Typically all of us want some new electronic mail advertising and marketing concepts to gas our digital advertising and marketing inspiration.
E-mail has cemented its place as one of many worthwhile advertising and marketing channels, boasting 3x greater conversion charges than social media advertising and marketing. Tactful, personalised emails assist eCommerce manufacturers scale back deserted carts, enhance buyer retention, drive repeat purchases, and discover new alternatives for model development.
However consistently producing high-value emails can exhaust your creativity. All of us undergo dry spells the place it looks like we’ve had our final nice electronic mail thought (till the following one pops up on the most sudden time).
Typically, you simply want some inventive inspiration to get your mind gears turning once more. This roundup of 10 electronic mail advertising and marketing concepts seems at just a few new and established favorites which will get you began. Bear in mind, inspiration is the leaping off level and there are many alternatives to mix or construct on what you see.
“Clients don’t learn” is one thing of an exaggerated inside joke in retail. And whereas it could be removed from the reality, leveraging visuals and media is an effective way to seize your audiences’ consideration and brighten up creatives.
Understanding your viewers helps you incorporate extra related, partaking media codecs. For instance, in case your prospects reply nicely to entertaining media, humorous gifs might give them fun. When you’re working a marketing campaign, corresponding to for a brand new product launch, you may need to contemplate media for presenting important info. Movies and infographics make it simpler to digest key info. For instance, you could possibly embrace a graphic illustrating your product’s key options, or a brief video that showcases it in motion.
Now, if you’re going the visible route, bear in mind so as to add within the alt-text for all the pieces. You need individuals to see your message whether or not or not they’ve obtained pictures blocked of their electronic mail view by default. One thing so simple as “the best-looking advertising and marketing group you’ve ever seen says ‘hello’” can get individuals to click on and see the picture.
Be playful when your model permits and take into consideration what may make somebody click on. The one factor to keep away from is making a promise. By no means make a promise you’ll be able to’t hold and don’t create false hope. Maintain issues uplifting and light-weight to keep away from that lure.
2. Ship solutions
Answering your prospects’ questions improves their experiences and strengthens their relationship along with your model. It’s your approach of showcasing that you simply’re conscious of their questions and issues, and are proactive about answering them.
The most effective FAQ campaigns are knowledge pushed, which implies don’t depend on what you assume prospects need to know. As an alternative, examine and discover out what they’re already asking or hoping to be taught extra about. When you obtain a help request or a query from one buyer, there’s likelihood that many different prospects have the same question. Many purchasers draw back from opening help tickets or asking for assist, so those who attain out to you mirror a bigger pool of inquiry.
Past help requests, you too can leverage zero-party knowledge (like polls or surveys) and scour social media for questions your viewers is asking. Incorporating your findings into an efficient FAQ electronic mail marketing campaign may help your marketing campaign succeed. Many FAQ objects will be repurposed into social and different content material, too. This implies your electronic mail marketing campaign will be changed into visuals and a social marketing campaign that reinforces your model.
Stick with solutions which can be related in your viewers and their wants. When you’ve obtained established prospects, then a primary FAQ is probably not useful as an electronic mail marketing campaign. As an alternative, dive deep and provide superior help. When you’ve break up your electronic mail checklist to phase out new subscribers, they are often began at an earlier stage or extra primary factor.
3. The retargeting ‘You left one thing in your cart’ electronic mail
Deserted carts are the bane of eCommerce conversions, and present-day abandonment charges are unnervingly excessive. The traditional “You left one thing in your cart” emails stay one of the vital efficient technique of combating deserted carts—they may help you recuperate greater than 10% of these gross sales on common.
You will get inventive along with your abandonment emails and even embrace incentives to extend click-throughs. For instance, right here’s an attention-grabbing cart restoration electronic mail by ThinkGeek:
This electronic mail is fine-tuned to the model’s voice and purchaser’s persona, catering to its “geek” viewers. It’s inventive and succinct with out compromising on conciseness, and evokes the reader to take motion. Almost each eCommerce retailer has this electronic mail now. Don’t fear about setting your self other than the competitors with it; as an alternative you need to use this to bolster your model and get prospects to recollect why they visited you within the first place.
4. Ship personalised invitations
You’ll be able to’t go mistaken with electronic mail advertising and marketing concepts that enable you construct a deeper relationship along with your subscriber, and that’s the energy of personalised electronic mail advertising and marketing.
Are you launching a brand new product quickly, or perhaps internet hosting an informative webinar? If that’s the case, you’re probably seeking to maximize attendance, and electronic mail advertising and marketing is nice for driving up the headcount.
When designing an invite electronic mail, personalization is essential to get the very best response. And whereas graphics and visuals may help you catch prospects’ consideration, you’ll want stellar copy to entice them to attend.
In your electronic mail copy, some vital factors to cowl are:
- Why your prospects ought to attend (particularly if this can be a Zoom occasion)
- What do they get out of it
- What to anticipate from the occasion
- The webinar’s breakdown and which codecs are going for use (e.g. reside video or recordings, too)
- Who the audio system are
- The necessities, together with the time, matter, date, and a hyperlink to hitch
Right here’s an instance of an informative webinar invitation electronic mail by Litmus:
The e-mail has concise, compelling copy that clearly communicates the worth prospects will get from the webinar, and the decision to motion is outstanding and actionable. Moreover, the footnote encourages readers to enroll even when they will’t attend, as a result of they will nonetheless obtain worth. This further contact is an effective way of exhibiting your viewers that you simply’ll go to nice lengths so as to add worth to their lives.
5. Educate one thing
Bear in mind when a McDonald’s fries hack went viral? A Twitter person identified that the fries field’s flap could possibly be used as a ketchup holder. Did that improve fries gross sales? In all probability not, but it surely was nice publicity. And shoppers responded with nice curiosity to the hack.
You’ll be able to domesticate the same curiosity in your personal merchandise by instructing customers in your emails. When you’ve got some hacks or tricks to share, contemplate compiling them in a inventive format and sharing them along with your electronic mail checklist. The hacks you share don’t even must be product-specific options. Completely different use circumstances might present your viewers with each worth and leisure. For instance, if you happen to’re promoting kitchen home equipment, you’ll be able to share recipes that customers could make along with your merchandise.
And the latest pandemic taught us that generally you might want to train prospects about broader points. That may cowl well being and security, firm updates, neighborhood issues, or even a little bit on the provision chain when orders get delayed. Educate one thing to change into a useful companion or good friend, particularly at occasions the place you’re not attempting to push a sale.
This differs out of your FAQ-type content material in that you simply’re working to provide somebody information they could want that’s new, situation-dependent, or not associated to your core enterprise. Just like the hyperlink above, a success firm would by no means write a delivery delay electronic mail to the end-consumer. However, nearly each companion that success firm has would want such an electronic mail. Tips, templates, and how-to’s are all helpful within the B2B house so long as you retain the use case in thoughts.
6. Collect perception
Apple’s iOS updates and Google’s pending ‘cookiepocalypse’ are severely limiting our alternatives to gather third-party knowledge. As privateness restrictions are solely anticipated to develop from right here on, it’s vital for eCommerce manufacturers to shift focus to different sources of information assortment. Like zero-party knowledge – i.e., gathering knowledge out of your prospects immediately.
When you’re brief for electronic mail advertising and marketing concepts, contemplate launching a “knowledge assortment” marketing campaign with surveys or polls. You’ll be able to add some leisure worth or present prospects with incentives to take part, and concurrently collect significant insights.
Right here’s an excellent instance of a survey assortment electronic mail from InsideHook:
The e-mail makes use of a relatable picture to seize the reader’s consideration, and InsideHook clearly particulars:
- The e-mail’s function
- Why readers ought to take part (whereas assuring them that it’s not an extended survey)
- Learn how to take the survey
Easy, efficient, and simple to finish. These actions work greatest if you happen to’ve already obtained a longtime or engaged viewers who’re prepared to see what you provide. Don’t neglect to pair some type of rewards with these in the event that they don’t already present a transparent worth to your electronic mail subscribers.
7. Invite a good friend
Referred prospects are invaluable for eCommerce shops. Statistically, they spend extra and are extra loyal to your model. However encouraging your prospects to ask their mates isn’t straightforward.
When you’re attempting to extend referrals, it’s vital to contact your most loyal prospects—those who’ve the best chance of selling your model. You’ll be able to leverage a separate Web Promoter Rating (NPS) survey to determine your most loyal prospects and phase them. When you’re simply getting began, contemplate including this to your welcome and delivery affirmation emails to construct the connection early.
After figuring out loyal prospects, you’ll be able to encourage them to refer mates by:
- Giving them incentives, like rewards or retailer credit score
- Making it straightforward for them
You may make referring straightforward for purchasers by offering them with a done-for-you emailing possibility. Right here’s an instance of how Development Programs makes it straightforward for purchasers to ask their mates:
The model’s electronic mail offers prospects with clear referral incentives and makes it straightforward for them to ask mates via their most well-liked channel. Social media sharing and electronic mail forwarding are only a click on away.
8. Seasonal surprises
Typically simply taking a look at your calendar may give you inspiration for brand new electronic mail advertising and marketing concepts.
New seasons and the vacations are nice occasions to launch new merchandise and surprises. Sadly, your competitors might need the identical thought, and also you’re left combating in your prospects’ consideration.
However you’ll be able to leverage your electronic mail checklist to get prospects enthusiastic about your product earlier than the launch. Generate hype and enthusiasm with particular teaser content material earlier than the launch.
Right here’s an excellent instance of a teaser electronic mail by Tom Raffield:
Right here, the model not solely sparks prospects’ curiosity, however encourages them to interact and guess what the “secret” is. Once more, enjoyable and inventive examples like this may help you concentrate on methods you’ll be able to have enjoyable in your electronic mail too. Write one thing that engages you, and it’ll be extra more likely to have interaction your target market.
9. Have a good time birthdays
Birthday emails are among the finest forms of electronic mail advertising and marketing to indicate prospects you care by offering them with a hyper-personalized expertise. Their click on charges are additionally 179% greater than that of promotional emails, showcasing their robust engagement potential.
And from a technical standpoint, birthday emails are comparatively straightforward to arrange. You’ll be able to create a typical birthday celebration template and use First Identify and Date of Delivery tags to personalize it.
Don’t neglect to throw in a birthday reward. A product or low cost code/coupon can go a great distance in delighting your prospects on their big day. Right here’s an instance of Sephora nailing their birthday celebration emails:
10. Share prime sellers
Did somebody say FOMO? Of all of those electronic mail advertising and marketing concepts, leveraging FOMO simply is likely to be essentially the most highly effective one.
Sharing prime sellers is an effective way to leverage light peer strain to nudge your checklist into making purchases. The drive behind the concern of lacking out is so excessive that greater than 60% of shoppers will buy inside 24 hours due to it.
So don’t draw back from rounding your retailer’s prime sellers up and exhibiting your electronic mail checklist what they’re lacking out on. Right here’s how Bombas leverages greatest vendor lists to extend conversions:
The model has stored the textual content minimal, counting on engaging, strategically positioned visuals and concise copy. And better of all, they’ve put the merchandise proper in your face to showcase what you’re lacking out on.
You’ll need to restrict the provide right here to as much as two core merchandise. Goal your greatest vendor with the bigger CTAs and buttons. Nevertheless, you’ll be able to attempt to sort out some slow-moving stock in secondary calls to motion by highlighting offers, creating shortage, or utilizing a “Clients additionally appreciated” banner. It offers you choices to succeed in a number of forms of prospects simply in case the core provide doesn’t resonate.
Final Phrase on E-mail Advertising Concepts
Advertising channels have diversified considerably lately, however electronic mail advertising and marketing stays on the forefront of eCommerce technique. And whereas eCommerce advertising and marketing instruments have developed through the years, giving us entry to extra knowledge, instruments, and suppleness, creativity continues to be the lifeblood of electronic mail advertising and marketing.
Manufacturers which have essentially the most profitable electronic mail advertising and marketing are hyper-aware of their audiences’ preferences and excel at delivering personalised experiences. These manufacturers experiment with inventive angles and constantly innovate.
One in every of electronic mail advertising and marketing’s best attracts is its flexibility. You’ll be able to delight prospects with a easy birthday celebration electronic mail, or drive conversions in a much less personalised approach by leveraging FOMO-inducing methods.
When you’re searching for extra electronic mail advertising and marketing recommendation, take a look at these posts:
Hero picture by Nick Fewings on Unsplash
Creator Bio
Jake Rheude is the Vice President of Advertising for Pink Stag Achievement, an eCommerce success warehouse that was born out of eCommerce. He has years of expertise in eCommerce and enterprise growth. In his free time, Jake enjoys studying about enterprise and sharing his personal expertise with others.