Skip the spam and junk mail folders and end up in the inbox with these HTML email marketing tips
There are many awesome advantages to being able to send HTML emails, as opposed to plain text emails, but there are also drawbacks to using HTML email for your email marketing campaigns.
Before we get into how to get the best results from your HTML email marketing efforts, let’s first take a look at the advantages / disadvantages of using HTML email.
HTML Email Marketing Advantages
- You can present a more attractive interface for your users to view and digest
- You can insert images into the email to track the Open Rate of your email marketing campaigns
- You can set up links with hypertext links, as opposed to displaying full URLs in the copy
HTML Email Marketing Disadvantages
- Many email software applications and email services block the use of HTML email. Outlook Express blocks all HTML email. Mozilla Thunderbird blocks all HTML email from email addresses not in the user’s address book. AOL, Yahoo, Hotmail and Gmail all block HTML email, although AOL will allow it to pass if the sending address is in the receiver’s address book.
- Within email software and email services that actually do permit HTML email, formatting problems are not uncommon. The beautiful HTML email marketing message that you spent hours constructing could very well break when the recipient opens the message – leaving an utter mess in the email formatting and upsetting the person who received the message.
A simple reminder of something that should be so much in the forefront of the minds of mailing list owners, but unbelievably is not, is the purpose of the mailing itself. Regardless of whether your email marketing message is sent in plain text or HTML format, it is important to remember that the primary reason you set up a mailing system is so that you can guide your readers to take the actions you desire for them to take.
If anything included in your email marketing piece detracts from you being able to guide your reader to certain actions, then your mailing will have failed. The point is to guide your readers to take a positive action that contributes to the bottom line of your business.
The following tips will help guide you to the desired objective of HTML email marketing: converting readers to buyers.
- HTML Email Marketing Tip #1: An image is worth 1000 words – well maybe not 1000 words, but an image can help convey to your readers a certain mood or desire to take certain actions. If you choose your images well, it will help contribute to the success of your mailing.
- HTML Email Marketing Tip #2: Don’t overdo your colors ‚Äì If you include too many colors, your HTML email will be too busy, and it may even annoy your readers, which is never a good thing.
- HTML Email Marketing Tip #3: Don’t fill your page with unnecessary links ‚Äì If you include too many links in your HTML email marketing piece, your readers will be distracted once again from your sales message. Give your readers just what they need, but don’t overdo it.
- HTML Email Marketing Tip #4: Format your page width for the lowest common denominator ‚Äì Unbelievably, there are still people utilizing the 640×480 screen width. If they are additionally using email software, the page width may be trimmed to a size much smaller than the screen’s 640 width. If your readers have to scroll right to read your HTML email marketing message, they will soon abandon it.
- HTML Email Marketing Tip #5: Give your readers a link to an online version of your mailing – just in case they cannot easily read your email within the mailing software.
- HTML Email Marketing Tip #6: Provide a description tag on all images in your email marketing message, in the event that the image breaks in the email.
- HTML Email Marketing Tip #7: Keep images small – If people have to wait on your images to download, they won’t do it.
- HTML Email Marketing Tip #8: Write your email marketing copy in short bite-sized pieces. If people have to read too much sales copy to get the meat of your message, you will lose them before they get there.
- HTML Email Marketing Tip #9: Provide a call to action – If you want your readers to buy, ask them to buy. If you want your readers to support your sponsors, ask them to do so. Action will be slow in coming, unless you specifically ask for the action to be performed.
When exercising some consistent discipline with your HTML email marketing messages, you will find that you will sell more goods and services ‚Äì and that is the reason you started a mailing list, isn’t it?