When it comes to e-newsletters, everyone knows that your subject line is the silver bullet. What’s more, to point out that you should test this line is, by now, so self-evident as to be a cliché. Yet there’s so much more to the rich tapestry that is email marketing—starting with what we call it.For example, think about the message you’re sending when you refer to your emails as a “blast.” Do you really want to conjure up an image of spam (or bacn) clogging an inbox?
Or consider your sign-up form. Do you thoughtlessly ask people to “subscribe” or to “submit” their email address? C’mon, you can do better than that! Take a cue from the presidential aspirants, who carefully label their CTA buttons “I’m in” (Ted Cruz) and “Join us” (Hillary).
In other words: seize every opportunity for a semantic nudge (a subject I’ve plumbed at length in another deck, Sweat the Small Stuff).
Here are a few more questions to spur your mental gears:
✔ Are you using preview text?
✔ How are you segmenting your list?
✔ Are you accentuating your call to action?
✔ Does your e-newsletter have a name?
I call tactics like these “overlooked opportunities,” and in the above presentation, I walk through example after example—good and bad—from companies of all sizes, across various industries. My promise to you: not only are these tactics easy to implement; they’re also ignored by most websites. Embrace ‘em, and you’ll be clicks ahead of your competitors.
