As a business owner, you want to stay connected to your audience. Whether in person, or online, you need to find ways to adjust and improve your customer interaction. An excellent way to grow your relationship with your client is through email marketing, and specifically, a special tool like email automation, which is useful for marketing purposes.
Now, more than ever is a crucial time to make a plan, because we still have around 9 months of the COVID-19 pandemic ahead of us. Make a plan to implement email marketing to stay grounded and connected. We’re here to help you learn and do it! Don’t miss out on our previous post, 6 Best Practices in Email Marketing 2021, to help you master some rocking email campaigns.
Today, in How to Make Email Automation Work for You, we discuss 6 key points to help you learn exactly what automation is and how to use it (and ways to use it)! Continue reading for ideas and tips, so you can plan ahead for success.
1. What is Email Automation?
First, it isn’t about reaching everyone at the same time– that doesn’t work. Rather, email automation is a way to create emails that reach the right people, at the right time— with the right message. In email automation, you have the ability to send time or action triggered emails to your subscribers. with personal and relevant information. Personalization in email marketing will help you engage with your clients; they’re real people, and you’re real people, too. Another way to strategize and personalize is via segmentation. Email automation is a fantastic way to personalize your clients’ experience, and it allows you find & target your audience.
Would it shock you to say 72% of customers only respond to marketing messages that target their prime interests?
Setting up a series of automated emails will improve customer retention rate, increase consistency, and increase your productivity! Yep. With automatic emails, you get more done, which means you SAVE TIME. Deal or no deal?
2. Using an Automated Email Series
Let’s explore ways you can start using an automated email series. Instead of drafting your emails for every new customer you meet, allocate your time more wisely by setting up a series. We will list them out, and there are definitely more ways, but let’s start with the standard series types.
Set Up Automated Email Series for–
- Welcoming New Customers (a series of about 3 emails)
Email 1 will automatically be sent out upon the person joining your mailing list. This initial email will kindly thank the subscriber for joining.
Email 2 will be sent out between a time delay; you can set it up so each email sends every 7th day, let’s say. This email will share more information about the organization/cause. The 3rd email can also share more information about the mission/cause/story, etc. Share a video, an article, sharing a link to Learn More. Don’t forget your Call to Action’s.
Email 3 (or 4) will have a special Call to Action along the lines of supporting the organization by asking to give a donation, fill out a survey, or an invitation to meet.
2. Giving Appointment Reminders
Heard of a 2 list-join series? Say you have two different clients. One is scheduling an appointment for all things technical, and another is scheduling an appointment for all things creative. When they create their appointment, they’ll make their selection– then they’ll be added to their selected bucket and receive the email that’s right for them. You will need to create both set of emails, but once you set it up, it’s up and running.
3. Sharing an Informational Series (in regard to the business; it can be sharing an eBook with follow up emails, sharing resources or information, sending an invite or sharing a promotion). You can set up 3 to 4 emails.
4. Sharing coupons/promotions (to customers who’ve shown interest in particular services and/or products)
Others may include: a follow up email, a single email series, a promotion series, an eBook series, event promotion series, the list goes on.
3. Triggers
How do the clients start getting these automated email series? Well, they have to ‘trigger’ it. Depending on what marketing platform you’re using, you can select the type of trigger you want. On Constant Contact, Triggers can be based on the client opening the email you sent them (trigger email), or they can Click a Link in the trigger email for the series to be activated. Basically, when they join a list or engage with your email or link, this will activate the series (and plop! Email 1 sent). And once they open it, the following series will be sent (based on the time intervals you set).
4. Keep Content Relevant
From time to time, you will need to review your content to make sure it’s up to date. Is it showing its age? Make the appropriate changes. Keep in mind, when fashioning your emails, refrain from using timely content or news that can easily get old. Create timeless emails. Ha, easier said than done, but this can save you so much time.
5. Don’t Forget! Greeting Tags!
Dear, (so and so). Greetings, (so and so). Say hi! Use their name. This should be your first step to personalization and automation if you haven’t done so already. You must engage with the client, because, you want them to take an action you’re leading them to take. You want to give them a reason to engage. Make a goal and a plan for what you want them to do. Incorporate meaningful and valuable pictures, videos, CTA’s, a coupon, a promotional, etc. to inspire engagement. What is your client or subscriber looking for? Feed them.
6. Bring in Brand Recognition, plus: Design, Accessibility, Readability
Make sure your automated emails are designed, styled and structured according to your unique brand. Use your logo design, special fonts, colors and stick to a minimalist, one column approach, so that the content is accessible across most devices. Most of the time, we are usually checking things quickly on our phones. Consider the arrangement and flow of your content. Is it bite-sized? If your email in text-heavy, consider the structure a bit more and use spacing, lines and headers to better section & organize the content. This will also make it more readable.
Are you hungry for more?
We invite you to join us next month, February 19th, for our Branding New Year, New You Skills training. Meanwhile…
Watch our “Email Marketing Best Practices 2021” YouTube Training Video
COMING SOON— “Creating Email Automation” Skills Training YouTube Video
Virginia Weiskopf, Personal Technical Guide
Over 20 years of expertise providing technical solutions that let you focus on your business.