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Despite the growth of TikTok and other social media platforms, email is still one of the most reliable ways to get your marketing messages in front of prospects. More than 4.3 billion people use email, and that number will continue to grow.
If you send newsletters and other marketing emails for your business, you probably like to plan ahead. But what happens when you decide to run a flash sale? These spur-of-the-moment decisions aren’t uncommon for my team, especially during the holidays. Real-time customer feedback can inspire us to launch a special offer for a limited time.
Marketing email checklist: do this before you rush to hit send
Getting an email ready quickly isn’t as complicated as it seems, but rushing can lead to costly mistakes. Whether you’re crafting a flash sale announcement or a last-minute update, taking a few extra moments to review your email can make all the difference.
Before you hit send, double-check for these common pitfalls — and learn how to avoid them, even when you’re short on time. With this quick checklist, your emails will look professional, resonate with your audience, and deliver results.
Related: How to Get People to Open – And Read – Your Emails
Proofread your copy
Grammar and spelling mistakes can leave a bad impression on your brand, so this step isn’t one you can afford to skip. Thankfully, with so many spellchecking tools available, it only takes a minute to catch and fix any errors. Remember to check any copy you may include in your images, too.
Check your email address and sender name
Can your customers and prospects easily recognize who the email is from? Make sure that both your email address and sender name match your brand. An unfamiliar sender can cause confusion and could even prompt people to report the email as spam or delete it right away.
Make your subject line click-worthy
Did you know that 42% of consumers open an email based on its subject line? A weak subject line could mean your email goes straight to the trash or, worse, gets marked as spam. Work with your team to write clear and engaging copy – and don’t forget to add a short preview text. Oftentimes, that text is what entices people to click.
Ensure correct formatting
Most people don’t have the patience to wait for images to load and can be unforgiving about broken designs. To avoid any embarrassing issues, test your emails and check that they display correctly across devices.
Review all your links
Your email might look great and be compelling enough to grab your subscribers’ attention. But if they click on a broken link, it’s game over. Broken links hurt your credibility and tank your conversion rate, so check every link before hitting send and ensure it has the proper tracking parameters.
Assess your call-to-action (CTA)
Is your CTA clear, actionable and easy to find? It needs to align with your goal, whether that’s driving traffic, boosting signups or making sales. If you’re unsure, brainstorm a few options and let your team vote on the one that feels the strongest.
Keep your email compliant
Not abiding by GDPR, CAN-SPAM and other email compliance laws and regulations can cause your message to land in spam. Remember to include an unsubscribe link in your email and stay away from misleading content.
Related: 8 Easy Ways to Improve Your Website by Reducing Bounce Rates
Extra tips to send a quick but successful marketing email
By running through the checklist above, you’ll avoid mistakes and maximize your email’s chance of success – even when time is tight.
Before you go, check these other aspects to ensure you’re in good shape to hit send.
- If you haven’t sent any marketing emails in a long time, reaching out to your entire list at once can be risky. A sudden spike in volume can trigger spam filters. To avoid that, consider sending your email in batches. This way, you’ll warm up your IP and have a higher chance of landing in the inbox.
- A high bounce rate affects your overall email deliverability and prevents even your engaged subscribers from receiving your emails. To keep your bounces under the industry standard of 2%, check the health of your email list. Are all your contacts still valid? Filter out obsolete and fake email addresses.
- Emailing dormant accounts and people who previously reported your emails as spam can also sink your deliverability. If you haven’t already, remove anyone who sent a spam complaint and set up a system to take them off your list automatically. Also, for higher engagement, avoid emailing stale contacts. If anyone hasn’t opened your emails in more than six months, it’s time to let them go.
Ready to send your email? Once you’ve checked all the essentials, don’t overthink it. If your message is helpful and relevant, send confidently that it will resonate with your audience.
