When creating any email campaign, you need to know the integral elements for success. When your ROI is on the line, there is no room for guessing games, possibilities, nor careless mistakes. Whether this is your first campaign, or one of many, the savvy marketer knows that they must always be informed of the latest technologies and methods available.

We are competing in a very aggressive ever changing digital world, where the stakes are high. Email marketing campaigns that produce noticeable revenue, are email campaigns that have been researched, planned, executed and tested. Whatever your market, whatever your service, solid results take time.

Every thing you build needs a proper foundation. Anything built without a proper foundation, cannot last. The same holds true for your email marketing campaigns. You need the proper foundation to get the results you desire. Creating and managing successful campaigns offer many paths in which to travel. Do you know the tools and strategies required to get your message to the right audience?

Email address lists

 Every email marketing campaign needs an audience. Creating an accurate and healthy email address list is the start. Here are a few suggestions on building an accurate list:

• Capture addresses from sign up forms on your website
• Capture addresses from online purchases
• Collect addresses from networking events and meetings
• Use email subscriptions for all off-line promotional materials
• Build lists from opt-in subscribers. This will ensure that your communications are desired and expected.
• Offer special discounts for information

Know your target audience

Do you know who your target audience is? Making your email campaigns relevant depends on who is receiving it. Have you created the demographics needed with which to identify and understand your targeted segments? Deliverability into an inbox guarantees nothing. You want your email marketing campaigns to be opened and read. As one size does not fit all, each campaign message needs to be targeted to just the right audience. What works for one, may never work for another.

Objectives and goals for each campaign

Identify the main purpose of each email campaign. Whether you are sharing information, alerting clients of savings and discounts, producing leads, or sending announcements of company changes, your message needs to be clear and relevant.

Designing your campaign

As with any product, packaging is important. The design and layout needs to capture attention, without being overly done. Unless you plan to hire an HTML Graphic Designer, you should consider buying a powerful and effective email campaign software product. With the right campaign software, you will have all the tools you need to design a professional campaign that will include:

• Optimized graphics in compliance with the Can-Spam Laws.
• Professional designs that can be easily adapted and tailored to meet your corporate style, without any coding knowledge needed.
• Browser compliancy
• Font friendly text
• Spell and Grammar check

Spend your time creating the dynamic content needed, not stressing over design and coding issues.

Writing great content

Do not be intimidated by writing your own content. Who, better then you, knows about your product, services, and brand? To be an entrepreneur takes courage, passion, and innovation. Let your personal voice permeate your messages. Have a catchy and short subject line that represents your content. Your clients and prospects want to know and communicate with the person behind the logo.

Managing and measuring your email marketing campaigns

Web Analytics – Knowledge is Power: What happens after you hit that “send” button. Email marketers need to know and utilize the power and value that web analytics plays when monitoring email marketing campaigns. The most popular tool is Google Analytics. This tool measures tracks metrics and conversions. When utilizing this tool, email marketers can gain greater control over the effectiveness and cost efficiency of every campaign. ActiveTrail integrates Google Analytics into our software metrics to give you the most accurate and detailed reports. Google Analytics dramatically enhances your ability to retain and convert customers.

Key metrics obtained through email campaign software

• Number of emails delivered
• Number of emails opened
• Number of click-through rates
• Conversion rates (clicked on the call to action)
• Number of unsubscribed/subscribed
• Bounded emails (those that were not delivered)
• Ability to compare campaigns and their results

Before sending out your campaign, always pretest in several different email programs.

• Any broken images?
• Broken links?
• Does your message contain words that trigger spam filers?
• What does your email campaign look like in an email preview window?

When to send?

Timing is always important. The purpose of your campaign and the message it brings, must have relevancy for the time as well as the targeted segment. When testing your email campaigns, be sure to think outside the box, and put yourself in your recipient’s shoes. When are your messages most relevant and more likely to be read during the week or weekend?

The ActiveTrail team knows that without powerful and diverse email campaign software behind your email marketing campaigns, you cannot compete. In any high speed race, the mechanics stand on the sidelines to get those cars back out in the race, running at top speed. At ActiveTrail, our programmers continue to improve upon our software, giving you the best technology and support.

Give your email campaigns the boost they need to rise above and beyond all your competition.