Segmenting your list is proven to increase your email open rates, boost your click-through rates, and decrease your unsubscribe rates. That’s why smart email marketers use segmentation to drastically improve the effectiveness of their email campaigns.
Once you’ve “tagged” your subscribers into different segments, you’ll be able to send really powerful autoresponders, a series of emails that get sent out automatically based on certain conditions, that you can use to nurture your leads and make sales. We’ll talk more about autoresponders in the section on automation.
Segments make it so much easier to know what subject lines and messages to write that will entice the users to open and engage with your email campaigns.
The goal with segmentation should be to find out how did the user get on your email list in the first place?
Did they purchase a product? Visit a specific page? Download a specific lead magnet?
There are many different ways to slice and dice your list into segments. Here are a few ways to get you started:
New subscribers: send new subscribers a welcome email or a welcome series.
Preferences: subscribers who want to hear about blog posts vs. those who only want sale notifications.
Interests: subscribers who like classical music vs. those who like pop.
Location: notify subscribers who live in the area about your local event.
Open rate: reward your more engaged subscribers with a special offer just for them.
Inactivity: remind subscribers who haven’t engaged for a while of the next step you want them to take.
Lead magnet: send targeted emails based on the topic of the lead magnet that they opted-in for.
Shopping Cart Abandonment: remind subscribers who put items in their cart that they haven’t checked out yet.
UAE Email ListThese ideas just scratch the surface of what you can do with email list segmentation. For even more ideas, check out 50 Smart Ways to Segment Your Email List Like a Pro.
Pro Tip: Contact forms are an easy way to collect info from your leads that can then be used to create more targeted messaging. Check out our pick for the best form plugin (WordPress) and find out how to make your email marketing really shine!
This section is super important because even with all of the hard work you’ve done to grow your email list and segment it, you won’t benefit from any of it unless your emails actually get opened.
There are several factors that play a role in whether or not your emails get opened. Let’s explore each of them.
Probably the most obvious problem is when your email gets sent to the subscriber’s spam folder. Since you’ve already gotten permission to send emails, and you’ve chosen one of our recommended email marketing providers, you’re off to a great start.
Here are some email marketing best practices to keep your emails from falling into spam folders:
Make sure all recipients have actually opted-in to receiving your emails. Seriously. We can’t emphasize this point enough.
Send your email campaign from a good IP address. That is an IP address that hasn’t been used by someone else who has sent spam in the past. Send emails through verified domains. Keep your email template code clean. Use merge tags to personalize the “To:” field of your email campaign. Show subscribers how to whitelist your emails, and ask them to add you to their address book. Avoid excessive use of “salesy” language (these are spam trigger words like “buy”, “clearance”, “discount”, or “cash”). Don’t “bait-and-switch” by using deceptive subject lines. Include your location.
Include an easy way for subscribers to opt-out of your emails. Almost all of this is handled when you choose a reputable email marketing service. Remove Inactive Subscribers to Keep Your List Fresh It’s important to email your subscribers on a consistent basis, so your list doesn’t go stale. Even then, over time, email subscribers still go stale.
Some people may have changed email accounts, or maybe they just aren’t interested in your brand anymore.
So to keep your list fresh and filled with engaged subscribers, it’s a good idea to periodically remove inactive subscribers. An inactive subscriber could be anyone who has not engaged with any email in the past 6 months or more.
But before you get rid of them, try sending one more email campaign to try to re-engage your inactive subscribers. For example, Carol Tice sends a last-ditch-effort email to her inactive subscribers that says, “Do I bore you?” and asks if they still want to stay subscribed. Some people respond, but all others get purged.