Email marketing is a great, cost-effective way to engage prospective customers and nurture relationships with current customers. And email is actually welcomed by consumers. In fact, recent research has found that a whopping 91% of Americans say they want to receive promo emails.
But let’s face it. With email being one of the most common forms of communication these days, your customers inboxes are most likely a little full. And it’s time for you to step up your game if you want to continue connecting with subscribers and encouraging them to do business with you.
While we’re almost halfway through 2016, there’s still time to make the most of the latest email marketing tricks and trends. Below are seven considerations for creating an emails that will resonate with your audience and help you up your game.
#1 – Remember: It’s All About Mobile
This one may seem like a bit of a no-brainer, but nonetheless it needs to be mentioned. Mobile has become an increasingly important consideration for website designers and digital marketers. People rely on their mobile devices for a lot of things–and email is certainly one of them. In fact, studies show that 55% of email is now opened on a mobile device.
Typically, the content should be focused and not too text heavy. But the most important thing to remember is that people want fast loading times. So, if you’re using large video or image files, make sure they’ll open quickly and easily.
#2 – Personalize Your Message
A one-size-fits-all approach to email marketing is simply not reasonable these days. Your email recipients are interested in messages that are focused on their personal tastes and preferences–addressing them by their first name in the opening is not good enough. Use data insights to create different messaging for individual target groups.
For example, Pinterest does an excellent job at personalization. Every week, I can count on receiving an email with suggested pins or boards to follow that are based on my interests and behaviors on the platform.
Can you tell I’m attempting a diet?
#3 – Understand the “Why”
Spend some time actually thinking about why your subscribers actually open an email. An enticing discount or a new product launch may not be the only reason they click. Think about who your customer is, what they’re usually looking for, what’s important to them and what season it is. In addition, think about what device they are looking on. Is it a tablet? Smartphone? Basically, dig into the psychology of your customers. This will directly correlate with your ability to personalize your messaging.
#4 – Explore Automation
Automated email campaigns allow you to use a triggering event such as an asset download, contact form fill out or a webinar signup to kick-off a tailored series of emails. Your monthly newsletters or specialty campaigns are definitely important components of your overall email marketing strategy. But email automation can be a very powerful tool that can help you nurture relationships and drive customers to a desired outcome.
For example, if you’re hosting an in-person event or webinar, email automation can be used as a way to communicate with attendees before, during and after the event. Content delivered before or during the event would include information on accommodations or the event schedule. Content delivered after the event ends would include special access to event assets and presentations, or perhaps direct them or information on another upcoming event they’re interested in.
Determine your triggering events and then create an automation workflow that details what you’ll send to them throughout the automation campaign. Here’s an example:
#5 – Add Dynamic & Interactive Content
Dynamic and interactive content is something that is pretty new to the email marketing world. Dynamic options could include changing the content of an email based on location or weather, and interactive content could be features like animations or carousel elements. Software tools that can help you do this type of content are HubSpot and MovableInk.
#6 – Use a Lightbox to Grow Your Email List
Lightboxes–or pop-ups–can be an effective way to quickly grow your email list. While some may think they’re a bit annoying, lightbox pop-ups bring a connection option to your audience–rather than relying on them to search it out.
If you go this route, make something that’s unique rather than using a generic template. Also, use active language that will compel people to do what you’re asking. Here’s an example from HouseLogic, a home improvement tips and tricks website operated by the National Association of Realtors. They know why their audience is there and uses visuals to entice a sign up.
#7 – Implement Tracking
Having the proper tracking in place so you can gather data and pull insights from your email campaign is crucial. (And really tracking should be an important part of your entire digital marketing campaign.) If you’re using Google Analytics, add campaign parameters to the source URL to get a better idea of how many people are coming to your website from email. Check out Google’s Email Tracking – Measurement Protocol for step-by-step instructions.
What are some of your email marketing best practices? Tell us in the comments section below.
I know, I know. They get a lot of hate. People complain about how annoying or irritating they are. But here’s the thing – they work!
We already know that attention spans are low. People land on your site, browse around for a bit or read a blog article, and then they leave. Cart abandonment and bounce rates are high. Add to that our short memories and most people who leave may never come back.
Unless you try to give it one last shot, a Hail Mary if you will. Because you have nothing to lose.
Your visitors are already on their way out, they have signaled their intent to leave and their attention is quickly being focused elsewhere. Your options are to do nothing, and perhaps never be able to count them as a returning visitor, or take your best shot, display a popup, and try to convince them you are worthy of their time.
Here’s the catch – your users are smart, and if you simply throw up some generic image and CTA, they are going close the window and never look back. Just like everything else on your site, your popups need to be optimized in order to yield the best results.
In this post, we’ll look at the 4 components of exit-intent popups and how to optimize them.
1. Targeting
Targeting, or segmenting, is vitally important to making sure the right message reaches the right user. Just like matching landing pages to the source from which they originate, you want to make sure the popup that a user sees matches the section of your site from which they are leaving.
For example, if a user leaves from the ecommerce part of your site, meaning a conversion equates to them making a purchase of some sort, you might followFive Four Club’s lead and offer a discount in return for their email:
On the other hand, if they depart from the content or blog section, you might make like Optimonk and display a popup that’s relevant to what they were reading:
The worst thing you can do is display something that has nothing to do with a user’s session. For instance, since you’re reading this post, I imagine you’re interested in conversion rate optimization. Showing you a popup for a book on web development would not make any sense, but if the book was on CRO you might be inclined to download it.
Remember, it’s likely that the user’s focus is already waning, so the easier you make it for them to relate the popup to what they were doing, the better your chances are of converting them.
2. Design
Remember what I said about avoiding generic images? Quality popup design is all about meeting your visitors’ expectations, meaning it should fit the style and theme of your site. The best ways to achieve this are to use colors, fonts, and images that are similar to your main site. Anything too different will detract from the message that you are trying to convey.
To see what I mean, check out the homepage and popup for Which Test Won:
Look at how well the design elements match between the two – the logo is in top left, the white text against black background is the same, and they both include the color orange. These elements create a super smooth transition between site and popup, which allows the user to focus on the message.
Other design options to consider are going full screen like Quicksprout:
This literally removes all other distractions and meshes well with his simple message: follow me on Facebook.
Also, removing the X-to-close button like Clarity is an easy way to encourage one last look at the popup:
What’s interesting about this is that people expect to see the ‘X’ in the top-right corner, but instead they see, “Wait – Don’t leave empty-handed!”
This forces them to look at the rest of the popup to find where the close button is. Sure they can click away or choose “No thanks,” but the absence of the close button will give your popup a bit more time to work its magic.
3. Copy
I cannot overstate the importance of quality, relevant, and straightforward copy. Even if you do everything else wrong with your exit-intent popups, getting your copy right will win you some conversions.
Now is not the time to be long-winded or vague. There’s really no space for that on a popup. Plus, your visitors are already losing interest, so you need to focus on getting your message across with as little interference as possible.
There are two things you need to do when writing popup copy: focus on the offerand personalize whenever possible.
This is a great example from Conversion Scientist on how to focus on the offer. The hard-to-miss title says it all – in return for your name and email, you will get a free conversion crash course. Even if you don’t read the details, you still know what it is.
Personalization is another tactic worth implementing, but in this case I don’t mean matching the information to the user. What I mean is incorporating personal pronouns to speak directly to the user and making your copy sound conversational.
This popup is a great example of speaking directly to your users. It almost mimics an actual conversation in a retail store. You can imagine a sales rep coming up to you and asking you if you want a discount on your purchase, and you answering with the given options.
4. Calls-to-Action
Calls to action are the last link for the popup conversion chain. Your users have presumably been compelled by your offer, filled in some information, and are now ready to seal the deal. The worst thing you can make them do now is think twice, so your CTAs need to drive the point home without causing confusion.
Maintain Your Message and Theme
Now is not the time to change things up and introduce some crazy color or terminology. You want to keep the user focused on what they are about to gain by tying in your CTA with the rest of the popup.
Backlinko does just that by pretty much repeating the same copy in both their popup body and CTA. If a user was interested the first time they saw the message, I doubt seeing it again is doing to change their mind.
Guide Their Decision
While it’s true that your users will make the final decision on whether to convert or not, there are things you can do to influence their choice. The first is by increasing the visibility of the choice that you prefer them to make.
If you look at the color scheme of this popup by Social Triggers, it’s almost entirely black and white with one exception – the CTA that triggers a conversion. You’d have to be blind to miss it. It was the first thing I looked at when I saw this popup. Bonus points for making the opposite choice as bland and boring as possible.
The other thing you can do is creating a negative call to action where a negative effect is implied by not converting.
I love this popup.
While it’s not clear what you will receive by clicking yes, it is clear that you will continue to dwell in your mom’s basement if you click no. It goes without saying that this is a joke, but the effect is the same – click yes and be awesome, click no and be boring.
Wait! Before You Go…
See what I did there? Now that you’re done reading this article, you’re probably going to leave. But before you go, I have a call to action for you. All you have to do is implement an exit popup on your site and report back here in the comments with the results. If you already have one, tell me how it’s working out for you.
Next to Buy Now, what is the most profitable click your business can target?
Subscribe.
As CMI’s Joe Pulizzi explains:
While larger enterprises are fighting silo battles, politics, and tearing each other apart focusing on (sometimes) meaningless metrics, small players with patience and passion are building audiences and winning.
Once you build an audience (of email subscribers), anything is possible.
The truth is that building an engaged and sizable email list is hands-down the most long-term, profit-generating investment you can make.
In fact, a McKinsey study reveals that email is a whopping 40 times more powerful at acquiring new customers than Facebook and Twitter combined. On top of that, the average email-based order’s dollar value is 17% higher than social media channels.
That’s the good news.
The bad news is … getting your visitors to sign up is a struggle – one that many online marketers never overcome.
That’s why I’m going to share 11 proven strategies you can start today to build your email list like crazy.
Eleven strategies might sound like a lot to implement, but Buffer’s success in doubling its email sign-ups in 30 days required at least eight strategies.
Image source: Buffer
Because these strategies work best together, this post is lengthy. Don’t be intimidated. There are tons of actionable content and real-world examples all along the way.
Here’s what’s covered:
Carrot content
Landing pages
“Happy” buttons
Two-step opt-ins
Entry pop-ups
Exit pop-ups
“Painful” buttons
End-of-post forms
In-line forms
Sidebar forms
Contact forms
1. Carrot content
Most of this checklist focuses on the details: What types of forms, where to use them, and how to optimize each one. But all the forms in the world won’t do you a bit of good if your content isn’t compelling.
That’s where “carrot content” comes in.
Carrot content – also known as lead magnets or bribe-to-subscribe offers – provide immediate value to your subscriber. This free content could be how-to guides, reports, webinars, white papers, e-courses, or even discounts and coupons. The goal of your opt-in content is to improve your subscriber’s life by solving a problem.
In other words, focus on the payoff for your subscriber.
Of course, testing the click-worthiness of your content is the only way to find out if your carrot is enticing. That’s why using Google Analytics’ goals to set up easy-to-understand funnels is a necessity.
Another fantastic tool that goes one step beyond Google Analytic’s on-site data is Cyfe, an all-in-one analytics dashboard that measures everything from marketing efforts to web analytics to offsite sales and more. When it comes to building your email list, Cyfe can help in two ways:
It identifies the highest converting traffic sources for each piece of content.
It also tracks conversions over time to learn about their continued engagement and if they buy.
Image source: Cyfe
2. Landing pages
No post about building an email list would be complete without exploring the fundamental importance of landing pages. To keep this short, here are some landing-page best practices from the pros:
Make your call to action big and post above the fold.
Use A/B testing.
Try videos, which have shown to notably improve conversion.
Keep it clear, simple, and focused.
Use only one CTA.
Craft compelling copy to tell a story instead of stating facts or just selling.
Lastly, be sure to optimize your landing pages for mobile viewing. This example from GetResponse illustrates mobile optimization perfectly.
Image source: GetResponse
3. ‘Happy’ buttons
Now that we’ve looked at the big picture, let’s get into the details, starting with your button.
What makes a seductive, click-worthy button? One thing: Happiness.
Get rid of any and all “Submit” or “Sign up” buttons. Instead, you should:
Use first-person language – at the very least try “Sign me up” or “Send me updates.”
Use active language: “Give me access” or “Start discovering today.”
Give concrete previews of what the subscriber will receive.
Detail the ultimate payoff such as, “Make me a better marketer.”
Tell the people exactly what signing up will really give them. Hint: It’s not a weekly email.
All this means creating button copy that shows the value of your offer.
My favorite formula for button copy comes from Joanna Wiebe. She calls it the “I-want” strategy:
“Write button/CTA copy that completes this phrase: I want to ________________. The underlined part becomes the button copy.”
Compare these two buttons:
Image source: Copyblogger
Notice how the second button completes the “I-want-to” phrase with “end my scheduling hassles.” It identifies a problem and offers a specific, desire-based solution.
4. Two-step opt-ins
Single opt-ins are easy to find. Here’s one directly from the Content Marketing Institute:
The two-step or double opt-in, however, is a decisively craftier creature.
Just like the name implies, a double opt-in requires a user to take two actions to subscribe. For example, instead of asking for the email address first, a double opt-in starts with a single click. Take Smart Insights’ email marketing strategy template sign-up, for instance. Here’s what its sidebar CTA looks like:
Image source: Smart Insights
Once someone clicks, she is directed to the second step:
Image source: Smart Insights
If you’d like to see a few live examples, Clay Collins of LeadPages recently did three experiments with two-step opt-ins that increased his sign-up rate by almost 60%.
Remember that there can be hazards associated with going from a single opt-in method to using double opt-ins. Most notably, adding steps can discourage some people from completing the CTA.
However, the key benefit of double opt-ins is that they create far more qualified and engaged subscribers. As GetResponse estimates, as many as 90% of single opt-in subscribers provide false names and emails. Moreover, the average click-through rate for emails sent to double opt-in subscribers is twice that of their single opt-in counterparts.
5. Entry pop-ups
The entry pop-up is exactly what it sounds like: A pop-up form is activated when a visitor first enters your site. Often these forms block the view of the majority of the screen, forcing engagement.
Just remember, visitors will do one of the following:
Comply and supply information
Close the pop-up and ignore the CTA
Get annoyed and leave
The first lesson here is about timeliness. App Sumo demonstrates the “sweet spot” for email gathering based on time on page:
Image source: App Sumo
To increase your chances of capturing an email using a pop-up, aim to wait five seconds beforethe pop-up is shown.
The second lesson, best said by Mauro D’Andrea of Blog Growth, is about page views. It’s obvious: If a person reads more pages on your blog, she is more likely to subscribe. Don’t be afraid to show the same pop-up to the same visitor when she sticks around.
6. Exit pop-ups
The exit pop-up is the exact opposite of the entry pop-up. These opt-ins automatically generate when your visitor’s mouse moves toward the “back” or “close” buttons.
Exit pop-ups are last-ditch efforts to engage a potential subscriber and prevent a good lead lost. The Internet is teeming with Billy Mays memes that personify the exit pop-up:
This example from ConversionXL is perfect. My interest in conversion optimization was targeted as soon as I moved the mouse to leave. Even better, ConversionXL also employed the “painful” button copy if I declined: “No, I prefer to suck at optimization.”
Image source: ConversionXL
Pop-ups – both entry and exit – can be awkward and sometimes annoying. But they work.CrazyEgg compiled data from four sites and found staggering results:
Nikki McGonigal’s pop-up drove 1,375% more sign-ups than her sidebar alternative.
Darren Rowse’s light-box earned 400 new subscribers a day.
Ask-Leo.com increased its email conversions by 1,000%.
Mama’s Lebanese Kitchen saw sign-ups 10 times greater than the pre-pop-up, opt-in rate.
When creating exit pop-ups, be honest and conversational in your copy. Level with your visitor and admit that the exit pop-up is exactly that … an exit pop-up. Here are some good categorical examples:
Social triggers: “Going so soon? Here’s why 1,500 visitors stick around each day.”
Specific added value: “Before you leave, grab the [free carrot offer].”
Damage control: “Didn’t find what you need? Let us help …”
Negative option: “Yes, I want help” or “No, I’ll take my chances”
That last example brings us to our next sign-up strategy: Your “painful” button.
7. ‘Painful’ buttons
Now that we’ve covered pop-ups, let’s take a look at what I like to call “painful” button copy. This concept can be implemented for both entry and exit pop-ups.
The key is to create an opt-out button (basically a close-the-pop-up button) that hurts.
Why would you purposefully create painful buttons?
Joanna Weibe explains, “When a visitor is presented with an opt-in form, it’s so often the case that said opt-in form has just one button, and that button is there to be clicked if you choose to opt in. If you choose not to opt in, you do not have to click a button to state your preference; you simply X out, click out, or otherwise ignore the opt-in button.
“Most of our opt-ins are active and opt-outs are passive.”
A painful button eliminates the passivity of opting out by giving the viewer a clear choice.
Here’s a fabulous example from her Copy Hackers site:
Image source: Copy Hackers
QuickSprout takes a similar approach:
Image source: QuickSprout
Lastly, Wishpond shows the potential for witty angles in catchy-but-painful button copy:
Image source: Wishpond
8. End-of-post forms
Unlike pop-up forms, end-of-post forms uniquely cater to your actual readers.
Why? Because by the time visitors have consumed your content in its entirety, they’re invested. Moreover, they should be looking for more.
That’s why, in addition to suggesting social shares, using an end-of-post opt-in to gather email information strikes while the lead is hot. Here’s a general one that can be used at the end of almost any post.
On my own site, I love using end-of-post opt-ins especially for series.
For example, a few months ago I put together a string of posts based on Eugene Schwartz’sBreakthrough Advertising. At the end of the first post, I included a summary of the upcomingThe 3 Unbreakable Laws of Breakthrough Copywriting and this simple opt-in:
Image source: iconiContent
In addition to opt-ins at the end of posts, you’ll often see “for further reading” options. While not explicitly about building your list, this is another great way to keep your leads hot. Think of these as your safety CTA. Creating your own links to similar or popular content is great, but an even better solution is using data to automate your end-of-post next step.
9. In-line forms
In-line opt-ins are the simplest of all opt-in forms. They’re the impulse buy of opt-ins.
Because of this, in-line opt-in forms work best within blog articles or other long-form content of at least 1,000 words as part of the natural flow of the text itself.
They integrate within the page so once you’ve provided value on the page, the in-line opt-in functions as a means to “act now.”
Think of in-line forms like a conversational aside, “Oh, by the way, if you like what you’re reading now … then you’ll love the other stuff we do. And to get our ‘other stuff,’ just sign up here.”
The benefit of in-line opt-ins is that they provide your users with a chance to respond to your content on the spot. As long as you’re providing value, they’ll act.
10. Sidebar forms
Sidebar forms are ubiquitous. Often, this form is built into web templates themselves so they’re incredibly easy to implement. Just be sure that your sidebar form collects data and doesn’t distract from more useful forms.
There are basically two kinds of sidebar forms:
Anchored sidebar forms are static – they stay in place:
Image source: Social Media Examiner
Sticky sidebar forms, also called scrolling sidebar forms, appear once a visitor passes a certain point on your page:
Image source: Marketing Tech Blog
11. Contact forms
Don’t overlook the obvious. Don’t underestimate the converting power of contact pages and in-depth contact forms.
Here are a few tips to keep in mind:
Fewer fields means greater conversion power. On average, asking visitors to complete three fields results in a 25% conversion rate, compared to six or more fields, which see a 15% conversion rate.
Mobile design is paramount. With 81% of smartphone users accessing the Internet, if you haven’t tailored your contact form to fit smaller screens, you’re missing out.
Ask good questions. Instead of simply leaving the “message” field blank, spur the response by crafting engaging questions that relate directly to the kind of product or service you offer.
However, if less is more when it comes to getting sign-ups, how are you supposed to gather information on your subscribers to help with segmentation, especially if you’re in the B2B space?
One solution is to partner with a lead-generation database. Unomy, for example, enables you to not only research your prospect’s parent companies using the individual email address provided, it also allows you to research related companies and their competitors:
Image source: Unomy
Putting it all together
It’s like Joe Pulizzi says, “Once you build an audience (of email subscribers), anything is possible.”
