Direct-Response Marketing Copywriter Tom Trush | Advertisements, Website Content, E-mail Autoresponders, Sales Letters

The misinformation circulating among the business community about e-mail’s demise as a marketing tool is ridiculous.

Social media killed e-mail … people don’t read long e-mails … if you send too much e-mail, people will unsubscribe and label you a spammer … business-related e-mails must use an attention-grabbing template with logos and pictures …

Anyone who consistently markets with e-mail knows these “facts” carry as much truth as a Miss Cleo commercial. The reality is e-mail continues to thrive, even as inboxes get more crowded and the competition for attention increases.

Here are 5 truths guaranteed to get you more clients using e-mail:

1. You must send more e-mails to avoid getting labeled a spammer. Send e-mails only once or twice a month and your unsubscribe rates will soar. After all, people aren’t expecting information from you, so they’re more likely to view your e-mail as an interruption to their day. Also keep in mind, unsubscribe rates are highest in the first couple of days after someone subscribes. So immediately send your newest subscribers valuable information.

2. You must encourage your readers to share your e-mails. If you provide helpful insight, your e-mails will get passed around. But you should still remind readers to share. So include a sentence in all your e-mails that states something like, “Please feel free to share this e-mail with the people in your network” or “Please feel free to share this e-mail with your friends and family.”

3. You must add more information to your signature line. You miss a major opportunity for exposure if all you include is your name, phone number or website address in your signature line. Link to an article you wrote, a specific page on your website, a helpful video you recorded, or any other materials that offer valuable information for your readers. One free tool worth checking out WiseStamp, which links your signature to your social media posts.

4. You must get people to agree to receive your e-mails. Don’t barge your way into people’s inboxes unannounced — you’ll get treated as an uninvited guest. Make sure anyone you send to has agreed to receive your e-mails. You can do this by using an e-mail marketing software (such as AWeber, iContact or InfusionSoft) to confirm every opt-in you receive.

5. You must optimize your e-mails for easy reading on smart phones. As much as 82 percent of people who have smart phones use their devices for reading e-mails. That’s a huge audience that may miss your messages. So check with people in your office to see how your e-mails show up on their devices. If your e-mails don’t display properly, you need to change your format.

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