6 Tips to Rocket Boost Your Email Response Rates

Rise and shine! Check email. Eat breakfast. Check email. Wait for bus. Check email. Bus to work. Check email (maybe even answer a few). Lift to office floor. Check email. Boil kettle. Check email. It’s 9am - the day has barely started - and it’s highly likely the average person has sifted through their emails, checked their social media accounts (all five of them) and possibly even read the morning news.

52% of people say mobile is their first screen[1] and Australians are now spending 38 hours per month on their mobile phones – an increase of 7 hours from the year before.[2] Over one third are accessing the Internet via mobile 5 times or more per day which indicates that calls and texts are no longer the primary usage for mobiles – email, social media and the web are.[3]

So, we know a majority have access to emails wherever they go – be that on the toilet or the bus – and we know they are frequently checking them, but how do we use that to make our email campaigns successful and get a high response rate. 

Here are my top 6 tips to improve your email campaign response rates:

1. Get the targeting right

Understand the audience you want to reach and overlay the right targeting to make sure the customers you want are seeing your offer. Evaluate whether there is value in segmenting your list to send altered messages to varied segments of your target market. The customer may not notice your customising to fit their needs and preferences but they will notice when you don’t.  

2. Make clever data your secret weapon

Quality data is about having current, reliable and accurate information on your desired consumer. You want a list that gives you the best chance for success. This means that the people on it need to have chosen their preferences today (or near abouts) not two years ago! But to convert quality data into quality customers you need to use strategic thinking and rigorous profiling so that the highest quality leads are pursued. At ContactAbility we create customer profiles from analysis of our client’s best customers and prospects to help us pinpoint the ideal ones to approach.

3. Have a compelling offer

Speaking to the right audience is a start but telling them something compelling is what will actually drive response. People need a reason to respond. This reason can be as easily triggered by a simple sale alert (50% off is compelling enough for me) or a more psychologically complex reason i.e. an emotive desire to engage with a brand they feel is authentic and has expertise or information that adds value to their life. With these ‘reasons to respond’ the big purchase may not be top of mind immediately but the compelling offer to start the dialogue with a trusted brand is.  

4. Keep the creative clean 

Less is more with email.  Reduce copy, have clear call to action buttons and good graphics. Remember more people view their emails on their mobile device than ever before so it must be mobile friendly – that is, easy to read and understand – if you want any engagement. Proofread creative with deliverability in mind by removing any obstacles that may prevent your email getting to inboxes. Avoid words like ‘offer’, ‘click here’, ‘free’ and ‘opportunity’ as these are common spam triggers.[4] 

5. Be user friendly

If you are wanting to drive traffic to your website to collect a lead or a sale make sure the journey is as simple as possible. Give the reader the best chance by making it technically easy to use i.e. is the text size readable and mobile friendly? Is a contents list or read more links appropriate to cut down text and make it easier to scan? Can you link your logo and images to relevant pages? If the user does click on your link – is it going to where your email said it would? Is the linked website mobile friendly? Lots to explore and test here.

6. Choose the right cost model

Marketers love performance pricing (and rightly so).  It is important to make sure the cost model you are using is going to deliver the ROI you need.  Cost Per Sale, Cost Per Lead and Cost Per Click cost models can all work successfully.  But it ultimately comes down to getting the message right to drive the strongest response.

By Danielle Edwards, Sales Director, ContactAbility