7.5 Don'ts of Email Marketing

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Email service has definitely stood the test of time and evolved to become one of the primary mode of communication because it is not restricted by time, budget and location.

Having an email address is said to be as common as having a house address. Having said that, the biggest challenge for companies is finding the right audience, or people who are interested in what you have to offer.

Half the battle is won when you have identified and compiled a list of potential leads. The next step is to nurture a relationship with them and keep them interested in your company.

As you embark on your email campaigns remember:


1.5 DO NOT broadcast using YOUR COMPANY EMAIL

2. DO NOT use obscure subject titles

3. DO NOT expect others to read your long emailv

4. DO NOT send an email without links

5. DO NOT send an email without ...

6. DO NOT design your eDM with one single image

7. DO NOT send on a Friday evening


Many small and medium size enterprises like to use Gmail, Hotmail, or Yahoomail to send an email blast? If you are, don't!

Google would ban your account all together. Google list the some of the reasons why your account may get locked:

There are a few more reasons why you should not:

a. Gmail limits you to 500 emails daily - Given the average open rates, even the law of averages is not in your favour.

b. You would have to manually remove all the bounce mail and unsubscribes

Think about the time and effort you would be wasted if by manually looking for the ONE Email address that unsubscribed, among the tens of thousands of leads that you broadcast to.

Now, what if you have a HUNDRED who unsubscribe everyday?

1.5 DO NOT broadcast using YOUR COMPANY EMAIL

Using your own company email to send and think it's okay? IT'S NOT either!

Doing so would only compromise your company's IP address and be blacklisted as 'Spam'.

After a while, you will begin to see regular work emails that you send go straight into Spam box.

Keep going and your Host company may ban your domain and host all together - Most Host companies do not support mass mailing!

Remember that your company's name and reputation is at stake.

Use a proper Email Broadcasting System like

With these systems, the unsubscribers are automatically removed. You can find out who is reading your Emails, what links are they clicking - Imagine how much more you can do with all that information.

2. DO NOT use obscure subject titles

Subject titles are the first thing the recipients see when they receive your email.

We spend 50% of the time is spent on crafting a good title and 50% of the time is spent on creating the actual email.

You have spent enormous amount of time, effort and money coming with a killer content in your email body, and you would not want your substandard title to undermine it.

And avoid using words like 'Free', 'Guarantee', 'Apply Now', 'Weight loss', 'Limited Time', will send your mail flying first-class into Spam Box.

3. DO NOT expect others to read your long email

Heard of the term TL;DR? It means Too Long, Didn't Read.

It is tempting to try and include everything that your company has to offer in one single email with the hope that the recipient would read everything and be interested. Chances are, you are just confusing them rather than providing more information.

Too much information -> Harder to decide -> DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO

Know your audience and know what you are offering. The design is important. Be clear, concise and to the point. Try to KISS (Keep It Short & Simple) like the one below.

4. DO NOT send an email without links

Some people may choose to call, but if you have received a marketing email that you are interested in, would you rather click on the link to find out more, or would you take the trouble to call?

The latter seems more probable since you are already on the internet and besides, you want them to visit your website anyway right?

Providing the links would also give you a chance to track and monitor what is popular, what is not.

5. DO NOT send an email without ...

The 'unsubscribe link' Option to reply / give feedback Have you ever tried to click reply and see a NoReply@xyz.com ?

If someone wants to tell you something, make sure they can.

Give your emails a humanistic touch, not another one of those automated mails - you're not going to close sales that way.

Many countries have their own privacy, spam control laws which will normally (at the very least) require some adv or unsubscribe option.

So make sure you're checking your account for unsubs and replies.

6. DO NOT design your eDM with one single image

Heard of the 8-second rule? A Zona Research stated that users will stick around for up to eight seconds waiting for a page to download - that was in 2001.

Images make an email more appealing. However, images they take much longer. One way around this is to slice your images. As the server downloads the individual images, the message is 'unveil' - the reader doesnt need to wait.

If you use a single image as your eDM design, you also run the risk of not getting your message across when your image fails to load.

Be sure to use texts in your eDM in case pictures fail to work. This can also be helpful to people who are using mobile phones to read their emails.

7. DO NOT send on a Friday evening

I don't know about you, but I don't check my emails on weekends.

Timing is EVERYTHING. Most of us check our emails first thing in the morning when we get to the office (And yes, that includes our personal emails).

Sending it early improves the odds of your Email being on the top. The highest open rates happens on Monday - Wednesday.

Send early in the day, early in the week!

What is unique about emails as a form of marketing is it is highly measurable.

Metrics allow you to track your campaign's performance and make an informed decision on your next step:

a. How many people opened your mails

b. How many people clicked on a link

c. Which content generates more interest

d. Who unsubscribed from your list

You can use Autoresponders, Split Testing to improve on your email marketing campaign a good email broadcasting system will have all these.

So how do you produce an excellent email? Every target audience is unique and requires different approach. Trial and error. Keep testing and improving to see what works and what does not

Your potential clients are not going to buy from you just because you sent them an email. Like any other sales/marketing techniques, CULTIVATION is required. So measure, evaluate your campaigns and be patient!

Mark Ang