Email marketing in 2024. Some say it’s outdated, but the statistics say it’s here to stay. Over 87% of marketers use at least one form of email marketing to administer their content to their audience. The real question is, is that audience engaging with the message? 

When marketers were asked their “why” of email marketing, from ease of use to cost-effectiveness, it's clear email marketing isn’t going anywhere. You’re in control! With direct communication between you and your audience, there is no room for outside factors, such as algorithms, owned channels, and various AI applications. Being able to reliably relay information in a controlled environment provides marketers with the most authentic relationship-building method. It’s time to find out how to make email marketing a two-way street, increasing open rates, click-through rates, and overall engagement with your brand. 

Open Rates and Click-Through Rates 

Let’s start with the basics; who doesn’t love a quick refresher? Open rates measure the percentage of your audience who opened a specific email out of the total number of those who were sent the email. A click-through rate, or CTR, measures the number of audience members who clicked on something within your email, such as a hyperlink, call-to-action (CTA), or image. Both forms of measurement provide a business with valuable information related to its included content and long-term engagement. By thoroughly measuring and analyzing these statistics, your business can identify opportunities for improvement and understand what resonates with your viewers. Before you can track these metrics, you’re going to need metrics to track. Work through and adapt the strategies below, and watch your opens and clicks soar. 

3 Tips to Effectively Use Email Marketing 

1. Build and Segment Your Email List 

Have you got a great email but no one to send it to? That’s why this is the first step of email marketing. A “great email” is one that is tailored to and designed for your audience – in other words, personalized, but we will focus on that a bit later in the blog. 

There are a variety of tactics when it comes to building your ideal email list. Lead magnets incentivize potential subscribers to sign up, such as a discount or free gift. A similar tactic is membership signups, a program that offers customers special access to unique offers or rewards through joining. At the core of these strategies is the transaction; the brand is promising the consumer the ability to save money or find exclusive products in the future at the expense of providing the brand with personal details, such as an email address, in the present. By experimenting with the different ways to build your email list, your business can identify the best methods for your intended audience and keep subscribers engaged. 

A successful list is built from trial and error, finding loyal subscribers who are interested in and engaged by your message. This is not done through purchasing contact lists, which appears to save time in the present, only to leave your brand with subpar results and a displeased audience. Explore the authentic, ethical tactics from above, and take the time to study and segment your potential “clickers.” 

At the end of 2023, over 4.3 billion people were predicted to be active email users. So, how do you know who to send your content to? Segmentation, of course. Email automation can help your business section a large list of email recipients into smaller, more personalized (there’s that word again!) groupings based on demographics, engagement levels, or purchase intent. By sending a specific segmented group an email that caters to their interests and needs, you are much more likely to increase engagement and create user longevity with your brand. 

2. Write Compelling Subject Lines and Email Content 

You have your ideal list formed; now what? How are you going to get the receivers to engage with your content? More importantly, what will you do to increase your open rates and CTRs? Email formatting. The title, the content, and the interactives. All of these components play a large part in the performance and success of your email marketing strategies. There is no one right way to construct your email messages, but there are definitely structures that every marketer should follow to increase engagement in their brand. 

• Write a Click-Worthy Subject Line: If you want to boost open rates, it all starts with the subject line. Effective subject lines engage curiosity and grab attention. While keeping it short in length, the message should accurately depict the contents of the email while creating a desire to click and find out more. Give your audience a solid reason to be intrigued by mentioning an incentive or additional benefit to be received by exploring the email.
  
  
• The Nitty-Gritty Email Contents: Experiment with elements of your email, including an email signature, CTAs, personalized greetings, and opt-ins. A good email feels warm and authentic, including humor, emojis, and language that resonates with your audience. An entirely text-based email is B-O-R-I-N-G, but too many images and clickables can distract your audience from the intended message. By using a balance of captivating images and easy-to-follow text, your audience will likely engage with your brand, extending past solely opening your emails.
  
  
• The Money Maker, Clickables: These are the holy grail of email marketing, and the success is measured by your CTR Images, hyperlinks, and CTAs are all examples of email content that can be “clicked,” bringing the customer to a webpage (preferably yours) related to the clickable. By hyperlinking images and creating alt text for links, your email displays as immersive and visually appealing, all while containing interactive ways to engage with your brand. Depending on the purpose of the email, you may use more or less clickables in a single send-off. However, you must find ways to include clickables fluidly throughout your emails, or the engagement can quickly end with the initial open click. 

The message should be at the core of the email, through all of the images, clickables, and well-written subjects. Avoid clickbait titles and string together a cohesive message from the initial subject line to the final scroll. I’m sure you have been dying to talk about it, and the time has finally come. To put these pieces together, the ideal email list and compelling email structure should focus on personalization. 

3. Leverage Personalization and Automation 

We’ve covered segmentation and effective email content. All that’s left is incorporating personalization. Personalized emails create a sense of relationship between the brand and subscriber. Using automation, your brand can customize aspects of the email for specific segments and individualized elements such as name and favorite products. Looking at consumer data, such as purchase history and levels of engagement, is crucial to successfully personalize an email to a specific viewer. Segmented email campaigns lead to CTRs 50% higher than email campaigns with no specified grouping. If you're still not convinced about the importance of personalization, let’s talk about money. 58% of revenue is generated from personalized emails. With consumers’ inboxes being flooded daily with emails from retailers, restaurants, and recent news stories, making your message personalized will help your email stand out among the masses. 

Behavior triggers are another great way to incorporate personalization into email marketing strategies. Align your messaging with where your audience is on their journey with your company. Has Miranda, the 26-year-old from Chicago, had products sitting in her online shopping cart for a few days? She may be contemplating her potential purchase, meaning this is a great time to send a personalized email to Miranda. The email should address Miranda by name and contain a CTA message with images of the products. Another great strategy to try in this scenario would be providing Miranda an additional benefit with a short usage period, such as a discount or free gift with purchase, to encourage her to return to your website. Not only could this lead to potential revenue, but CTRs, engagement, and customer retention will also likely increase. 

Automation incorporation at all levels and stages of email marketing can make segmenting, structuring, and personalizing your emailing process a breeze. Find a customer relationship management (CRM) platform with the tools your business needs to create effective email content. Use your CRM platform to create segments based on demographics and past purchasing behavior. You can also track and analyze your email marketing metrics, making it possible to see successes and failures in real-time. Discover what works and what doesn’t work based on open rates, CTRs, and conversion rates. By identifying the methods that resonate the most with your audience, your brand can focus more on creating a personalized experience and driving click rates rather than crunching numbers and distributing mass-targeted emails. 

Analyzing and Improving Click Rates 

By tying all of these methods together, you are one step closer to increasing your email click rates. If you hone in on the little things of email marketing, your audience will likely notice. Each email you send should have a clear purpose that your audience can feel through every element. Experiment with different abilities of images, clickables, and engaging messages. It sounds a little too simple, but take the time to craft a well-polished system that keeps your subscribers clickin’. 

After discussing the “how-to’s” of email marketing, I know what you’re thinking … What do good open and click-through rates look like? It can vary, depending on your industry. Good email open rates should be between 17-28%, with the 2022 average being 21.5% across all industries. As for CTRs, the 2022 cross-industry average was 2.3%, with a recommended range of 2-5%. It’s important to keep these numbers in mind when analyzing your click rates, but expanding your research to industry and competitor specifics is the best way to fully understand your own numbers. 

“Winning” at Email Marketing 

Email marketing is still alive and well, but it may need new forms of nurturing to continue thriving in the ongoing era of social media. The two marketing channels can coexist, especially when handled with care and a sound strategy. You can achieve your email marketing goals by taking the time to establish unique segments, develop visuals and text that resonate with your audience, and prioritize personalization throughout your content. Marketers everywhere aren’t giving up on good ole’ email quite yet, so you shouldn’t either. Adapt strategies that work for your business and excite your audience. The clicks are soon to follow.