Ready to launch a successful email campaign? Use these tips to take your ecommerce email marketing to the next level.
1. Use email marketing software
Before you get started, we recommend investing in email marketing software that lets you manage all your campaigns, audiences, and click-through rates (CTRs). These software make it much easier to create emails and send them to specific customers, as well as see which emails are most effective. Mailchimp is our top choice for all-in-one marketing. Another option is Constant Contact, which offers differently priced plans depending on your company's needs. However, there are plenty of other alternatives to consider.
2. Use abandoned cart emails
When someone almost makes it to the checkout but doesn't complete the purchase, it's like a fish on your marketing line. You know exactly what your customer wants to buy, so use that to your advantage and draw them in. Send an abandoned cart email to remind your customer what they're missing out on. This is effective at closing the deal, as 50% of users who click on an abandoned cart email ultimately complete a purchase.
But don't overwhelm your readers: limit yourself to three cart abandonment emails total: one within a few hours of abandonment, one the next day, and one the day after.
3. Send discounts and promotions
For example, give customers a reason to stay on your email list by offering the opportunity to receive discounts or special offers.
Frequently offer promotions or discounts that are only available through email – it can be something simple, like a code for 10% off if you subscribe to your newsletter, or it can be something more exclusive, like access to a special edition product or experience.
4. Always include a call to action
Your emails should always have a purpose, whether that be encouraging your customers to buy a particular product or check out your new blog post. Make this CTA clear and easy to understand.
For example, if you want customers to check out your new product line, include a clear link to that product line and enticing copy that entices the reader to learn more. On average, email CTAs have a CTR of 3%-5%, which is a much higher rate than Facebook Ads (1.1%-1.3%) and Google Ads (0.05%).
5. Segment your audience
One of the most important things to do before sending an email is to segment your audience. Around 78% of marketers rate this as the most effective strategy for email marketing campaigns.
Segmenting your audience means organizing them by type of customer. For example, you can create separate email campaigns based on customer demographics, past purchase history, product interests, or even responses to past email campaigns.
Once you have established your different audiences, you can create custom content to meet their needs. You can even send extra bonuses and offers to your VIP customers, or sell higher-priced products to customers with a high purchasing history. The possibilities are endless.
6. Personalize your emails
Likewise, personalizing your emails is important: 72% of marketers cite personalization as the most effective tactic for email marketing. Naturally, this means calling out your customers by their name, but you can do more than that: you can even mention products they've previously purchased or are interested in through dynamic content.
Approximately 64% of emails leverage dynamic customization. Personalizing your content makes your emails more human and less generic, helping customers build trust and loyalty with your brand.
7. Create compelling subject lines and email previews
Your subject line may be your only chance to hit the finish line: you can have the most well-crafted email message in the world, but if your subject line is boring, spammy, or irrelevant, your customers won't even open it to check out what it says.
Two of the top strategies you'll want to consider are personalization and emojis: 60% of email marketing teams currently use personalization in subject lines to grab consumer attention, and 58% use emojis to add some fun to the inbox.
Don't forget the first few lines of your email, which are often displayed in the email preview in modern mailboxes. Make them enticing and intriguing, with a little cliffhanger that will force the reader to click through your message to find the answer to their question.
8. Design emails for both mobile and desktop users
There are more mobile users than ever before, but that doesn't mean everyone has abandoned their desktop computers. The solution? Create emails with responsive design that work perfectly in either format, a strategy employed by 63% of email marketers. By making sure everyone can enjoy your email no matter where they read it, you'll maximize your chances of success.
9. Try A/B testing
A/B testing is a way to find out which version of an email performs better. You send two versions of the email: a control version that uses your usual strategy, and an experimental version where you change just one element. You then track the results of each email to see which email gets more attention.
Some of the most frequent elements that email marketing teams A/B test are subject line personalization, emojis in subject lines, animated GIFs or PNGs, etc. But you can also use it to test different CTAs, font sizes, color schemes, and more.
10. Preview your email before sending
This tip should be a no-brainer, but we know how hectic things can get when you're on a deadline. Always preview your email before sending it to make sure everything is spelled correctly, your customizations are working properly, and all your images are loading properly.
If your emails are full of typos and broken links, your customers won't take them seriously. And there's research to back this up: companies that regularly tested all their emails before sending saw an average 6% higher ROI than those that didn't.
11. Invest in automation
Email automation campaigns are ranked by 71% of marketers as the most important tactic for email marketing campaigns. And it's no surprise, as they make your life a lot easier. Instead of having to manually create and send every message, email automation services can curate abandoned cart emails, product reminder emails, out-of-stock notification emails, and more for you. They can also set up welcome drip campaigns that are automatically sent to all new members of your email list.
12. Refrain from spamming your email list
No one wants to receive 12 emails a day from the same company, so you need to limit the number of emails you send to a reasonable number: research suggests that 9-16 emails a month, or 2-4 emails a week, is optimal.
But don't make the mistake of not sending enough emails. Sending just one email per month will have a lower ROI than sending 33+ emails per month. Consistency without being overwhelming is key to staying in the minds of your customers.
13. Consider your design elements carefully
Email isn't just about a relevant message. It's also about the visual experience. Your email needs to look great to reflect your brand well. One area where many businesses don't optimize is creating emails specifically for dark mode. With 40% of people using this mode when reading email, if your message is pure black text, it can be unreadable.
Consider incorporating multimedia into your emails too: Nearly 50% of marketers say adding video to their emails has improved their email performance somewhat.
14. Test your artificial intelligence (AI)
AI is a hot issue in the marketing world, so it's no wonder that many email marketers are starting to use it to craft subject lines, copy, and even CTAs. And it seems to be helping, with 56% of marketers saying that content created with AI performs better than content created without it.
Still, that doesn't mean you should jump on the robots: our research on AI found that 64% of consumers are concerned about AI being used for personalized advertising, meaning that over-reliance on this tool could lead to a loss of trust.
Conclusion
E-commerce email marketing is a great strategy for converting consumers into customers. It's also a great way to increase brand awareness and build trust with previous customers. However, it's not always an easy process to get started on. Creating and sending your first email to your subscribers can be a daunting task. But with the e-commerce email marketing tips we've outlined here, you'll be well prepared to curate an email experience that your followers will love.
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