Email open rates are notoriously low. In fact, the average open rate for emails up until March 2021 was just under 17%, with a click-through rate of just over 10%.
It seems pretty low, right?
The good news is that there are ways you can encourage consumers to open your emails and click through to your website. With more people opening your emails, you’ve got a higher chance of improving your sales email conversion rates.
In this article, we’ve outlined six steps you can take to improve your sales email conversion rates and increase your open rate in the process.
So, let’s get started.
Follow these six best practices to increase your open rate and improve sales conversion rates:
The first thing people see when your email arrives in their inbox is your subject line, so it’s no surprise that this is the first suggestion on our list. You need to make sure that your subject line stands out and encourages readers to open the email.
A great way to stand out is to make your subject line as eye-catching as possible. If you’re not sure how to do that, don’t worry. Here are some of our recommendations on how to make your subject line pop:
Although these suggestions are a great starting point, it’s always a good idea to find out what type of subject line works best for your audience. To do this, you might want to try some A/B testing.
It could involve trialing emojis in the subject line, changing the character count, or even amending the tone of the subject line. As a result, you’ll have a much better understanding of what resonates with your audience.
How many times have you seen a giant block of text in an email and skimmed straight over it? Or started reading a newsletter, only to find yourself flicking between the headlines and not really reading the text?
We’ve all been there. Big blocks of text simply aren’t appealing.
Breaking up the text with visuals makes the content less overwhelming and easier to digest. Not to mention, research shows that emails with graphics have a higher open and click-through rate than those that don’t.
So, it’s clear that using visuals can have an impact on how many people open your email. Whether that’s gifs in an email, a graphic, an image, or even a video, consider placing visuals throughout your email to encourage users to read, click, and convert. Innovative technologies can also be incorporated into your email strategy. For example, you could generate high-res AI art that adds an element of mystery and intrigue to your email, encouraging users to explore the content further.
Creating a clear call-to-action (CTA) might seem like an obvious point to make, but it really can make all the difference to your conversions.
Your CTA is the driving factor that encourages people to click, so you must get it right. And without a solid CTA in place, your readers are unlikely to act, which is the whole point of sending the email in the first place.
Here’s some food for thought on your next CTA:
When it comes to sending your email, make sure to test the CTA links before you send them out. The last thing you want is the email going out to your entire mailing list only to find that none of them can click the CTA.
The beginning of 2021 saw mobile as the most popular method for opening emails. And it’s no surprise when you think about how many people check emails on their phones.
We’d bet that you check your emails on your phone at least a few times a day, right?
As a result, it’s important to optimize your emails for mobile use. If you don’t, you could risk alienating a large part of your audience.
Here are a few tips:
If you’ve never heard of a drip campaign before, keep reading. You’re going to need it.
A drip campaign is a process that sends automated emails to leads and customers at specific stages of the customer journey. It nurtures leads throughout the sales funnel and encourages existing customers to buy from you again.
Let’s use an example to put it into context:
Imagine you’re working at a credit repair company. You decide to send personalized emails to clients based on where they are in their credit repair. Whether they’ve just visited your website, reached out for a quote, or have engaged with you on social media, each stage of the journey requires a slightly different email.
You might also send emails to previous clients who have already repaired their credit. This allows you to re-engage some dormant customers and encourage previous customers to use your services again.
Unfortunately, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach. Every business has a different customer journey, so it’s up to you to figure out what that journey looks like, when you need to send automated emails, and what to include.
A great place to start is researching some automation software that can help you streamline the process. Whether that’s through a CRM platform or a specific email automation tool, you’ll want something in place to help you track the journey.
If you want to improve your email conversion rates, the work doesn’t stop when you’ve optimized the actual email.
This part of the process allows you to see what went well and identify any areas of improvement going forward. With this information, you can make sure that future emails take this into account. You know what works well, what doesn’t, and you’re continually tracking customer responses.
Without continually monitoring how things are going, you risk missing an opportunity for improvement.
So there you have it. Now you know how you can improve your sales email conversion rates with your next email campaign. But before you finish reading, we do have one final piece of advice.
Yes, we’ve provided you with solid guidance about increasing your conversion rates, but every business is different. What works for one company might not work for another. Ultimately, it’s up to you to use this information to find out what resonates with your audience. Take the information we’ve given you, and figure out how to use it to your advantage.
Wanna know what might work for YOUR business?