by Francois Muscat | Jan 18, 2019 | E-mail Marketing
Quality email marketing is the crux of most companies’ digital marketing strategies – and it should be! If you are struggling to get a decent number of sign ups despite your best efforts, your email sign-up forms might not be quite up to par. Here are three tips on how to fix that!
You do not need to know what someone’s mother’s maiden name is to add them to your email marketing list! People don’t like to spend 20 minutes filling in forms. So keep them as short as possible, asking only for the most relevant details, and you will be sure to sign up twice the amount of people in half the time. Their name, surname and email address should suffice.
Where you place your sign-up form on your website makes a big difference. It needs to be easily visible without getting in the way. You may also want to add it to all of your web pages, rather than only on the home page.
Most people are hesitant to sign up to receive emails from brands because they fear that they will be spammed or sent 20 emails every day. With this in mind, it pays to share the details of how often you will be in touch with them. You may also want to pique their interest by letting them know what sort of content they can expect by sharing a few examples of previous headlines and topics. Oh, and do not forget to mention your privacy policy. People are much more likely to sign up if they know for sure that you will not be sharing their details with anyone else.
Do you need help to perfect your email marketing strategy and digital marketing efforts in 2019? WSI OMS is here to lend a hand! We specialise in email marketing, content marketing, SEO, link building and social media marketing. Get in touch with us now for more info about our range of services.
by Marelise da Silva | Jan 16, 2019 | E-mail Marketing
It goes without saying that great customer service is king. But, how do you determine whether your clients are indeed happy with the service levels they are receiving? Well, don’t wait for a Hellopeter mention! Be pro-active and measure your service by asking your customers. Unfortunately, using traditional surveys for these purposes have a very low response rate. Enter the one-click email banner survey – it will provide you with surprisingly sophisticated feedback insights. Below are suggestions on what constitutes a successful one-click email survey:
The shorter the survey, the more chance of a response.
Keep your campaign creative to add to the impact. Personalise your survey with your company logos, colours and images.
A one-click survey needs the tech to support it. So, make sure your email software has the image-mapping technology to achieve this.
Clients who respond to your one-click email survey are more likely to respond to an invite/request to give a review/testimonial. This will create an increased chance to get testimonials and case studies that you can display on your website. And, especially if the surveys are run regularly over time, you can really see the resulting service improvements.
- Reward The Right Role Players
An email banner survey can be personalised for the sender, for example, by rating individual members of your sales team and the service they’re providing. So, when the results are reported, it can show who performs best in your customer service and you can reward them accordingly.
- Rapid Response
No one wants a negative response from a survey. But, if you do get one, then you’ve got a chance to put things right. Your banner survey should alert you to any service problems in real time. This will enable you to immediately contact the respondent, not wait for a report… or worse, a mention on Hellopeter or a public complaint on your social media account.
If you need help to measure your service quality with one-click email banner surveys, contact WSI OMS for assistance today.
by Francois Muscat | Jan 10, 2019 | E-mail Marketing
Do you, like many others, think of email marketing as old and obsolete? This could not be further from the truth. In fact, it may be difficult to find a tool as effective as email marketing to reach a large base of clients, both effortlessly and cost-effectively. Even social media does not compare with this type of aggressive marketing. However, sending emails willy-nilly into the ether is of no use. You need to know what you are doing (new legislation like POPI is changing the playing field). Here are a few pointers on how you can improve your email marketing:
Implement A Monitoring Program
There is a multitude of programmes (such as Constant Contact, Cakemail, AWeber, Mailchimp, etc.) that will help you to monitor your email campaign. Among other things, these programmes will enable you to track whether your emails are being:
Delivered,
Opened, and
The rate at which readers are unsubscribing.
Watch Those Bounce Rates
Are your emails being closed quickly? If so, the following may be reasons why:
Weak content,
Images that take too long to download, or
You are missing the needs and wants of your target market.
There is no sense in flogging a dead horse – identify the reason(s), then re-invent and adjust your campaign.
Easy Escape
People feel less stressed if there is an easy way out of a situation. This applies to your email campaign as well. By providing an easy-to-spot one-click unsubscribe link at the bottom of every email, you will be less likely to annoy your subscribers.
Offer A Reward
People are much more likely to respond to and act on your emails if you offer them genuine exclusive rewards and deals.
For professional advice on how to launch an effective email marketing campaign, contact WSI OMS. We offer a range of services that will move you to the next level.
by Marelise da Silva | Jan 8, 2019 | E-mail Marketing
Fast, cost-effective, accessible and easily replicated – email is an important business communication tool. In an era where automation is rapidly gaining momentum, email marketing remains important for building personal relationships with prospects, leads, and current and past customers. It gives you a chance to ‘speak’ directly to them, in their inbox, at a time that is convenient for them. Below we investigate some of the benefits of email marketing:
Build Trust
People do business with people they know, like and trust. By sharing helpful and informative content with your email subscribers you can build trust and thus your brand’s credibility.
Strengthen Relationships
If you want to build strong customer relationships, it’s important to get your message to the people who matter most to your business. A well-timed email will keep your brand alive for your subscriber, whether it is during your busy season or the slower times of the year.
Improve Communication
Some business models are very reliant on effective communication – email is a reliable solution to keep your subscribers informed and up-to-date.
Generate Calls
When executed properly, email marketing lets businesses reach the right person, with the right offer, at the right time. In fact, a well-timed email can result in a flood of calls each time you hit send.
Boost Sales
If you need to trigger sales during a slow period, a quick email with an irresistible promotion can be created, eliciting an immediate response. The results are easy to track – simply monitor your orders.
Build Your Brand
With email marketing, you can strengthen brand recognition with new and potential clients. Your email may even be forwarded and shared amongst the subscriber’s friends, family and contacts.
Measure Performance
It provides you with the metrics you need to see how your campaign emails are performing, which will help you to:
Market smarter, and
Better understand the needs and interests of your customer base.
Contact WSI OMS today for professional advice on email marketing and to learn more about our wide range of digital marketing services.
by Francois Muscat | Nov 6, 2018 | E-mail Marketing
According to Experian, 60% of marketers do not let customers choose the type of email they want to receive and only 30% let them choose how often they receive correspondence. To avoid customer rejection and decrease unsubscribe rates, you need to make sure that every message you send proves its own relevance and value (and that the customer understands why they are receiving your message in the first place).
It is important for customers to choose the types of emails they want to receive from you, as well as the frequency. You should also carefully weigh the pros and cons of single opt-in and double opt-in to your emails. With a single opt-in, a subscriber will not have to confirm their email address after they give you their email address. A double opt-in requires the recipient to click on a confirmation button or link after you have emailed them. While a double opt-in results in a slower growth rate of your email database, it does offer a better quality list and the opportunity to immediately connect with someone who has subscribed to receive your emails.
To reduce your unsubscribe rate, you should segment your target audience. This way, you will be able to tailor your messages and promotional items to information and products that are more relevant to them. If a person is receiving targeted communication about things that interest them, then they are much less likely to unsubscribe from your emails.
Creating great content is the last tip to reduce your unsubscribe rate. If you are putting in an effort to create engaging and entertaining content, then you will not only be able to build relationships http://www.wsioms.co.za/with your readers but you will also reduce the rate at which people are opting out of receiving emails from you.
Need help with your email marketing campaign? Then contact WSI OMS today.
by admin | Oct 15, 2018 | E-mail Marketing
In this fast-paced digital age, more and more people are viewing emails on their mobile phones. That is why it is becoming increasingly important for businesses to optimise their email marketing for mobile. Designing your emails for desktop just will not cut it any more, in fact, your audience is more likely to ignore or delete your mails, which is costly – to say the least. Here are 5 ways you can stay ahead of the game and tailor your email marketing for mobile:
- Use Mobile-Friendly Templates
Using email templates that have been designed for mobile ensures that your content will render well on multiple devices. Emails that look great on mobile are a sure-fire way to increase your open and click-through rates.
- Make Your Subject Line Shorter
Having a shorter subject line is an obvious requirement, given the limited character space on mobile. While on a desktop, you have about 80 or more characters to play with, a subject line that is more than 30 characters will get cut off on a mobile device. Having shorter subject lines is also a great opportunity to write succinct, attention-grabbing copy to captivate your audience.
- Use Pre-Header Text
Often, the pre-header text is what determines whether your audience will read your email or not. Despite this, most emails do not include it. When used well, the pre-header text is an excellent way to ‘sell’ your content, and on mobile, it is essential to maximise the limited space you have to do this. Depending on the device, there are between 40 and 90 characters available for the pre-header text.
- Optimise the ‘From’ Name
Your display or ‘from’ name is probably the least creative part of your email. But why? Well, it is because your subscribers are more likely to engage with you if they recognise you. That is why putting your company name in the ‘from’ field is more beneficial than, let us say, ‘Mike Taylor’ – who may have in fact sent the mail but is, unfortunately, less familiar to the reader. Although using a real ‘name’ may seem more personal, it does not give subscribers an idea of what content to expect from the mail.
- Balance Image Size and Text
Research shows that the human brain processes visuals 60 000 times faster than text. That is why using strong visuals in your email marketing is a powerful way to increase your conversion rates. But for this to work, your images need to be visible and clear on mobile. The ratio of the image to text also needs to be balanced. Too much text and your email will be a drag to read; too many visuals or visuals which are too large will leave little room for any relevant copy.
On the flip side though, some mobile devices do not show images, so it is sometimes best to focus on the copy and use visuals to enhance rather than carry the message in your emails.
Need help with your mobile marketing or email marketing strategy? Then contact WSI OMS today.
