers to engage in some way (perhaps including a call to action linking to your online store).
– For added impact, consider giving customers an incentive to act (a coupon, exclusive offer, etc.).
– Lastly, during the holidays, it’s nice to give customers who’ve made a purchase an estimated shipping/delivery date or, even better, to provide real-time shipping updates. The post-purchase welcome email offers a great opportunity to provide the estimated delivery date or to get the real-time updates started.
- Promotional emails — When sent ahead of time, these emails offer the opportunity to give your holiday shoppers advance insights and expectations regarding what promotions you will run. And, whether sent early or during your promotion, when these emails are straightforward and include a large call to action, personalization and fun, holiday-themed images, they’re more likely than the typical email to engage your customers and prime them to purchase. Elements to consider incorporating in these emails during the holiday season include shipping info, gift card options, gift-wrapping solutions (if available) and customer service contact info.
- Cart-abandonment emails — Especially during the holidays, customers often leave items in their cart without purchasing them, often due to perceived high shipping costs or after finding a better deal elsewhere. To trigger these customers, it’s crucial that you address their needs.
– Shipping: Offer free shipping after specified conditions have been met (for example, free shipping on orders over $100). If you can’t offer free shipping, consider increasing the product price to offset free-shipping costs, offering free shipping within certain geographic areas, or including a surcharge for expedited shipping to offset the free-shipping costs.
– Better deal: Try to create a “fear of missing out” (FOMO) by using urgency language such as, “Hurry up, before your item is sold out!” or similar. In addition, you can create added appeal by using influencers, by highlighting positive social media reviews, and by bundling products together to create a deal that no one can pass up.
Could your business use some expert guidance in improving your email marketing campaigns? At The Brandon Agency, our fully integrated marketing firm boats a team of marketing specialists who can cover all the bases in one place — including email marketing, brand strategy, creative, interactive, social media, analytics, SEO, conversion rate optimization and more. To get started with a strategy tailored to boost the performance of your digital campaigns, contact us today.
Ed Lammon
Managing Editor of Agency Content
Ed Lammon is the Editorial Director of Blog and Long-Form Content for Brandon. A native of Enterprise, AL (home of the world’s only monument to an insect), Ed is a 1998 Journalism graduate of Auburn University (War Eagle!). When not working, he enjoys travel, hiking, telling dad jokes, and hanging out with friends and family (particularly around campfires, at concerts and at tailgates).