Email marketing is an effective way to connect with both new and existing customers. But an email only works if the recipient reads it. If your email open rate isn’t what you want it to be, we can help. Check out our complete guide below:

The Power of Email Marketing

People who want to receive regular emails from you are already very interested in your brand. According to a recent study by McKinsey & Company, email converts over 40 times better than both Facebook and Twitter combined. A well-crafted email can expertly target a customer’s needs. Plus, emails add a personal touch.

Many businesses focus on the subscriber count. While you do want a lot of subscribers, that’s not the main metric you should focus on. Instead, you want to pay attention to the open rate. Of the subscribers who receive your emails, what percentage actually read the contents within?

If you have a list of 10,000 subscribers, but only 10% of those open the emails you send, you’re not really setting yourself up for success. Bigger is not always better. A smaller list of 5,000 subscribers, with an open rate of 30%, is going to drive more traffic, conversions and sales.

Here’s how to increase your open rate:

Long Subject Lines

An analysis by Get Response found that the emails with the highest opens rates have a subject line with at least 61 characters. Short and sweet isn’t nearly as effective as many people think. Longer, descriptive headlines typically stand out from the crowd.

Be Mysterious

You want a subject line which is descriptive but doesn’t give away many specifics. One effective technique here is called an Open Loop. This is when you provide just enough info in the subject line to spark interest in the reader – but they’ll need to open the email in order to learn all the details. The subject line opens the loop and the contents of the email close it.

Here are some examples:

• You might think this trick would never increase your conversion rates… but you’d be wrong!
• Over half of all internet marketers are not using keywords effectively. Are you one of them?

This technique requires a careful touch. You want to avoid appearing too clickbait-y. At the same time, you do want to create a sense of intrigue.

Go Lowercase

In the example above, did you notice that the subject lines were primarily lowercase letters? This is intentional. Subject lines with lowercase letters typically perform better than ones where the first letters of each word are capitalized.

Family, friends and, well, people use lowercase letters in their emails subject lines. Businesses tend to use uppercase titles. A subject line with lowercase letters appears familiar, genuine and trustworthy. Plus, you’ll stand out from the competition.

Be Active

There’s an understandable wariness about sending too many emails to a new subscriber. But frequent contact, especially at the beginning, can actually help increase the conversion rate. Remember that these subscribers have shown an active interest in your brand. They want to hear from you.

First, send out something as soon as anyone signs up. This will often be specific, promised material such as an e-book, white paper, tutorial or similar. Your new subscriber will expect this material instantly.

You’ll then send more material over the next two to six days. This will be some of your best content. Informative and engaging, this content will hopefully generate a positive first impression while your brand is still fresh in the subscriber’s mind.

From then on, continue to stay in touch. Send an email every three days or so. A conversion is when a stranger turns into a website visitor, and most conversions happen with the first four weeks of the first email open. Roughly three-fourths of all conversions occur in the first three months.

Make an Impact with Emails

Don’t waste your time crafting emails which nobody will ever read. Craft trustworthy, engaging emails people will open right away. Emails are an effective way to build a relationship and create a customer for life. The tips above will help you increase your open rates and conversions – it’s time to start sending emails which work!