5 Ideas for Email Marketing Campaigns

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Wendy Connick is a former expert for The Balance Careers. She worked in sales for more than 15 years and is an enrolled agent for tax preparation.
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Wendy Connick
Updated November 20, 2019

Email marketing is a great way to reach large numbers of leads quickly. If you have a big lead list, you can send a well-designed email and get a much faster bunch of responses than you would if you simply dialed your way through the list. The catch is that email is much easier for leads to ignore than phone calls, so it's even more important to plan out your email design than it is to script your cold calls well. You've got to come up with something that will catch a prospect's eye instantly and give him a reason to read further instead of dropping it straight into the Trash folder. Here are some suggestions to help you do your next marketing email right.

Use the Right Template

Businesswoman discussing with female colleague through laptop at outdoor cafe
Maskot/Getty Images

The basic design you choose for your emails should reflect your company's image. Your business website should give you a good place to look for ideas. For example, you'll probably want to use the same colors and roughly the same font that appear on the website. If you have a company logo, include that somewhere near the top of your emails. If you're having your email template professionally designed, be sure to send the designer a link to your website and let her know that you want something similar to that format.

Know What They Want

There are a lot of possible offers that you can include in an email: coupons and discounts, free upgrades, extended free trials, gifts, extra services like training or maintenance, etc. The safest and easiest way to find out which will appeal to your prospects? Ask them! You might distribute a survey (and post one on your website), or call up a few customers and ask them, or even offer prospects a choice of bonuses (e.g. either a discount OR a free training session) to see which option most people prefer.

Start Slow

Don't launch your email campaign with an intense sales pitch. In fact, it's best if your first email blast doesn't even mention your product. Instead, stuff your first email with tidbits that your prospects will find interesting and useful. For example, if you sell to manufacturers, you might write up a list of '6 Ways to Improve Assembly Line Efficiency' and use that as the main section of your email. If there are trade shows or other industry-related events coming up, throw in a little reminder and a mention that you'll be there.

Engage the Recipients

Encourage your prospects to get in touch with you – not just to buy your product, but to give you a chance to talk with them on any subject. The more interaction you have, the more likely you are to convert a prospect into a customer. So include interactive features like polls, quizzes, or short surveys in your email. Make it easy for prospects to respond by email, phone, or in person by including your contact information prominently.

Use Multiple Platforms

Along with that contact information, throw in links to your social media pages (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, etc.) and your company website. If you can get prospects to visit these pages, you'll have even more opportunities to show them how much value you can provide for them. If you have a blog, include a 1-2 sentence summary of your latest post along with a link.