A Step-by-Step Guide to Boosting Your Email Conversion Rates
Email marketing remains one of the most powerful ways for businesses to engage with their audience and drive sales. In fact, it still has the highest ROI for any form of marketing beating out social media and user generate content.
However, achieving high conversion rates is easier said than done.
With inboxes overflowing and attention spans shrinking, standing out requires a strategic approach.
In this guide, I’m going to be sharing proven strategies that you can apply to your email campaign right away. By the end of this guide you will know exactly what to do to boost your conversion rates and increase your newsletter engagement.
First on the list is understanding your metrics. You need to decide what metrics to focus on because not every email sent is designed to sell.
We all know that one email newsletter that tries to sell something every email…
That’s a sure-fire way to end up in the spam folder.
Understanding Email Marketing Conversion Rates
To optimize your email marketing conversion rates, you must understand which metrics are important to track and analyze in each scenario.
There are four metrics that email marketers generally focus on.
- Open Rates: This metric indicates the percentage of people who opened your email. A low open rate could suggest that your subject lines aren’t compelling enough, while a high open rate is a positive sign that your audience is interested in your content.
- Click-Through Rates (CTR): This measures the percentage of people who clicked on a link within your email. CTR is a key indicator of how engaging your content is and whether your call-to-action is effective.
- Conversion Rates: The ultimate measure of success, conversion rates track the percentage of people who completed a desired action after clicking through your email. This could be making a purchase, signing up for a newsletter, or filling out a form.
- Bounce Rates: There are two types of bounces—soft and hard. Soft bounces occur due to temporary issues like a full inbox, while hard bounces are caused by invalid or non-existent email addresses. Checking bounce rates helps you maintain a clean email list.
Focusing on all of the metrics for a SINGLE email is a mistake.
While you generally want to look at all of these in the email campaign, the objective of the email campaign is what determines the metrics you should be tracking.
Let’s say the goal of the email campaign is to get more people to read your newsletter.
In this case focusing on the open rates would be the most obvious choice and you don’t have to worry about the others. Here, perfecting your subject lines is a must. But so should perfecting your content. If your content sucks, no one is going to open the second or third email in your sequence.
Now, let’s say you want to sell a product or service down the line. Then of course looking at all the metrics is a no brainer.
Each of these metrics contributes to the overall conversion rate.
Now, what’s considered a good conversion rate?
The answer depends on what you’re aiming for. If you’re trying to generate leads, an average conversion rate would be somewhere between 2% and 5%. Getting a rate between 6% and 9% means you’re above average, and anything over 10% is amazing.
Remember, these are just averages, and you should always aim for the best possible conversion rate for your business.
Which is what you’re here for in the first place. So what factors influence these metrics and how can you improve them?
Here are the main factors that affect your email conversion rates:
- Subject Lines
- Email Content
- Call-to-Action (CTA)
- Email Design
In the next few sections I’m going to cover how to improve each of these factors so you can get more engagement from your email campaign.
How to Write Subject Lines With High Open Rates
This is the first and the most important part of any email.
If you don’t have a great subject line that makes the reader open your email, it doesn’t matter what you wrote inside because nobody is going to read it.
So, here is how you avoid that nightmare scenario.
Use Curiosity
Subject lines that spark curiosity can entice recipients to open the email. Use open-ended questions or intriguing statements that hint at the content without revealing too much. However, avoid misleading subject lines that promise one thing but deliver another.
Leverage FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)
Creating a sense of urgency or scarcity can encourage your subscribers to open emails to avoid missing out. Use words like “limited,” “urgent,” “expiring,” or “last chance” to drive action.
Personalization
Personalize subject lines with the recipient’s name or location for a more personal touch. This can boost open rates and transaction rates. You can also use a shared experience to make the subject line feel more relatable.
Keep It Short and Concise
Aim for 3-5 words or 17-24 characters for your subject lines. Short subject lines are easier to read on mobile devices and less likely to be cut off. Avoid filler words and focus on what matters most.
Include Power Words and Numbers
Power words like “exciting,” “revolutionary,” or “amazing” can grab attention. Numbers add value by indicating specific benefits or steps in the email. For example, “7 Tips for Better Email Marketing” or “50% Off All Items.”
Use Emojis Wisely
Emojis can make subject lines more visually appealing, but they should be used sparingly and appropriately for your audience and brand style. Test emojis in your subject lines to see how they affect open rates.
Test and Experiment
Run A/B tests with different subject lines to see which ones resonate best with your audience. You can switch up the length, wording, and use of emojis to find the most effective approach. You’re not going to get it perfect on the first try. That’s why it’s important to write more than one subject line.
If you apply those strategies to your subject lines, your chances of increasing your open rates will drastically improve.
Now, once you’ve mastered subject lines, it’s time to master content.
How To Write Email Content That Converts
Content is king.
There is no way around it. You need to write great content in order to persuade someone to take a specific action.
The more you know your customer, the more your content will resonate with your them. So step number one is to create your ideal customer profile otherwise known as the “ICP.”
Create an Ideal Customer Profile
To develop a customer profile, start by collecting data on your existing customers, focusing on demographics, psychographics, and behavior. Identify common characteristics like age, gender, location, income, buying habits, and interests. Then, create detailed personas representing typical customers, which can guide your marketing efforts and product development.
Use copywriting principles in your email body
Use storytelling techniques, a conversational tone, and persuasive language to capture attention. Break up long paragraphs into shorter sections to maintain readability. Adding humor, when appropriate, can also enhance engagement.
Use Social Proof
Incorporate testimonials, case studies, or user-generated content to build credibility. Social proof can reassure readers that your product or service is reliable and trusted by others.
Add Rich Media
Enhance your email content with visuals like images, GIFs, or infographics to make it more engaging. However, don’t overuse visuals, as this can lead to emails being flagged as spam.
Provide Free Value
Before you pitch any product or service you need to provide excessive amount of value. To provide value in emails, focus on delivering useful and relevant content that addresses your audience’s needs. Offer practical tips, insights, or resources that help solve their problems or improve their lives. Personalize your emails with recommendations or special offers based on past interactions to make recipients feel valued. Or include engaging elements like infographics, videos, or interactive content to keep their interest.
Whatever you do, make sure the email delivers on the promise of the subject line.
Writing a Clear Call to Action
When writing an email, a well-crafted call to action (CTA) is key to driving a high click-through-rate and achieving your desired outcomes. Whether you want your audience to make a purchase, sign up for a newsletter, or explore a product, a clear CTA can guide them toward the next step.
Here’s how to write an effective CTA for your email campaigns.
Use Simple and Direct Language
A clear CTA uses straightforward language to tell your audience exactly what to do. Avoid ambiguity and get straight to the point with phrases like “Subscribe Now” or “Shop Today.” This directness leaves no room for confusion, guiding your audience to the intended action.
Create a Sense of Urgency
To encourage quick action, incorporate a sense of urgency into your CTA. Words like “limited-time offer,” “last chance,” or “today only” create a fear of missing out (FOMO), prompting recipients to act swiftly. This approach can significantly boost conversions, as people often respond to deadlines and scarcity.
Emphasize Benefits
Your CTA should clearly communicate the value your audience will gain by following through. Whether it’s a discount, a free gift, or exclusive content, make sure the benefit is explicit. A CTA like “Get 20% Off Today” or “Claim Your Free Gift” not only instructs the reader but also highlights the reward for taking action.
Personalize the CTA
Adding a personal touch can make your CTA more engaging. Consider using the recipient’s name or tailoring the language to your target audience’s interests. This personalized approach can foster a sense of connection and increase the likelihood of conversion.
Ensure Visual Contrast
To make your CTA stand out, use visual elements that catch the eye. Contrasting colors, bold fonts, and buttons can help draw attention to the CTA, ensuring it doesn’t get lost in the email content. A visually distinct CTA is more likely to attract clicks and lead to conversions.
The key is to be clear, direct, and engaging while emphasizing the value for your audience.
With the right CTA, your emails will guide your subscribers toward the desired action and boost your campaign’s success.
Make the Email Design Eye Catchy
To design emails that drive conversions and engagement, focus on key elements that enhance the user experience and encourage action.
First off make sure to use headings and bullets. Instead of large blocks of text, break up content with headings and bullet points. This makes it easier for readers to scan and decide which parts to engage with.
Second, understand that visuals matter depending on what type of service or product you offer.
Humans process visual information quickly, so use enticing images to capture attention. Showcase products or ideas instead of just describing them. It makes it far more appealing in the long run than just staring at a white screen with words. Also make sure the emails are designed to look great on any device, from mobile phones to desktops. Nothing is worse than opening an email and seeing it’s not optimized for mobile. So adapt it to different screen sizes and ensure all elements, including CTAs, are easy to interact with.
However, avoid overloading with too many visuals, otherwise your oad times will suffer.
Once you have the visuals down, make sure to stick with the same consistent branding. Use a consistent tone, color scheme, and font across all emails. This builds brand recognition and trust.
If you don’t know what you’re doing, then just hire designer.
Hiring a designer specialized in email campaigns can be a huge asset for your marketing efforts. Designers can create visually appealing and conversion-driven email templates, making it easy for you to achieve brand consistency since you can just paste them into the software and off you go.
Takeaways
Okay, so to wrap up on what we covered.
The four key metrics that determine a successful email campaign include the open rate, the click-through-rate, the conversion rate, and the bounce rate.
All four of these are affected by the subject lines you write, the content, the CTA, and finally the design of the email.
I hope you found this content helpful and you’re ready to optimize your email campaign like a pro.
But what if you don’t have time for all this?
You’re not alone.
It takes a lot of work to make your emails stand out and convert. Chances are you’re juggling other priorities and those email campaigns are getting pushed to the backburner.
That’s where I come in.
As a copywriter and email marketing wizard, I know what it takes to create email campaigns that grab attention and drive results. You shouldn’t have to worry about split testing subject lines or crafting the perfect call-to-action.
That’s my job.
With my help, you can focus on what you do best while I take care of creating emails that resonate with your audience.
All you need to do is fill out the form below and I’ll get in touch ASAP!