The primary goal of any email marketing campaign is to achieve a high click-through rate (CTR)—you want your subscribers to not only read your message, but to also take action by clicking through to your website or landing page, where they’ll hopefully become customers.
There are a number of factors that can affect your CTR. These include:
- Target audience: Consumers are often a tougher audience than business-oriented lists. Email campaigns targeted for consumers will naturally have a lower CTR. Relevance of the content to your audience is also a factor here.
- Messaging and content: Informative articles have a different impact than special offers, promotions, and discounts. The visual layout of your email also affects CTR—compelling, clickable images may see more activity than text links.
- Frequency: Your message frequency impacts your click-through rate. Striking the right balance in your frequency is essential to improving CTR—with infrequent messages, customers may forget about you, but sending messages too often tends to annoy subscribers.
- Links: The more links your emails contain, the greater the opportunity to receive click-throughs—but stuffing your messages full of links can cause negative reactions.
So, how can you improve your click-through rates? Here are five ways to get subscribers clicking on your messages and making the most of your email marketing campaigns.
- Know your target audience
Contrary to popular belief, Internet users don’t hate advertisements. What they do dislike are ads that aren’t relevant to them. Therefore, it’s essential for you to be familiar with the demographics you’re targeting, and build your subscriber lists accordingly. When you’re familiar with your target audience, you’ll not only be able to send clear, focused messages, but you’ll also have the opportunity to employ visuals that appeal to them. Targeted content is a key factor in improving your CTR. - Keep it simple
As with just about any effective online content, when it comes to email marketing, less is more. The average Internet user doesn’t want to read anything long and involved. Get straight to the point with your marketing messages—use subheads and bullet points to break things up, and don’t wait until the end of the email to include links.In fact, you should have at least one link to your landing page or website near the top of your email, with a strong call to action, so readers don’t have to scroll down the page to find it. Many won’t bother reading that far.
- Craft true calls to action
You can have the most fascinating marketing copy ever written—but it won’t do your business any good if readers don’t know what they’re supposed to do once they’ve read it.Your call to action should offer a compelling reason for subscribers to click through to your website or landing page. The best action copy will either promise an immediate benefit— such as a discount, free trial, or bonus gift—or give a reason to act now, such as a limited-time offer.
- Make it easy to share
Social media represents a huge segment of online marketing power. Help your subscribers share your informative content or special offers by including easy click-to-share options for Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and other popular social media sites. - Use big red buttons
Graphic images are more compelling than text. Including large buttons in your email messages gives readers something they can easily focus on, without having to read through everything.Your big red button should include a brief call to action, such as “Join Now,” “Free Trial,” or anything associated with your campaign. Make sure the button is linked to a page that’s directly related to your offer—ideally, where they can make a purchase directly from the click-through.
Improving your CTR is one of the most effective ways to increase ROI through your email marketing campaigns. If you’d like more information on how Informatix can help you tailor your email marketing to boost your click-through rate, please contact us for a consultation.