How To Effectively Correspond Through Emails

Last week, we attended a workshop on developing effective communication skills in the workplace. The purpose of this workshop was to teach forward thinking companies to use emails to get more of what they want and to raise awareness about common errors businesses make in this commonplace communication form. Here is a brief summary of what our Contact Management Software Specialists learned from attending this very informative professional development seminar.

 

email marketing

Common Pitfalls:

The first common mistake highlighted in the workshop was the sending of emails only when something is REALLY needed. The purpose of an email is to build relationships before you need something – urgently. That means not waiting until the last minute-procrastination is not a very productive way of doing business. It’s recommended to send multiple emails with shorter lengths than to send one bulky email that is over one page long to read when printed.

 

The first common pitiful leads us right into the second one – forgetting that there’s a human reading the email on the other end. All emails should have the proper introductions. Whether it is hello, good morning, how are you, you are using valuable warm-ups cues to soften the serious nature of the email.

 

Improving Business Practices:

There were two valuable lessons we learned from this workshop and we thought we would share them with our readers and customers.

1)      Scheduling Emails in Advance – Arranging for emails to be sent in 24 or 48 hours gives you (and the clients) time to breathe between non-urgent tasks. It also sets the pace for future communication whereby your client no longer expects you to reply right away. The more structure and parameters you give to the form of your messages, the easier it is for the clients to know what to expect from your business relationships.

2)      Keep Emails Short and Productive – Every business should commit to making every email message 5 sentences or less whenever it is possible to do. Setting the limit to the amount of words you write ensures you stick to your aims/goals. This brings us to the first pitfall we identified in this article – sending emails only when it is urgent. It is recommended to send more emails throughout the day, rather than one big one. Remember, the person who’s reading the email is human too and has other priorities.

 

Use these suggestions as the starting point to creating e-mail etiquettes that will help you and your team stay productive, proactive, and professional.

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5 Ways to Enhance Email Marketing Campaigns

Is email marketing a thing of the past? NO! Not only is it alive and kicking, but it remains one of the most effective and profitable ways to reach out to prospective customers.

To many C-level executives and marketing coordinators, email marketing strikes them as something old-fashioned. More advanced venues, such as social media and SEO get all the attention, and seem more powerful than email marketing. Unfortunately, reality is not on their side. Email marketing is still powerful because it moves the conversation about your business to a more personal environment – the inbox.

Follow these 5 Quick Tips to cut the fat from your emails and become the purple cow in the inbox rough.

Permission Marketing

 

1. Permission Marketing:

Take a few minutes to watch Seth Godin’s TEDTALKS video on Permission Marketing. The premise of this theory is that marketing emails should only be sent to recipients who have provided their consent to receive such information. Organizations that have not obtained consent from the recipients prior to the sending of the email are sending out spam. Businesses that spam recipients’ inboxes are defeating the purpose of meaningful email blasts. It is equally important to honour an individual’s request to be removed from the email blast’s list.

 

2. Clear Purpose:

Every email marketing communication that is sent out through a contact management system should clearly identify the sender of the email. The subject line and body text in the communication should also clearly reflect the content, origin and purpose of the communication. The reader should not have to read between the lines to understand the purpose of the email blast.

 

3. Clear Call to Action:

Whether it is ‘Call Now’ or ‘Buy Now’, the single call-to-action emails should channel the customer to the intended destination without any distractions. It’s equally important to make sure that the customer/prospect has sufficient time to take action that is offered in the message.

 

4. Focus on the 3Ps:

Focusing on the three “p’s” is a smart place to begin writing your email message. Conveying an idiosyncratic personality via copy, images and design is one way to differentiate yourself from the rest of the emails sitting in your recipient’s inbox. Also, your emails should clearly stipulate your value proposition and positioning.    When writing the message, think of Seth Godin’s purple cow analogy. Ask yourself: am I the ordinary black and white cow or the purple cow that stands out?

 

5. Mobile Friendly:

Smart Phone usage is increasing exponentially, and with it, so is the number of people that are reading email on mobile devices. According to a recent study, 43% of emails are now opened on a mobile device. That number is up 138% from 2010, and it’s pretty safe to say that it’s going to continue to increase. That’s why it’s important to have emails in both html and plain text – allowing people to read the email if it doesnot display correctly on their mobile devices.

 

About CarmelVision:

InfoFlo lets you create professional email marketing campaigns in a quick and efficient manner. Don’t pay for a 3rd party email marketing tool, we’ve got you covered.  Click Here to start your free trial today.

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