The Top 5 Emails Your Business Should Be Sending

Is email marketing part of your digital marketing strategy? If not, it should be.

Email marketing is a tried-and-true way to connect with your customers and increase leads and sales. But in a world where the only things fuller than our inboxes are our calendars, how do you grab your audience’s attention?

How can you convince them to not only open your email, but actually read it and engage with you through it?

When it comes to marketing your business, there are different types of emails you can send that coincide with different points along your customer’s journey. To get the engagement and conversions you’d like from your email marketing strategy, these are the emails your business should be sending:

1.) The Welcome Email

Did you know that welcome emails generate 4x more opens and 5x more clicks than any other type of email marketing campaign? It’s true. That’s why, of all of the emails your business should be sending, this is number one.

Typically part of a larger series of emails, the welcome email is your opportunity to introduce your brand to your new subscriber. It’s a lot like a virtual handshake.

The best part? You have their full attention. 

They just opted-in to your emails because they think your brand has something of value to offer them. Capitalize on that interest:

• Send the first welcome email right after they subscribe, letting them know how happy you are that they signed up.
• Include a prompt for a high-value action — i.e., click a link to read a blog on your website, follow you on social media, download your latest PDF, etc.
• Then give them a sneak preview of what you have in store for them as they continue their journey with your brand.

2.) The Promotional Email

The promotional email increases brand loyalty and drives sales. Plus, this email is famous for eliciting a high open rate. 

After all, who doesn’t want an exciting offer from a brand they love? 

The promotional email serves three main purposes all at once:

• Promotes a product or service
• Entices subscribers to make a purchase
• Gives subscribers a perk for being a part of your email community

Offer your subscribers a discount on their next purchase, free shipping, a special download, or something else you know they’ll love. 

The ideal promotional email will be short and sweet with a crystal clear offer (don’t hide your offer in a block of text!). It will also give your subscribers a reason to act now. You want to create a sense of urgency so your email doesn’t just sit in their inbox (spoiler: they’ll forget about it).

3.) The Post-Purchase Email

This email is ripe with potential. 

Instead of using it just to deliver a receipt or communicate shipping information, invite your customer to engage with you on a deeper level. For instance:

• Ask them to review their recent purchase 
• Suggest similar products you think they would enjoy
• Educate them on how to get the best use out of their new item. 

All of these components provide value and help foster a personal connection with your customer.

4.) The Survey Email

The survey email gives you a chance to collect helpful information you can use to improve your customers’ experience or inform new product development.

To make sure your subscribers actually fill out your survey:

• Give them a reason. Explain what’s in it for them — why they should give up their valuable time to fill out your survey.
• Tell them why you want the information. Explain what you’re going to do with the information they give you (i.e., improve your customer service, develop new products, add new services, and so on).
• Make it easy to access. Include an obvious, clickable link in the email that takes the reader quickly to the survey.
• Ask good questions. Ask questions that will give you helpful results. Stick to the topic and make sure the questions are easy to understand.
• Keep it short. No one wants to take a 40-minute survey! Try to keep it at five minutes or less to make sure your customers will complete the whole thing. Mention in the email how long the survey will take so your readers know what to expect.

Use this one sparingly. If you send survey emails too often, your subscribers will be bored or annoyed by them. But if it’s only an occasional thing, they’ll be intrigued by it.

5.) The e-Newsletter

The e-newsletter is a valuable marketing tool. It’s a great way to stay connected with your audience on a regular basis, communicate with them about company news, and improve brand awareness.

When you see the word “newsletter”, you probably think of a long piece of written content, similar to a newspaper. But your e-newsletter doesn’t need to be long format at all. In fact, it will be much more impactful if you break your copy up into short, digestible sections, separating them with headlines, images, and clickable links.

An effective e-newsletter should Include the following:

• A call to action. Ideally, you should include one main call to action that you want your customers to do once they’ve read your e-newsletter: contact you, click to read a blog, follow your page on social media, take part in a contest, and so on.
• Simple, attractive design. Use an uncluttered layout with a simple color scheme and basic fonts, and create clear lines of division between topics. Include graphics to break up the text.
• Useful Content. Your customers should learn something from this email. Include helpful information on topics related to your business or industry.
• Your contact information. Even though this isn’t a salesy email, it could still inspire sales. So make it easy for your subscribers to contact you if the content motivates them to make a purchase.

And make sure to send your e-newsletters on a consistent basis. Whether it’s weekly or monthly, stick to the same day of the week or month so your subscribers can look forward to receiving your next newsletter.

Do you see now why these are the types of emails your business should be sending? 

If you need help creating great emails that will engage your list, you’ve come to the right place. Wild Fig can build an email marketing strategy for you that will help you get more opens, clicks, and conversions from your email list. Contact us today to learn more about our email marketing services!