Email marketing has been around for a long time, so many marketers have formed opinions on what works and what doesn’t. However, they are based on the changing nature of digital marketing. Old beliefs have become outdated, while some myths persist. This is why we thought it would be useful to put together an article debunking common myths. If this is something that you’re interested in, read on as we debunk the four biggest email marketing myths.
Email Marketing Is Obsolete
A lot of people talk about how email marketing is dead. It’s a common misconception; in reality, email still plays a big role in digital marketing. For example, 93% of B2B marketers use email to distribute their content. On the B2C side, 59% of consumers report that information in an email has influenced their purchasing decisions, and everyone checks their emails every day.
Email Marketing Is Spammy
Although some people have reservations about using email marketing – fear of getting lost in the fray of junk mail, for example – it is still one of the most effective forms of marketing. A survey from Marketing Charts found that the average person receives 416 marketing emails each month. But these statistics only show that everyone’s inbox is already flooded with messages; they don’t mean you shouldn’t send any (or very few) of your own. The key to avoiding that spammy feel is ensuring that your content is always valuable. If you send emails that add value, provide information, and are actually helpful to your audience, you are more likely to see open rates and fewer unsubscribes than if you were simply blasting out random emails.
Unsubscribers Are Always a Bad Thing
When a subscriber unsubscribes from your list, it can certainly sting. But the reality is that unsubscribes are not necessarily a bad thing. A clean email list is key to staying on ISPs’ (Internet service providers’) good sides, which will keep your emails from being blocked from inboxes. And if an email does get blocked, there are easy ways to get your subscribers back.
There are ways to fix your mailing list; you can run scans for typos and offer people the chance to re-subscribe if they have been unresponsive to your recent email marketing efforts. Unsubscribes are people who say they are no longer interested in your content, and that could be for any number of reasons.
Long Subject Lines Are Ineffective
Marketers were once told not to use subject lines that were too long to be displayed in someone’s inbox. That sounds reasonable, but it turns out that using long subject lines is not always ineffective.
While email subject lines between 41 and 50 characters performed best, it’s actually longer subject lines with 61 to 70 characters that performed the best. So don’t focus on fitting all of your subject lines into the narrow parameters. Instead, work to create a subject that is eye-catching and gives the reader a peek at what’s inside the email.
Conclusion
We hope this article proves to be useful when it comes to furthering your understanding of how email marketing works. As you can see, some of your preconceived notions about email marketing couldn’t be further from the truth. Be sure to keep everything that you learned here in mind so that you can make the most informed decisions that will allow you to maximize your email marketing efforts.
We recommend you work with professional email marketing services, such as Silo Hill Media to enhance your email marketing campaign. We create custom-tailored solutions for your digital marketing needs to help grow your business. Worry no more about digital marketing, and contact us today! We are located in Caldwell, ID.