You may think that your email marketing message is just like a mild mannered guy headed to work to do his job.

But once he is out the door, things get complicated - to actually arrive at the office; he has to live the life of an action hero.

Filters, ISP regulations, SPAM reports, and federal laws are all obstacles as difficult as the car chases the typical action hero has to overcome. As a marketer, you have to clear the way for him to arrive safely. The success of your campaign depends on maximising deliverability by focusing on some important factors.

Today’s SPAM filters block most unsolicited email marketing before it ever hits an inbox. To ensure that your lead generation efforts create maximum exposure, you have to take steps to clear the way for your outgoing messages.

1. Avoid Spam Buzzwords

Spam buzzwords are like taking a detour through a bad part of town. This is not the neighborhood you want to sell in, so here’s how you stay clear.

The subject line and the body of your messages will be filtered by ISPs to check for spam trigger words. The words that trigger these filters are like the infomercial language. Don’t use following:

  • Exclamation points
  • all CAPITALS
  • Promotional words – Cheap/Free/Bargain
  • Symbols $$
  • Attachments

Use language that will speak directly to your target audience and your action hero should have no trouble staying out of this bad neighborhood.

Some email service providers have spam checkers you can run your messages through like Content Detective and ContentChecker. Alternately, a good list to get an overview of spam triggering words is here.

Being blacklisted for spamming has far worse implications for your marketing efforts than just failing to deliver the message. If you have been identified for sending spam messages, your ISP may blacklist your IP address from sending emails for up to 72 hours.

2. POW! Subject Lines Matter

The average inbox is filled with hundreds of unread emails that got through the filters but failed to capture enough attention. Follow some important subject line tips and your marketing emails will have significantly higher open rates.

  • Short subject lines and powerful sub-headers. Aim to keep your subject line under 50 characters
  • Design subject lines with the audience motivation in mind
  • Watch the capital letters – more is not better. Capitals are powerful, but they lose impact when in crowds and get you caught in SPAM filters
  • Address your audience in a conversational tone which makes them feel like your peer not your target
  • Include numbers and lists in your subject lines to attract the curious clicker
  • Use humour occasionally and carefully – knowing your audience and what will tickle, not offend, is key here

Remember, the customer is like you. Treat them as a friend. Entice them to open by making them comfortable, interested and entertained.

3. Just in Time: Delivery Timing Counts

Interesting research has revealed that email inboxes in time zones across the world have differing peak hours and so emails sent at specific hours have higher open rates than at others. Successful email marketing will time messages to align with time zone inbox activity. Email messages that are sent to arrive during the top activity windows provide the best open rates.

The best strategy is to send emails out in waves, based on regional time zones and regional differences. For example:
If you’re sending business-to-business emails in the UK and Europe, your best time slot is 11 a.m.-2 p.m. local time and the best weekday is Thursday. In America, emails sent Tuesday are significantly more successful, but peak hours for email open rates vary by time-zone.

4. Give your Hero the right address

No action hero can save the day without knowing where he is going, and your email marketing campaign can’t be successful without having reliable email addresses. One of the most vital success factors for effective email marketing campaigns is delivering to the right person. This relies on maintaining an updated list of email addresses with correct job functions linked to them to guarantee the intended recipient gets the message.

DiscoverOrg refreshes each record in our databases of nearly 350,000 contacts at over 17,000 organisations minimally every 90 days. This is incredibly time consuming and we have a team of researchers who are devoted to the task. Our data integrates into popular CRM and marketing automation platforms to create incredibly easy to assemble lists and email marketing programs.

Reaching your prospects with appealing, well-timed messages is the key to effective marketing. These practices should help you achieve a higher level of success. 90% of emails sent today are considered spam, utilise these tips to be part of the 10% that is targeted, relevant and accurate.

 

By Henry Schuck, CEO and Co-Founder at DiscoverOrg.

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