6-step guide to email marketing

Aug 25 2021

While all sorts of digital marketing trends have come and gone, one long-standing contender has been email marketing. It is a classic yet effective marketing tool. But why is it so effective?

It’s simple. Email marketing gives you the opportunity and the ability to create an undisrupted customer journey. This means you have something that is rare these days – your customers’ full and undivided attention.

Jam-packed with many benefits, email marketing, in particular email automation, allows you to build strong and lasting relationships with potential, current and past clients.

In fact, this form of digital marketing is so successful, HubSpot has found 4 out of 5 marketing professionals say they’d rather give up social media over email marketing. And in a world where social media is a huge contender, this speaks volumes!

Sounds good? But where do you even begin? Use our 6-step process to guide you through what can feel like an overwhelming process. Broken down into six practical steps, we help you get started with your email marketing campaign.

1. Set SMART Goals

The first thing is first – you need to outline and establish your SMART goals. SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-Bound. It is best to make your goal as specific and detailed as possible.

Here are some examples of a poorly defined marketing objective you will want to AVOID:

• I want more website visitors.
• I want a higher level of brand awareness.
• I want more sales.

These are too vague and do not meet the SMART criteria. Instead, you need a clear marketing objective that states what you want to achieve, when you want to achieve it by, the benchmark that will measure your success and how you will achieve it. It should be relevant, but most of all, realistic and possible to fulfil.

Here are examples of well-defined SMART goals that are structured:

• To increase my bookings by 20% within 12 months by utilising the power of email marketing and building customer relationships.
• To increase my email subscriber list by 30% within 3 months by providing a new e-book for free download.

Creating your SMART goals will provide you with direction and a clear objective to achieving your marketing objectives.

 

2. Develop a lead magnet

A lead magnet is a marketing tool that promotes an incentive to prospective customers in exchange for their email address and other details. Basically, it is a bribe to subscribe.

The key to enticing potential customers is through promoting free content in your magnet. Free content comes in all shapes and sizes, but it should be something that solves a significant pain point for your audience. This is your lead magnet!

Your lead magnet should:

• Promise a quick win
• Solve a problem
• Provide instant access
• Be quick to digest
• Showcase your expertise

3. Set-up a landing page

The landing page is an integral part of your email campaign. This is where people give you their email in exchange for a freebie – a bribe to subscribe.

Here are some tips for your landing page:

• Page should be responsive, load quickly and is mobile-friendly.
• Easy to navigate with no distracting elements, such as navigation.
• Colours used on landing page should match company branding and the business logo should be visible.
• Includes captivating image that shows product or service in action. No stock photos.
• CTA button stands out and is placed in multiple areas (for longer landing pages).
• Forms are best placed directly on landing page, contrast to the background and easy to locate.

 

4. Automate email sequence

Now that you’ve got their contact details, it is time to show them some email love with a series of email sequencies’. Sometimes a one-off email isn’t enough to bag a lead. It may take a few nudges through the form of follow-up emails to make yourself familiar and known to the potential customer.

Study has found that only 2% of sales are made from the first contact. This emphasises how important it is for to you touch base and follow up with your leads to chase up that 98% chance.

Fun fact: The 80% is converted on the fifth to twelfth contact!

You should create an automated 5-series email sequence, each one triggered by the previous one. This will automate your sales funnel and convert more leads into sales with little effort.

Here are the five emails you should schedule:

1. Send the freebie (Your resource is ready!)
2. Offer help (Hi, just checking in…)
3. Send a second freebie (relevant/related)
4. Share a client story (highlight results)
5. Pitch for sale (offer discount or consultation call)

 

5. Promote on all channels

Once you’ve set up your sequences and have your lead magnet and landing page ready to roll, it is time to promote your campaign! Using all your channels, advertise it on all platforms to help build your list of subscribers.

You can create posts and assets that back up, support and lead to your landing page from a popup on your website, as a banner on a blog article, Facebook and Instagram ads or any other social media platform. Remember, the more access and visibility your campaign sees, the more reach it will achieve.

 

6. Nurture your subscribers

Email nurturing is the process of building a lasting relationship with your subscriber base by showing them you care for them and value them as they grow to know more about your business. With a good email nurturing campaign in place, you can educate your leads, create awareness and build lasting trust, making it easy for them to convert into customers.

The point of nurture campaigns isn’t always promotional. These campaigns educate and inspire, as opposed to just promoting, because they’re all about building trust, establishing credibility and creating lasting relationships.

You want your customers to know you value them and don’t forget about them after the transaction has been made. Customers like being appreciated and nurtured, from checking in with a friendly email during hard times (hello COVID-19!) to a pleasant New Year’s email.

A common mistake people make in trying to convert leads is too much focus on trying to close sales. Make sure to keep this in mind for your future campaigns! The trick is to focus on starting more conversations.

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Now that we’ve walked you through the 6 steps needed to start your email marketing campaign, give it a go. If you get stuck or need help, our team at FX Web Studio are here to help!

For further questions, please get in touch with us by sending an enquiry. You can also keep updated with our helpful digital marketing tips by subscribing to our newsletter or following us on social media.