LizTomey.com

It’s a problem as old as old as email marketing itself: a poorly responding list. Sometimes marketers struggle to get clicks, they struggle to get people to open their emails, and they struggle to get readers to take definite action (such as purchasing a product).

Why does this happen?

There are actually quite few mistakes that can kill your results. Are you making one or more of these mistakes too?

Read on to find out…

Mistake 1. Setting Incorrect Expectations

From the very moment someone lands on your lead page or even reads the very first email you send, you should be telling them what to expect with regards to your list.

Specifically, this includes:

What kind of content they can expect to receive. Promos? Special discounts and other deals? “How to” instructional content? Freemiums? Curated content? Some combination of these? Whatever it is, let your readers know upfront what they get.

How often they’ll receive content. People don’t mind getting frequent content, as long as they know to expect it. However, what is a problem is if you email infrequently, such as less than once per week. If you don’t get in touch on a regular basis, your subscribers are going to forget about you. That means they’ll do business with your competitor who reaches out to them more frequently.

Related to this…

Mistake 2. Repurposing Your List

Some email marketers don’t see much of a response from their lists, so they repurpose it. In other words, they start sending content that violates their readers’ expectations. This is a mistake that will kill your results.

For example, maybe you’ve told your list they’ll receive “content and tips” once a week. But then you start hammering them with promos once a day.

Or maybe you have a bodybuilding list that started off focusing on specific lifts, but now focuses almost exclusively on nutrition. You’re likely to see your conversions drop, because current subscribers primarily signed up to get lifting info, not nutrition info.

So how do you fix this?

Obviously, the first step is to plan your list strategy carefully so that you don’t end up repurposing it midstream.

Secondly, if you DO make a major change, then warn your readers. Let them know what’s coming for a few weeks before you make the change. Be sure to also change your lead page and welcome emails to reflect these changes.

Mistake 3. Sending Untargeted Emails

There are actually two parts to this mistake:

The first part is making the mistake of simply not understanding what your market wants.

There are three ways to fix this mistake:

Do your market research. Find out what your market is already buying, and then put similar offers in front of them.

Survey your list. Find out what their problems are and find out what kinds of solutions they’re seeking.

Test your offers. If they don’t perform, find an offer that does produce high conversions with your list.

The second part is making the mistake of not segmenting your list.

You can fix this problem with these steps:

Separate your prospect lists from your customer lists.

Separate customer lists according to what they purchase.

Offer freemiums to your prospects to help you segment by their interests.

Once you have these micro-targeted lists, you’ll be better able to send out targeted content and offers that produce high conversion rates.

Next…

Mistake 4. Crafting Poor Subject Lines

Your subject lines can make or break the success of each email you send. If they’re boring, overhyped or irrelevant, people won’t even bother to open your email.

You can fix this mistake by applying these tips:

Offer a big benefit. Let readers know what’s in it for them if they open the email. (E.G., “Here’s the #1 way to get more traffic…”)

Don’t overhype. It’s okay to make a bold promise if you can deliver big-time within the email, but don’t exaggerate and hype things up. (Here’s an example of what NOT to do: “How To Make $1 million in 48 hours!”)

Use social proof. People are more likely to do something if others are doing it too. (E.G., “Find out why so many smart marketers love this app…”)

Next…

Mistake 5. Ignoring the Pre-Head

The pre-head is that little bit of text that is shown in the message preview, which is accessible before the recipient actually opens the email. If the subject line gets their attention, then they’ll often look at the preview. If the preview doesn’t hold their attention, they’re not going to bother opening the email to read the rest.

Point is, you need to make the first 100 characters of your email absolutely gripping. Tell a story. Present a big benefit. Build anticipation for what’s coming. Make people curious. In short, give people a compelling reason to open your email.

Mistake 6. Making The Email About You

One of the best ways to lose your readers’ attention is to make the email about you. It’s one thing to tell a relevant story about yourself, but it’s another thing entirely to make the entire email about you. When that happens, readers bail out. You can bet they won’t see your calls to action.

So how do you avoid or fix this mistake?

There’s actually a simple “quick and easy” way to ensure you’re making your email about your readers and not yourself. Simply take a look at how many times you use words like “you” versus how many times you use words like “I” or “me.”

HINT: You should use the word “you” MUCH more frequently than words like “I” or “me.” You should be using the word “you” about three times more often than self-referential words.

And finally…

Mistake 7. Offering a Weak Call to Action

Your subscribers can be hooked and engaged throughout your entire email, but you can still blow it at the end by offering a weak call to action (or, worse yet, NO call to action).

You see, people don’t click on a button or link just because it’s right in front of their face.

You need to do two things:

#1: tell them specifically to click on that link.

#2: give them a good reason to click now.

For example: “Click here now to take advantage of this special 50% off pricing – but hurry, this offer ends tomorrow!”

Okay so those are the basic mistakes… I’m sure there are a ton more. 😉

Did you discover that you’re making one or more of the mistakes you just learned about? The good news is that you also learned how to fix these mistakes or avoid them altogether. You can even use this as a checklist of mistakes to avoid the next time you send out an email. Here’s to better conversion rates!

Need email marketing help? The Email Marketing Kickstart Workshop is ready for you to enroll! If you want to learn how to use email marketing in your online business, get people to open your emails, click your links, and buy then you NEED to grab your spot right now at http://www.LearningIM.com/email-marketing-kickstart-workshop

I have a question for you… Humor me for a minute. 🙂

Why do you send emails to your list?

Because you want them to take some specific action, such as clicking on a link.

Right? Duh,  Liz! 🙂

But, if you’ve already started up your email list, then you know that subscribers don’t tend to do a lot of clicking. Sometimes they don’t click on the links in your emails. And let’s be honest: sometimes they don’t even bother clicking on your email itself to open it.

🙁

The good news is that you can turn that all around starting today by taking a look at these 15 ways to get more clicks in your email campaigns.

1. Use Images

Big walls of text are boring. You can break up the content by using images. Not only does this make your email more aesthetically pleasing, a well-placed image can also draw your reader’s eyes into the content.

Check out these tips for using images effectively:

Use simple images. Busy images are a turn off, as the viewer doesn’t know what to focus on. Use simple images, such as an image with one or two people or objects

Show happy people. If you’re using images of people, show happy people who are looking at the camera. Alternatively, the people in the photo should be looking in the direction of the text. That’s because your reader’s eyes tend to naturally follow where the subject of a photo is looking.

Place images near important text. This draws the reader’s eyes back into the content.

Next…

2. Write Enticing Subject Lines

We’ve talked about getting people to open your emails using subject lines, but  you can’t get anyone to click on the links within your email if they don’t open it! If your subject line doesn’t capture your subscribers’ attention, then they’re not even going to bother opening your email.

Check out these tips for writing enticing subject lines:

Present a benefit. Let readers know what’s in it for them if they open your email. For example: “Eat this yummy food to lose weight…”

Ask an intriguing question. For example, “Are you making these deadly copywriting mistakes?”

Keep it short. Some mobile phones cut subject lines to as few as 25 characters, while other email clients cut them off at around 50-60 characters. So be sure to get the gist of your headline in the first few words to get the click.

Next…

3. Arouse Curiosity

You can use this tactic in three ways:

1. Arouse curiosity in your subject line to boost your open rate. Example: “Do you know this copywriting secret?”

2. Arouse curiosity in the beginning of your email to keep people reading. Example: “In just moments you’ll discover the #1 way to increase your golf drive by 25 yards!”

3. Arouse curiosity near your call to action to get the click. Example: “Find out what million dollar marketers know about creating six-figure product launches. Click here to discover these secrets now for yourself!”

Here’s the next tip…

4. Offer More Information

The idea here is to simply offer something very valuable to your readers, and then offer them more (as a paid product). This valuable thing might be a free report, an app, a checklist, a gear list or even just a really good article.

For example:

“Now that you’ve seen the exact checklist I use to get my membership sites up and running, you’ll want to get your hands on my complete profitable site system. Click here to check it out…”

This will get them clicking for MORE!

5. Segment Your List

The idea here is to create targeted segments of your list so that you can send out targeted content and ads to these specific segments. The more targeted your emails, the more clicks you’ll get.

For example: let’s suppose you have a dog training list. If you segment this list into obedience training, trick training and agility training, you’ll get a much higher conversion rate.

Here are three ways to segment your list:

Send your existing subscribers to another lead page. Each lead page you correct should correspond to a specific segment of your list.

Segment your lists according to what they buy. For example, if someone purchases a book on a particular topic, then you can add them to a customer list that’s targeted to this topic.

Get subscribers to tell you what interests them. You can ask them to simply place a checkmark next to topics that interest them at the time they’re first joining your list, and then segment your list according to interests.

Next…

6. Format for Easy Readability

Here’s the long and short of it: if your email looks hard to read, people will bail on you.

So format for easy readability using these tips:

Use short words, sentences and paragraphs. This creates a lot of white space, and makes it easy for readers to jump in.

Don’t write at a college level. Instead, make it easily consumable for the average reader. What you’re reading right now is an example of making your writing accessible. 

Use a conversational tone. A friendly tone and entertaining comment will keep people reading.

Next…

7. Send a Series of Emails

People rarely buy something the first time they come in contact with it. That’s why you can boost your clicks and conversions by sending a series of emails that all promote the same offer.

For example, create a three-part series called, “The Three Secrets of Selling Your Home Fast.” Each email would explain one secret, as well as provide a link to a related product.

8. Focus on a Single Call to Action

The point is, each email should focus on ONE primary purpose. If you ask people to click on multiple links for multiple offers, your conversion rate will drop. That’s why each email you send should focus on one link and call to action.

However…

9. Include Your Link and CTA More Than Once

Even though each email focuses on one call to action, you need to repeat the link and call to action multiple times throughout your email.

For example:

Include a clickable headline.

Embed your call to action and link in the middle of the content.

Create a call to action button and place it at the end of the email.

TIP: The idea is to tell people to take action and give them the link to do so. Next, give them even more reasons to take action, and then repeat the call to action and link.

Next…

10. Reward People For Taking Quick Action

If you give people a chance to procrastinate, they will. If they leave your email without clicking, it’s unlikely they’ll come back. That’s why you need to create a sense of urgency. And one way to do that is by rewarding people for taking quick action.

For example…

Be one of the first 100 people to act now, and you’ll get a copy of “Online Business Made Easy” absolutely free! Click here to get yours now…

11. Write One-to-One

So many email marketers make the mistake of referring to their “subscribers” or their “list” in their emails. Don’t do this. You want each of your subscribers to feel like you’re writing to them one-on-one.

Here’s how:

Don’t make any references that suggest you’re writing to multiple people. For example, avoid words such as subscribers, list, readers, prospects, etc.

Know your audience. The more you know about them, the easier it is for you to create targeted content that makes them feel like you’re talking directly to them.

Use a conversational tone. Make your subscribers feel like they’re reading a personal email from a friend.

Next up…

12. Be Emotional And Personal

Here’s a simple truth: once someone “connects” with you and your email message, the more likely they are to take action. People do business with those that they know, like and trust. That’s why it’s important to evoke emotion and personality in your emails.

Here’s how:

Tell stories. Not only does a good story evoke emotion, it also engages readers and keeps them reading.

Empathize with readers. Let people know that you understand how they feel about the problem (if you really do understand!).

Get them to imagine the joy of the solution. If people can imagine how good they’ll feel if they solve their problem, they’re more likely to click your link. Tell how it changed your life.

Next…

13. Promise and Deliver Tremendous Value

Sad but true: your prospects are used to people over-promising and under-delivering. You can pleasantly surprise them (and bond them to you like glue, creating loyal customers) by delivering tremendous value.

This includes:

Sending them valuable freemiums that others in your niche are charging for.

Being sure each email you send is in-demand, valuable and high quality.

Sharing some of your best content with your subscribers.

Giving your subscribers things they can’t get anywhere else (such as exclusive deals, tools and content).

Next…

14. Use a Bullet List

A bulleted list of benefits gives you two awesome advantages:

It sets important content apart. In fact, many people are conditioned to looking at bulleted lists, as usually they contain important information and benefits.

Skimmers will take notice. This is a great way to draw a skimmer/scanner back into your content, lead them down to your call to action, and get more clicks.

Next…

15. Test, Track and Tweak

Don’t guess at what produces great results for you. Instead, test, track and tweak every major part of your email.

Now most people know to test subject lines, email openers, calls to action and offers. However, don’t forget to test the design of your email.

This includes:

The overall design or template you’re using, including the layout.

The design colors.

The graphics and their placement.

The call to action buttons (both the design and the text).

Most major email service providers have built tracking tools right into their platforms so you can easily split-test your emails.

Now let’s wrap things up…

You just discovered 15 effective ways to increase clicks across all your email campaigns. These proven methods work for me, they work for countless other successful marketers around the world, and I know they’ll work for you too. But don’t take my word for it – start implementing these tactics today to see for yourself!

Need email marketing help? The Email Marketing Kickstart Workshop is ready for you to enroll! If you want to learn how to use email marketing in your online business, get people to open your emails, click your links, and buy then you NEED to grab your spot right now at http://www.LearningIM.com/email-marketing-kickstart-workshop

I talk a lot about email marketing. How powerful it is, how to use it, etc… But the biggest thing I preach is that you have to be constantly learning about it.

You need to know the fundamentals and then you need to keep learning new strategies and using them on your lists.

The best way to do this is to use other people’s email templates. I buy every single email template package I can get my hands on for this reason. It allows me to not only learn, but every time I go to write an email I go to my folder full of these templates, poke around, and before long one hits me and I’m off and using it.

I’ve created this post so I can give you an updated resource page of the best email templates out there. Some are just subject line templates, but most are full on email template packages that you can use for various things…

Sales emails, affiliate marketing emails, welcome sequences, and everything in between.

Take a look at the resources, grab what you need and come back here anytime you’re ready for some new email templates to power your email marketing.

Here we go…

My Email Templates – Of course I’ve got to kick this list off with my own personal email templates package. 🙂 This is a massive package giving you 13 different template sequences. See it at http://www.MyEmailTemplates.com

Email Game Plan – This is a killer little product. You get 12 different email campaigns that you can use to create your own email campaigns. And these aren’t just garbage thrown together. These are proven winning campaigns! See it at http://www.LizTomey.com/EmailGamePlan

1107 Subject Lines – Subject lines are curtail to getting people to open your emails. This is a MASSIVE subject line swipe file that I have used over and over and over again! See it at http://www.ThisKicksButt.com/1107EmailSubjectLines

IM Emails – Kevin Fahey is one of the biggest known marketers in the Internet Marketing industry and he has taken over 400 of his personal emails and put them in a cool little software that allows you to search through them, see open rates and lots of other information. Pick an email from this, use it as a template to create your own, and off you go! See it at http://www.LizTomey.com/IMEmails

DFY Monthly Emails – This is such a killer resource. Not only do you get email templates RIGHT NOW, but it’s updated each month with MORE email templates. This is for those of you in the Internet marketing/make money online niche only, but these are great email templates! See it at http://www.ThisKicksButt.com/DFYMonthlyEmails

Eagle Emails – Emails written by an actual email copywriter. What I really liked about this one is all the training it comes with. You learn how to use the emails, how to work with swipes and templates, etc. See it at http://www.ThisKicksButt.com/EagleEmails

Okay that’s it for now… As I find and buy more of these I’ll update this list and share the ones I like and that I think you can use here. Make sure you’re on my list so you can get updates about this post!

If you have recommendations for email templates you like PLEASE let me know about them. 🙂