6 Questions to Ask Yourself to Improve Your Email Conversions

Email marketing just became a lot more important. Driven by the move to digital everything in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, marketers around the globe are leaning more heavily on email to connect with their audiences and accomplish their marketing goals.

While some regions are starting to slowly emerge from stay at home orders and mandatory business closures, the world as a whole is still far from the familiar normal we knew just a few months ago where large events and in-person meetings were a part of everyday life. And as the pandemic waxes and wanes, email marketing and other digital communications will enjoy elevated importance for the foreseeable future.

While this dependence on email brings opportunities for brands, it also brings increased competition for inbox attention. And even if your email gets opened, are your recipients taking action? If you need to improve your email conversion rate – and who doesn’t? – ask yourself these six questions:

1. Is your subject line engaging? A successful email conversion starts with a compelling subject line. After all, it’s impossible for someone to act on an email if they never open it. There are a number of different approaches to crafting successful subject lines but ultimately it comes down to grabbing your recipient’s attention and enticing them to learn more. For every subject line you create, ask yourself if you would be compelled to open that email if it was in your own crowded inbox. Also, consider utilizing A/B testing on your subject lines. It can help you test theories about how your audiences will respond to different types of subject lines and, over time, you can see performance patterns emerge.

2. Does your audience segmentation need to be adjusted? Before my daughter was born, I signed up for emails from several baby and kid retailers, much like many other expectant parents. She is now six and two of those retailers still regularly send me emails geared towards parents of babies. Unless I need to purchase a baby shower gift, I’m not converting on those emails. Consider how your audiences may have changed over time and whether that necessitates a change in segmentation. It can be easy to fall into the habit of using familiar marketing lists, but your conversion rates can suffer if you think of your audiences as stagnant. Consider too how changes in your product offerings can prompt changes in segmentation.

3. Are you telling a good story? The story you tell in your email marketing doesn’t need to be a story in the traditional storybook sense – although it could be. Think of how a good story compels you to move forward, to turn the page. Your email should create that same sense of forward momentum. This involves your email copy and design. Both should work together to ensure that your emails feel free of clutter and make recipients want to keep viewing and reading. And don’t forget about the importance of a strong ending to your story – in the case of an email, this would be your call to action. Be sure that it’s clear the action you want your audience to take and that you have a compelling offer that makes them want to take that action.

4. Are you using dynamic content? Consumers today value personalization. Marketers that deliver have a better chance of boosting their conversion rates. Are you using dynamic content within your emails to deliver those personalized experiences? If not, it’s time to get started! If so, consider how you can improve your personalization efforts. While people appreciate seeing their name added to an email via dynamic content, and this may be a good way to get started using personalization, it’s often not enough to stop there anymore. Remember, if you are a ClickDimensions customer, your personalization efforts are only limited by the data that you store in your Dynamics environment. Whether it is past purchases, the date they became a customer, their geographic location and more, there is a wealth of information at your fingertips in Dynamics that can be used to create conversion-driving email campaigns.

5. How often are you sending? Have you ever unsubscribed from a brand’s emails because you got tired of them sending so many? I know I have. Even when we’re a fan or loyal customer of a brand, email fatigue is real. And an unsubscribe puts an indefinite end to email conversions for that recipient. There isn’t a single right answer to the question “How often should I send emails?” That will depend on a number of factors that are individual to each industry, business and customer segment. Using automated campaigns can help you establish a good cadence and sending based on behavioral triggers can improve conversions. Utilizing subscription management can also give your recipients control over the frequency and types of communications they receive, which can greatly reduce email fatigue.

6. Have you reviewed email performance data? Past email performance can help you improve future conversion rates. Dig back into the details of your recent email sends to find out what was successful and what wasn’t. Tools like a click heat map can help you determine which links within your emails garnered the most clicks. Embrace experimentation and trying new things as you work to achieve the best results based on your email performance findings.

Happy Marketing!