Email marketing is one of the most successful and sought-after channels for communicating with customers. If you are here, you might not be getting the best results from your email campaigns and want some insights that might come in handy. This guide includes best email marketing tips from founders, experts, and professionals who have been working with email marketing for years.
Table of contents
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- 1. Segmentation for the win
- 2. Leverage the power of storytelling
- 3. Personalization that goes beyond the first name
- 4. Automate to save time
- 5. Test, test, test
- 6. Use omnichannel marketing
- 7. Build a curiosity gap
- 8. Create zero-click emails
- 9. Include behavioral triggers
- 10. Take feedback wherever possible
- 11. Make AI your friend
- 12. Create lead magnets
Email strategy tips
Here are some interesting and insightful takes on creating a successful email strategy:
1. Segmentation for the win
Segmenting is one of the most trivial email marketing strategy you can apply in your email campaigns. Here’s what email marketing experts say about segmenting your email list:
Segment Your Subscriber Database: Segmentation is key to targeted email campaigns. By dividing your subscribers based on demographics, engagement levels, or stage in the customer journey, you can tailor your messages to resonate more deeply with different groups. This personalization can lead to higher open rates, better engagement, and increased conversions.
- James Heartquist Owner, Modern Property Solutions
2. Leverage the power of storytelling
Sending those generic messages can be easy but what makes you stand out from the crowd are your stories. We are humans and we love stories so you should convey your messages through storytelling.
Use stories to make your emails more engaging and memorable. Sharing real stories about your products, services, or customers can captivate your audience. Stories help illustrate your points in a way that facts and figures alone cannot.
They can also evoke emotions, making your brand more relatable and strengthening the connection with your audience. By incorporating storytelling into your emails, you're not just sharing information but creating an experience that resonates with your subscribers. - Ananvita Bhattacharya Owner of WellnessZing
Another lesson learned is the power of integrating metrics-driven storytelling within emails. By weaving client-specific data and success stories into our narratives, we've managed to engage our audience on a more personal and emotional level. This approach has substantially lifted our open rates and bolstered the perceived value of our emails, turning them into must-read content rather than just another message in an overcrowded inbox. - Magee Clegg Founder at Cleartail Marketing
3. Personalization that goes beyond the first name
Personalizing the first name is always a good idea. It gives the reader a familiar and humanized feeling. However, you can do much more with personalization. Here are some expert takes on it:
One tip that has worked well for our email marketing campaigns is to personalize the content as much as possible. By dynamically inserting the recipient's name, company, and other key details, we've seen open rates increase by 18%. Personalized emails feel more relevant and engaging, cutting through the noise in people's inboxes.
- Benjamin K. Walker CEO and founder at Ditto Transcripts
To use personalization, you need to use data insights to divide viewers into groups and write messages that will appeal to each group. This could mean looking at demographic data, past interactions, buy history, or even patterns of behavior to make sure that each recipient has a unique experience.
Personalization also includes more than just standard marketing channels. It includes email marketing, website experiences, interactions on social media, and even conversations that happen offline. Personalization that is the same across all of these mediums makes sure that the brand experience is smooth and consistent, which strengthens the relationship between the brand and the recipient.
- Draven Founder at Klipboard
4. Automate to save time
Automation is another factor in your email marketing strategy that will take you places. You can automate repetitive tasks and messages so that you can focus on other important things for your business. This is what Tim mentioned to us as well:
Automate When Possible: Use automation for welcome emails, follow-ups, and personalized recommendations to save time and personalize the experience. This approach ensures timely communication, fosters customer engagement and drives sales by providing relevant content at the right moments. Embrace automation tools to streamline your email strategy and cultivate lasting relationships with your audience.
- Tim Elliott President & COO at Mr. Moxey's
Here’s what Greg Zakowicz from Omnisend said about automated emails:
Use automated emails because they significantly outperform scheduled campaigns. If you’re unsure where to begin, we’d recommend starting with these ones: cart abandonment, browse abandonment, and welcome messages.
5. Test, test, test
The first tip we got from many experts in marketing was to test the timing of your emails. Time is important because your emails are mostly ignored if sent at the wrong time.
Play around with the timing of your emails: Try various send times and find which times your customers are the most responsive. This will benefit you in optimizing opening and click-through rates.
- Nathan Chen Marketing Manager at Silverstonetec
Testing sending emails during non-traditional hours or weekends can capture subscribers' attention when their inboxes are less crowded.
This strategy can lead to increased open rates and engagement as recipients are more likely to notice and interact with your emails during these off-peak times.
- Debbie Moran Marketing Manager at RecurPost
A/B testing, according to Jordan, is also an effective way to see what is working and what is not:
Regarding email marketing, the best tip is to A/B everything. I suggest testing subject lines, sending times, addresses, and even content to gauge what resonates best with your audience truly. You can try out more serious long-form pieces, shorter funny pieces, emoji-filled subject lines, short subject lines, etc., and get comprehensive data in a much shorter period of time.
- Jordan Figueredo Senior Content Strategist at Online Optimism
6. Use omnichannel marketing
Omnichannel email marketing refers to a strategy in which businesses integrate their email marketing efforts across multiple channels and platforms to provide a seamless and consistent customer experience.
Integrate your email marketing with other channels like social media, mobile, and web content. This creates a seamless experience for your customers, ensuring consistent messaging across all platforms and touchpoints.
- James Heartquist Owner at Modern Property Solutions
7. Build a curiosity gap
Curiosity will attract your audience towards you. You can use curiosity as a strategy to build excitement and getting them to open the emails.
Use the curiosity gap in your email marketing. Curiosity gap = identification of new and valuable knowledge. The gap in the reader's existing knowledge compels them to click and read more. For example, in your subject line, don't say "today's crypto market" but say "Must read crypto analysis...from someone who lived 100 years ago.
- Jeremy Moser Co-founder and CEO at uSERP
8. Create zero-click emails
No we are not saying you should eliminate buttons from your emails. This means that you may want to focus on providing the content in the email itself so there is no additional effort for the users to commit to accessing the content. This is what the content lead at Dock told us:
My #1 tip for email marketers is to write zero-click emails. That is, write emails that are completely self-contained and don’t require the reader to do any additional work to learn what you want them to learn.
For example, when we do a product release announcement at Dock, I write a full blog on the topic and then repurpose that blog into an email. But in the email itself, my goal isn’t to send readers to the blog; it’s to tell them everything they need to know about the release in the email. We get about a 40% open rate, and 80% of people read the whole email, but only about 2% of people click through to the blog. If I expected them to read the blog, we wouldn’t get our message across.
- Eric Doty at Dock
9. Include behavioral triggers
Behavioural triggers are helpful when you want to send specific messages for specific user actions.
The biggest change for us has been implementing emails triggered by specific user actions. For example, when a customer abandons their shopping cart, we email them everything they left in it, a gentle reminder of our return policy, and a special offer to sweeten the deal. These timely, relevant emails have had a much higher conversion rate than our other types of emails.
- Marshal Davis President of Ascendly Marketing
10. Take feedback wherever possible
Feedback is super important for the growth of your business. Emails are the best and quickest way to ask for feedback. You can leverage the power of email to ask for feedback from your customers.
We know that our emails need to add value to our recipients. So, we actively solicit feedback – whether that’s through quick surveys, feedback forms or just encouraging recipients to reply back with their thoughts. This has helped us gain valuable insights to improve our services and, as a byproduct, has also helped our customers feel heard and valued. This has translated into higher customer retention and lifetime values.
- Marshal Davis President of Ascendly Marketing
11. Make AI your friend
As a serial entrepreneur who has started several AI startups, my unique tip is to use AI-powered tools to create personalized and highly engaging email campaigns. AI-powered tools can analyze customer behavior, preferences, and demographics to create highly targeted email campaigns that resonate with your audience. These tools can also help you automate email campaigns, saving time and effort.
Additionally, AI-powered tools can analyze email campaign performance and provide actionable insights to improve your email marketing strategy. By leveraging the power of AI, you can create highly effective email campaigns that drive engagement and conversions.
- Matthew Ramirez Founder at Rephrase Media
12. Create lead magnets
Create highly optimized lead magnets as subscriber bait. Too often, email list growth falters due to generic, irrelevant opt-in incentives lacking resonance.
Double down developing hyper-targeted lead magnets that speak directly to your ideal reader's specific pains, needs, and aspirations.
- Scott Schaper President at RSM Marketing
Email deliverability tips
Deliverability is one of the most important aspects of your email marketing efforts. Here are some tips for you to improve yoir email deliverability:
13. Grow a clean email list
Just creating a subscriber list for the sake of doing it will not yield the results you might seek. Ensure you are not focusing on the number of subscribers but on the quality of your emails.
One essential tip for novice email marketers is prioritizing building a clean and engaged email list. Quality over quantity is the name of the game. Focusing solely on growing your subscriber count is tempting, but having a large list means nothing if those subscribers aren't actively engaging with your content.
Start by ensuring subscribers willingly opt-in and regularly clean out inactive or bouncing email addresses. This proactive approach keeps your contact list healthy, improves deliverability, and ensures your messages reach the right audience.
- Gabrielle Marie Yap Senior Editor at CarnivoreStyle
Want a quick tip to grow a clean email list? Here’s the best way, according to Magee:
A less-used but highly effective method we applied was leveraging LinkedIn outreach to grow our email list. By engaging potential clients on LinkedIn with personalized messages and leading them to sign up for our email list, we were able to add over 400 high-quality contacts per month. This tactic not only expanded our reach but also significantly improved the efficiency of our email campaigns by targeting a pre-engaged audience.
- Magee Clegg Founder at Cleartail Marketing
14. Use a familiar sender name
The sender name in an email is the name that appears in the "From" field when recipients view the email in their inbox. It identifies who the email is from before the recipient even opens it. One tip about the sender name we gathered is this:
Emails from a recognizable sender are more likely to be opened. People trust what they know. When you see a friend's name in your inbox, you're more likely to open that email, right? The same goes for email marketing. By using a name your audience recognizes, you're not just another email in their inbox; you're someone they know and trust. This simple change can significantly increase your open rates.
- Tony Mariotti CEO at RubyHome
15. Authenticate your emails
Email authentication is required in order to maintain a good reputation and deliverability rate. Here’s what Lilia told us:
Boost deliverability by implementing email authentication protocols like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC. These protocols verify your email's authenticity and reduce the likelihood of it being marked as spam. Invest time setting up and maintaining these protocols to ensure your emails go straight to the intended inbox and enhance your email marketing effectiveness.
- Lilia Tovbin CEO & Founder of BigMailer.io
Email content tips
You must have heard that content is the king and thats absolutely true. Crafting compelling email content can be hard. Here aare some tips to help you simplify it:
16. Social proofs that go a long way
If you are a brand, you should always include how your business helped others in your email copy. This will help build confidence in the minds of users for your business. Here’s what Debbie, with 5+ years in marketing, said about emails:
Incorporating customer reviews, testimonials, or photos users share into your emails adds authenticity and credibility to your brand. It fosters a sense of community and serves as social proof, influencing subscribers' purchase decisions and building trust in your products or services.
- Debbie Moran Marketing Manager at RecurPost
17. Embrace brevity in your emails
Going straight to the point is super important in email marketing. Since your reader's attention span is limited to seconds, you must make sure to showcase what you want to say in a few words.
Keep your emails brief and to the point. Readers appreciate when you respect their time. By focusing on clarity and engagement, you ensure your message is impactful without being overwhelming. This approach not only maintains interest but also boosts the likelihood of your emails being read and acted upon.
- Ryan Zomorodi COO & Co-Founder at Real Estate Skills
Using storytelling in your emails:
Use storytelling in your emails. Rather than just promoting your products or services, tell a story that connects with your audience on an emotional level. This could be through customer success stories, behind-the-scenes glimpses of your business, or even personal anecdotes from the founder or team members. When potential customers feel a personal connection to your brand, they are more likely to engage with your emails and ultimately become customers.”
- John Pennypacker VP, Sales & Marketing at Deep Cognition
Something about using valuable content in your emails:
First, ditch the spammy tactics. Focus on providing real value to your email subscribers. This could be industry insights, exclusive deals, or helpful tips related to your niche.
Second, personalize whenever possible. A subscriber's name in the greeting goes a long way, and segmenting your list allows you to tailor content to their specific interests. _Building genuine connections will keep your audience engaged and clicking through your emails.
- Udemezue John Digital Entrepreneur at Tchelete
Be friendly with your subscribers in order for them to stay connected with you:
First of all, be intimate. When you can, customize your emails to give the impression that you are speaking with them directly. Second, give quality precedence over quantity. Sending fewer emails with insightful information is preferable to barrage your readers with pointless messages.
- Matt Little Director / Owner
Educating instead of selling, because nobody likes salesy messages that serve no value:
Educate Instead of Sell: Focus on educating your audience with your content to build a relationship first. This approach not only engages your subscribers but also positions your brand as an authority in your field. By sharing insightful content, tips, and industry knowledge, you create a foundation for loyalty and eventual sales.
- Ian Sells CEO at Million Dollar Sellers
18. Use branding in the emails
If your brand is not recognizable to your customers, you might be doing something wrong. Just like you, your brand has a personality and tone that needs to be conveyed through messaging and email design.
Incorporate your brand's unique quirks, whether it's a playful tone, witty humor, or heartfelt sincerity. For instance, adding humor to communications helps personalize the otherwise serious issue. We consider incorporating legal-themed puns or wordplay in subject lines or body copy like "Don't brief over this: Our legal marketing tips are a verdict for success!" This approach adds a touch of humor while still conveying expertise.
- Cesar Cobo COO, WEBRIS
While branding is an amazing strategy, staying consistent with it is important. Consistency will help your audience to recognize you even when they don’t see your name. How interesting is that?
Be consistent with your branding in every email. This builds recognition and trust among your audience. Use your brand's voice and aesthetics across all emails. This consistency helps your audience quickly identify your messages and fosters a sense of reliability and familiarity with your brand.
- Mika Kujapelto Managing Director of Casino Professor
19. Curating good subject lines
Subject lines are the first thing that your readers will see, and based on that, they will decide whether to open the email or not. So, what any email marketer would suggest is to curate good subject lines like these:
The connection is very important. Your subject line should correctly describe what the email is about and connect with the right people.
Don't forget how powerful imagination can be. Adding some imagination to your subject lines can help your emails stand out from all the other generic ones that are trying to get people's attention. Using creativity in your subject lines can make them memorable and hard to resist, whether it's a smart pun, a question that makes you think, or an interesting teaser.
Prioritize brevity, relevance, personalization, and creativity. It can help you get more people to open your emails.
- Brett Berger Co-founder & COO at Flow Sparrow
20. Add emojis to your emails
When we talk about visuals in emails, emojis are also a great way to capture your audience’s attention.
Adding emojis to email subject lines can improve click-through rates. We use them quite sparingly since they don’t align perfectly with our brand's overall tone.
Nonetheless, occasionally including an emoji or two has been effective in making our emails more noticeable in an overloaded inbox. This small adjustment often makes our emails stand out among many others, attracting more attention.
- Patrick Beltran Head of SEO and email marketing at Ardoz Digital
Email design tips
Email design is as important as your email content. They both go hand in hand. Here are some email design tips that you must follow:
21. Focus on your email readability
We said it before and will say it again: your emails should be responsive and readable. They should be readable at all times, no matter which device they are being read.
The first rule of email marketing is you should always meet the customer where they are at, and that is why you always design your messages with a mobile focus. Therefore, make sure your links are seamless and easy to read on mobile devices, that graphics are smaller, and that pages are optimized for speed. In doing so, you will be able to reach your customers where they are at and make the transition from messaging to purchase.
- Christy Pyrz Chief Marketing Officer at Paradigm Peptides
Here's what Samantha told us about one email design best practice:
Pay attention to font size, button spacing, and image scaling to ensure a smooth and enjoyable experience across all devices.
- Samantha Odo Real Estate Sales Representative at Precondo
22. Prioritize the CTAs
You want your users to eventually land on the CTA buttons, so make sure to prioritize them.
Use Clear Calls-to-Action (CTAs): Your email should have a clear, compelling CTA. Tell the reader exactly what you want them to do. Whether it's "Shop Now," "Learn More," or "Sign Up," your CTA should be direct and stand out. Make it easy for your readers. Place your CTA prominently, and if possible, make it visually striking with a button or a contrasting color. A well-crafted CTA can significantly increase your email's conversion rate.
- Jay Xiao Co-founder at SuretyNow
23. Don’t be extra with the graphics
We know how attractive images and visuals can be but adding too much of it can be annoying and takes a lot of cognitive load.
Avoid using highly decorative email templates. These may seem attractive but can harm your click-thru rates. Graphics-filled emails. Don’t load properly on email platforms like Outlook. Your subscribers won’t wait for all your images to load when they open your message, so you’ll lose the opportunity to nurture your relationship or entice them to make a transaction.
If you must, image-rich emails work mainly for eCommerce brands because customers “want” to see product images before buying. One or two images added to regular text-formatted messaging will suffice for other industries.
- Colt Agar Organic Marketing Lead
Go beyond the tips
Thanks for reading this far. These email marketing tips will help you go a long way. If you need something more than this and want actually to take action to improve your email performance, try our 21-day email performance challenge, which includes challenges and tasks for you to do for 21 days that will make you a master in optimizing your email marketing campaigns.
