[Elysabeth Teeko likes to dabble in all kinds of blogging. She especially loves to stalk new tech and internet marketing news, as well as study interior decorating and other home-esque subjects. You can find her on twitter; @Elysateek.]
Email blasts- the right (and not annoying) way to do them
Email blasts, the epicenter of the direct electronic marketing world, are a popular tool that many businesses use. Because of the misuse of this tactic by a large number of companies, the approach has gained an unseemly reputation. Most people will simply discard emails that look like they originated from an email blast, and even the ones that are opened only rarely prompt the reader to act. So, how can you use the email blast technique correctly and effectively?
Make it Pretty (with HTML)
Even basic HTML can make your emails more attractive. The use of unique fonts, your company logo for branding, and attractive pictures will increase your chances of success. It doesn’t require a coding genius to put these together, either. If you want to learn basic HTML, you can visit W3 Schools, the primary self-teaching resource for HTML code and web design. If you aren’t comfortable with that, it’s a good idea to hire someone to do the code for you.
Target Your Recipients Carefully
There are many blast software packages that will target a large group of people who aren’t likely to buy your product. Others allow you to customize your recipients. Be sure that you’re able to target your blast group with as much precision as possible. Don’t just throw in broad demographics, and don’t use any of the “spam tactics” that send emails to people who almost certainly don’t want them. This will ensure that the people who get your email are likely to be interested and will prevent your email server from being declared a “spam server” by major email services.
Give Them a Prize
Make sure that your email recipients feel that they were wise to open the email. The best way to do this is by offering them some form of incentive. This can be a special offer or deal, a free prize, entry into a competition, or one of various other creative rewards; just be sure that it’s something that will appeal to your target demographic! This positive reinforcement will also make your recipients more likely to open future emails from you.
Use Official Business Email
While some of the blast software will allow you to customize these features, one of the best ways that you can go about the entire process in a professional way is by using your own email server. By investing in email hosting, you can customize the features of your email, target your demographics, and use an email address that looks professional. Be certain to look into email hosting that will allow you to handle the large volume of incoming and outgoing messages.
If you follow these steps and use a professionally written and constructed email, you may well make friends instead of enemies in the course of your email blast campaigns. Certainly, this often abused marketing modality shouldn’t be overlooked, as it can give you a “per contact” price of less than a penny.
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