Everyone has heard the phrase “work smarter, not harder”. (We know, these are words you live by!) Truer words were never spoken and the world of information technology has underscored this a great deal. Repetitive and mundane tasks are the things of yesterday due to these advancements. You still need to use your real brain, however, to get the most out of these technologies, especially email.
Why email? It’s been around forever (not really, it just seems that way) and it’s generally taken for granted. This is why email marketing content best practices are vitally important to make sure you’re taking full advantage of the technology you’re using.
Here are some tips to make the most of your email marketing:
- Make the email visually easy to read. Keep it just big enough so your reader doesn’t have to scroll down or side to side to view everything (500-600 pixels in width is best).
- Any call-to-action items need to be kept above the fold. Most readers may not read the whole email. Those who do read the whole email might not think to scroll on down to see what else is there.
- Link to a landing page. If there is a link to a landing page (and if you don’t have one you should think about getting one) make sure it goes to the landing page and not your main web page.
- Stay consistent. Your email, landing page, and any other material should have the same logos and overall layout so the message is reinforced and consistent.
- Optimize for mobile. More and more people are checking email on their cell phones or tablets, so optimize your email for mobile devices. Nothing turns off a mobile user than having to scroll this way and that to read your email and landing pages.
- Make the logo prominent. Your logo should be clear to view and located on the upper-left hand side of the page. Studies show our eyes naturally drift to that corner when reading so make sure the logo is visible every time.
You don’t have to initiate all these options at once. (Don’t work up a sweat over this!) Doing an A/B test will help narrow down what works best for you. Let that and some good analytics do the hard work while making you all the smarter.