Continuing with my six-part series of putting together stellar email campaigns, I’m going to look at specific targeting of your audience and the unique value you bring as a travel marketer. These ideas are based on HubSpot’s short but excellent report on five-star email marketing.
Segmenting your email audiences
More companies are looking to segmentation to make their email campaigns lead generation powerhouses. That’s because when you can write letter content that appeals to a certain group, you’re more likely to have those prospects read the email and click on your landing page links, increasing your chances for greater sales and revenue generation.
You might think dividing your mailing list up like this would be tough sledding. But it isn’t, especially when you can categorize your prospects with the help of email marketing sites like Constant Contact, Mail Chimp or AWeber
. These services make email marketing a snap and help you to keep track of what’s working more efficiently.
It’s well worth your time to segment your list, as 39% of those marketers who do have increased open rates of their emails, according to HubSpot. Companies sending out customized emails also experience 28% fewer unsubscribed prospects.
So what are some ways that you, as a travel marketer, can divide up your list for awesome email campaigns? Here are some ways that the report suggests:
- Demographics – As you might guess, this is the most basic kind of segmentation. You can divide your audience into gender, age groups, geographical area, level of education, etc.
- Personas – If you have developed several profiles of your typical customer, write emails that address what these people want and care about. If done right, they can be a powerful strategy for your marketing.
- Past buying – What have your customers bought from you before? Bike trips or hiking tours? Europe or Asia? Separate your customers using those criteria by targeting email content to those particular details.
- Buying cycles – Tailor your emails to prospects initially coming into your sales funnel, to those who are closer to purchasing, and to those who have decided to buy.
- Content engagement – What kind of information do your customers and prospects respond to the most – ebooks, white papers, ecourses? Send more of that type of content to those who download those files often.
Don’t forget about mobile optimization and text-only options for your emails. These details will enable your audience to view your emails on both their computers and devices without problems.
Value proposition – what makes your message appealing?
How do you grab the attention of your email customers, right away? Tell them what you’ve got to offer immediately in that first sentence. In other words, hook ‘em right away.
You’ll also want to follow these foolproof strategies:
- Say exactly what your prospects will receive in your offer (a report, templates, etc.), relating as much detail as possible. Try to including what benefits the product will offer, how to access the content and how much it will cost.
- Use statistics to demonstrate the problem your product solves. For example, “Social media strategy planning helps travel companies increase their audience engagement by 73%.” This will give you the proof to offer your social media marketing planning template.
- Consider the right visual elements to enhance your message. Maintain a clean and uncluttered layout. Use call-to-action copy on your offer buttons. Place links throughout the email, not just at the end or in once place. Use bullet points to highlight important information (like I’m doing here!)
Next up: How calls-to-action, images and social sharing all help to make your emails shine.
What have you done to segment your email list, or create a value proposition in your campaigns? Share your thoughts below!