Businesses worldwide are well aware that email has become an all-but-essential part of any marketing strategy. The platform offers a quick and easy way for companies to reach consumers, including established customers and potential clients alike.
However, there are several considerations businesses must factor into their email marketing strategies if they hope to be successful. One major point is the quality of a company’s email list. Marketers must ensure their lists are up-to-date and free of inaccurate addresses to optimize performance.
1. Accuracy is key
Many email lists consist of addresses collected over a period of years. As a result, these lists are often full of inaccuracies and out-of-date information. Compounding this issue is the fact that many addresses are entered manually and are therefore prone to human error. Who hasn’t mistyped an email address at some point?
If a handful of emails don’t reach their destinations, it’s likely not a major issue. However, when the bounce rate reaches 5%, it may raise red flags with the internet service provider, who might then flag the mailer’s messages as spam. Therefore, it is important to practice email list scrubbing to ensure messages are more likely to reach the recipient’s inbox.
2. Protect your brand
As with any marketing initiative, a business has its reputation to think about when engaging in email marketing. A great reputation can take years to build but can be damaged in a fraction of that time.
This doesn’t only relate to consumer-facing operations, but also internal business, such as IP reputation, which can be used to determine whether a particular IP address is responsible for sending spam. One way to protect your company’s IP reputation is to keep email lists current and to remove any addresses that haven’t been contacted in more than a year.
3. Keep your ear to the ground
General awareness is key to any successful marketing campaign. When it comes to email, a company must be aware of what’s going on around it. This means a business must monitor its activity and pay close attention to ensure it doesn’t end up on an ISP’s blacklist.
Like list inaccuracy and a poor reputation, absent-mindedness can severely impact a company’s marketing campaign. A business should be conscious that it is employing best practices in its email marketing strategies to ensure messages are not flagged as spam or becoming a nuisance to recipients.
Email continues to play a vital role in the marketing practices of most companies. In order to effectively use this channel, businesses must be conscious of their email management operations to avoid developing a negative reputation or even being blacklisted by an ISP. Keeping a close eye on all aspects of the email program is one of the keys to making it successful in the long run.
