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Do:
Build your list internally, even if it takes time, so the quality of recipients remains at a high level
Keep an accurate audit of how your company received permission to contact the subscribers of the lists – some people forget they signed up to receive information
Make membership to your list valuable by offering deals that non-members cannot receive
Make sure that your company's name (or product name) is clearly stated in the domain name which appears in the "Sender" line of the e-mail
Use clearly stated words that describe what you want customers to respond to in both the "Subject" line and the body of your message
Provide recipients with a clear way to contact you for more information, including a staffed telephone number or e-mail address
Provide subscribers with clear instructions of how to be removed from future mailings, and make sure that your Privacy Policy is easily accessible
Plan mailings for specific, opportune times so subscribers are expecting your messages and are properly suited to respond
Personalize headers with recipients' names and tailor messages that are ideally suited for each individual
Choose software that is capable of performing as your lists grow, scans outgoing messages for viruses and can measure the effectiveness of your campaign
Don't:
Send messages to those who you cannot prove requested to receive information
Purchase or rent lists from brokers who are not reputable
Use exclamation points, capitalized letters or other blatant marketing techniques that are synonymous with spammers
Send irrelevant offers to people in your database – for example, if you run an online travel agency, do not send special airfares incentives that originate from airports that do not correspond with the zip codes members have provided
Overload recipients with too many e-mails – only offer truly special deals
Cram too many messages into a single e-mail or send large attachments that may clog subscribers' inboxes
Neglect to test messages for formatting errors, especially when sending HTML messages or when contacting AOL users
Rely on your e-mail program's spellchecker - have several colleagues proofread your message for spelling and grammatical errors
Sell or rent your e-mail lists to other organization unless you have been given specific permission to do so
Expect every campaign will be an immediate home run – crafting quality messages takes time and requires feedback
These 20 tips were taken from an upcoming L-Soft white paper titled "Successful E-Mail Marketing Practices," which will be available soon.
If you would like to obtain a copy, please contact info@lsoft.com.
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