Direct Response Email
Like other forms of direct response advertising, you generally apply the same rules of direct response advertising to this medium, but there are some factors that you have to keep in mind when creating your email.
Like other forms of direct marketing, you need to have a clear understanding of what your marketing goals are so that you can determine whom to target and what to offer. Your goals might include the following:
- Acquiring new customers.
- Converting prospects to first time buyers.
- Growing current customer relationships with additional client offerings.
- Retaining loyal customers.
- Enhancing customer satisfaction and brand loyalty.
- Reactivating lost or lapsed customers.
Once you’ve defined your goals, you can start the design process by developing personalized relevant messages to the audience. Email design guidelines for prospecting and acquisition are much more stringent so you can avoid spam filtering. You can be more flexible in your design and subject line considerations if you are marketing to your existing customer base and people already in your database.
To enhance your email communications, consider these factors:
- Personalization, using the recipient's name and other personalized information that you have on the recipient such a demographic or purchase history information can significantly increase the open rate and click through rate of an email message. But, using the wrong form of personalization, for example addressing the message with the wrong name, can kill the chances of the message being opened and read. People hate being addressed by the wrong title and the wrong name, or some aberration of their real name.
- Using flexible content and format sensing is important to make sure the recipient receives the message in a format that they can read. Giving the reader the option of either HTML or text is important because some messages may not be readable in their HTML format on mobile devices because of data download constraints, screen sizes or other related issues. And, because of the range of mobile device screen resolutions and sizes being used, it's a good idea to give links to a landing page where they can read the message through their web browser.
- Using URLs and hyperlinks in your message encourages the reader to click-through to landing pages or a website for more information on your offer.