Recently, a client wondered why they got a terrible response from an e-mail broadcast… Here are some of the e-mail marketing blunders committed that you want to avoid at ANY COST. Sure some of them seem obvious, but they are worth considering if you want to get the best results possible when executing email marketing campaigns.

E-mail Marketing Blunder #1

Don’t wait until the last minute and rush what needs to be done. Everything takes longer than planned. Rushing it means you are going to risk making mistakes that will reduce your results – either a link won’t work, there will be a typo in the worst place possible or something just as annoying that is PREVENTABLE.

E-mail Marketing Blunder #2

Don’t send an unbranded e-mail – it needs to come from you with full logo branding. No branding = no credibility. This is critically important. If you are sending an e-mail in TEXT format, the FROM address is the branding followed by the company name that BUILDS RAPPORT and REINFORCES your brand.

E-mail Marketing Blunder #3

Test whether TEXT is better than HTML. SPAM e-mails are usually sent in TEXT format because they cost less to prepare. Your clients will tell you which one they prefer – the CTR and OPEN rates will tell you. Not knowing this is going to hurt your e-mail deliverability rates.

E-mail Marketing Blunder #4

Allowing an unsubscribe option is STANDARD procedure that is assumed. In Australia, it’s required by the Spam Act. Of course this does not apply to single e-mails sent between people, but the minute you broadcast a mass e-mail, you have to include this even if it’s just a paragraph at the end of the email that says “To unsubscribe, simple reply to this e-mail with UNSUBSCRIBE as the subject line.”

E-mail Marketing Blunder #5

When you send the e-mail is as important as WHO you send it to. Whatever the call to action is, you must factor this into the transmission. If you don’t give people enough time to plan to attend an event, your opt-in or registration rates are going to be dismal. Of course the million-dollar question is what is the best lead-up time? You know the answer to this by now… You MUST TEST it. Your audience will tell you. 4 weeks might be too far ahead (people will forget about it) and less than 1 week might be too short (can’t change prior commitments).

Of course the follow-up and follow-through of additional e-mails will influence this timing – if you have weekly reminders, that could substantially improve results – lack of confirmation messages could also destroy results.

As you can well understand, the more strategic you are about your e-mail marketing tactics, the better the results will be.

Successful strategies are ALL about deployment.

It’s unfortunate when a golden opportunity has been lost. This is why people who deploy properly get such OUTSTANDING results – there are too many reasons to compromise, ways to cut corners and otherwise come up short.

One of the foundational principles I teach people in my programs is about the ‘missing 10%’…

The 10% that eludes most people – the 10% that makes all the difference – in this case there were so many blunders committed that the client never got close to the missing 10%, but the principle is the same. Without the missing 10% there are NO RESULTS.

People wrongly think 90% effort, 90% result. Not so.

50 , 60, 70, 80, even 90% usually produces ZERO result which is why most people get so dejected and disappointed- they fail to realise that it would have taken VERY LITTLE EXTRA EFFORT to get ALL the rewards…

Top careers are made, abundant wealth obtained and real success achieved by ONLY A FEW…

The FEW who do what others don’t.

The FEW who do out-of-the-ordinary things to get extra-ordinary results.

The FEW that have courage.

The FEW that have political currency and know how to trade it.

The FEW who are  leaders.

The FEW who have a vision.

The FEW with discipline to follow through the details.

The FEW with the determination to remove obstacles and fight the forces of negativity.

The FEW who have faith in the plan and themselves to make it a reality.

MOST people lack some or most of these attributes.

That’s WHY the REWARDS for the FEW who have these traits is so GREAT.

These strategies work for companies and individuals of all shapes, sizes, budgets and resources.

The fundamental requirement is for someone to BELIEVE and GET BEHIND IT 100% WITHOUT RESERVATION, DOUBT OR HESITATION AND MAKE IT HAPPEN.

It’s no different to sport – ANY hesitation and the point will be lost. You have to play with the EXPECTATION and COMMITMENT to win.

Otherwise don’t get on the field or court.

If you lose a game – LEARN THE LESSON and use that lesson for the next game, match or tournament.

Or retire and/or pick another sport.

The Internet is the easiest thing that is hard to do – primarily because people make it more complicated than it is.