There are two ways that an email has zero chance of making a sale - if it’s unopened or the reader unsubscribes. Both guarantee you won’t make an impact so it’s important to do all you can to prevent them from happening.
There are some absolute no-no’s that will increase the likelihood your email won’t be opened, or the reader unsubscribes. Take a look:
That’s a short list of a much longer list of reasons the average person will either not open your email or unsubscribe. Getting people on your list is easier than keeping them, but you can do it if you avoid these pitfalls. Let's drill down a bit more.
Your subject line is poorly written
You baited the reader
Your content is boring, not personalized, or offers no value
You’ve become annoying
You don’t engage
Your subject line is vital to building your relationship- You may have the most cleverly written content an email has ever held but it won’t matter if your reader doesn’t open it. Your subject line determines the perceived value your reader attributes to your email. Most people receive multiple emails a day. The ones that get open are generally based on how engaged the reader is with the author and how interesting the prospective email appears to be based on the subject line. Creating great, attention-grabbing subject lines is the first step to getting your emails opened.
Don’t bait your readers- Now that you clearly understand the importance of a catchy, eye-grabbing subject line, I want to caution you against baiting your readers. Don’t pitch them via the subject line with a sexy phrase, timely, or snarky statement and then deliver content that doesn’t match. People feel tricked when the subject line entices them, but the content feels disconnected. Make certain what you are promising in the subject line is delivered in the email itself.
Give them something good to read- Chances are, you believe your content is awesome. After all, you wrote it. Be sure it’s as good as you think it is. Your content should offer valuable information, encourage engagement, and offer solutions to problems your reader faces. If your content is all about sales or using the wrong form of persuasion, you’ll likely get unsubscribes. Make sure your email marketing psychology is right for your audience.
Don’t bother people- People have limited time to engage and lose their patience easily. Make sure your content is relevant, engaging, authentic, and worth their while. Sending emails frequently means nothing if they aren’t worth reading. It’s about quality as well as quantity. If you aren’t making a positive impact, you’re just noise in their inbox.
Follow up with everyone, quickly- A small percentage of emails ask for true engagement. Clicking your buy button is your goal, not theirs. That’s not engagement. That’s a sale. Ask your audience to reach out, to share their thoughts, and to contribute to the “community” you want them to be a part of. When they do, respond to them sooner than later. Monitor your own inbox and look for replies to your broadcasts and emails.
Avoiding simple mistakes will increase your open rate and decrease your unsubscribes. Not only that, it will help you better understand your list and be able to make targeted offers that sell.