1) Get responsive!
Click through rates on mobile phones increase when the design, layout and content are optimised for mobile use. If an email is more finger-friendly and usable on a smaller screen the recipient is more likely to click through. Just like when you optimise your website for use on mobile devices, the optimisation of your emails is essential.
2) Position, position, position!
The strongest placement for a logo is in the upper left corner on a desktop and centred on a mobile. Make good use of the top two to four inches of your email design. This area is the prime reading space. Keep your message short and keep the need to scroll to a minimum. Use all the real estate possible to push your message and brand – some email clients, like gmail, outlook and iphone, show the first 100 characters of the message below the subject line before you open. So make sure you push the details of your message here in the first 100 characters of your email.
3) Grabbing attention!
Improve the click through to your social media channels. Social media and contact icons act in a similar way as a call-to-action, so these must be prominent. Place them either at the top or footer of the email. They allow the customer to click through to further brand interaction with which they may feel more comfortable, or urge them to contact you directly through one of these channels.
4) Turn your inbox into a mini-website!
Make your email header match your website design. This will set your emails apart from the crowd, and by creating navigation similar to your website allows the receiver to click through to sections of your site should the actual content in the email not be of interest to them.
5) Keep on clicking! Make both images and text clickable.
Ensure there is a good text-to-image ratio as too much image and too little text can cause a spam alert. Also, some email clients have images turned off by default, so your email should also make sense without them! Conversely, too much text with not enough images can leave readers feeling they are on an endless scroll and decide to leave the email. It also detracts from the main purpose, which is getting them through to your site!
6) Attracting the wrong kind of attention!
Don’t try to make your emails too fancy with Flash animation because it can be removed by anti-virus software set up to protect email programs from getting infected.
7) Offering a benefit.
Tell the recipient what you can offer them! It’s not about your company – it’s about what your company or products can provide for them or how they can benefit from dealing with you. Use the words ‘offer’ and ‘benefit’ in both subject lines and body text.
8) Make a list!
Numbered lists give the receiver an easier option for digesting information, so a Best 10 or Top 10 reasons or products email will improve the chance of an opening. It also provides the receiver with a rough idea of how much content they will be scrolling through – again increasing the chance of an opening.
9) Simply does it!
Don’t use lots of different fonts and colours – keep it simple and consistent with your branding. Do however make your call-to-action prominent and clear so that your audience knows what to do.
10) Providing an option!
Include an unsubscribe link in the footer of every email campaign you design. This gives the reader the opportunity to unsubscribe should they wish, preventing them from reporting the sender and thereby keeping your email reputation high. This also leads to fewer emails being highlighted as spam by various inboxes.