How to Optimize Your Email Marketing Conversions

In a world oversaturated with digital communication and never-ending pings and dings and notifications that are — for the most part — ignored, there is still one, albeit a little old, way to get through: email marketing campaigns.

Regardless of their age, gender and life experience, consumers have a hard time letting an email go unread, especially if it’s personalized. In short, we just can’t quit email.

“Everybody uses it. Marketers and consumers. Boomers and Gen Z. Politicians. Teachers. Students. Job seekers. Employees. You get it, the list goes on. We use email because we must. And because it works.” — Content Marketing Institute

So, how can you better optimize your email marketing for conversion? We’ve got four email examples that you can use in your organization to drive up KPIs. Let’s get started.

Refresh: What Is an Email Marketing Campaign?

Before we jump into the examples, a quick refresher: An email marketing nurture campaign is a series of emails used to communicate with current and potential customers.

Email marketing campaigns have a goal — whether it’s to convince readers to take part in a survey, make a purchase or connect on another channel.

A critical part of any inbound marketing strategy, expertly crafted email campaigns are one of the best tools businesses can use to push up their conversion rates.

4 Types of Email Marketing Campaigns That Convert

Now, here are four email marketing campaigns that convert readers, whatever stage of the sales funnel they’re in.

1. The Educational Campaign

Sometimes, it’s a lack of knowledge that stands between an undecided prospect and a loyal customer. An educational email marketing campaign can fill in the gaps, ease concerns, address pain points and reassure your audience. What’s more, it delivers value — genuine value that demonstrates your industry authority and commitment to your customers.

Let’s use an example to illustrate. Say you are a painting company. You’ve attracted several leads using a PDF download — something like How to Apply Paint Like a Professional. You are now in a position to design an educational email marketing campaign that continues to feed into these prospects’ appetite for value. You might compose a series of emails that provide further painting tips, teach readers how to prepare their walls for painting, warn readers on the risks of DIY painting and so on.

All of this information shows readers that you are the industry expert — and you care about the quality of your work.

2. The Personalization Campaign

Email marketing must be personalized. Interestingly, 71% of consumers feel frustrated when their shopping experience isn’t personalized to their needs. Further, emails with personalized subject lines are 26 percent more likely to be opened.

Create a campaign that prompts readers to manage their preferences and select the products and updates relevant to them. For example, if you run an online clothing store, give users the ability to opt-out of menswear updates or kids’ clothing sales.

The customer-focused approach shows the recipient that their likes, dislikes and options truly matter.

3. The Problem and Solution Campaign

Email marketing campaigns give you an opportunity to compose a narrative, to tell a story with a beginning, middle and end. An effective way to drive up your conversion rate is to present a problem and demonstrate how your product or service can solve it.

The first email(s) in the series should present the problem. For example, if you are a carpet cleaning company, explain the health risks of not cleaning your carpets. The next phase of emails should showcase your carpet cleaning service as the solution — what’s unique about your process that solves the problem presented.

Taking the next step should be intuitive, logical and smart for your readers.

4. The Case Study Campaign

Everyone knows the power of social proof, and email marketing campaigns are a great opportunity to put it to use.

“The concept of social proof is an age-old marketing tactic used by companies to ease the worries and build trust with consumers making them a trusted brand.” — Forbes

By showcasing the success others have had with your product or service, you give readers an opportunity to grasp the real-life value of your offering. It’s a chance to speak your customer’s language in a way that’s genuine and believable. This should give your leads full confidence that your company is the right choice for them, compelling them to respond, take action and make a purchase.

Email Marketing Campaigns That Make Sense to Your Business

You can read countless articles, guides and expert opinions about email best practices, tips and tricks. But truth be told, the campaigns that will drive conversions for your business are the ones that make sense to you and your customer, and are aligned with your overall business strategy. Remember, delivering real value is the key to unlocking customer trust, and once you’ve earned their trust, you’re golden.