by Murray Lunn

Created on: September 25, 2010

+ Give away great content +

A simple way to be successful at email marketing is to give away your best information. Although it can be tempting to hold back; giving way your best information will give the impression that you're always delivering great content and will help people stay subscribed to your list for a very long time. Additionally, giving away great content will increase the chances that others will tell their friends about your list and can increase your overall sign ups.

+ Hold a contest or promotion +

Holding contests or a promotion can easily draw traffic and subscribers into participation with your company. Even the most simplest of prizes are often enough to get enough people buzzing that your marketing message spreads like wildfire amongst those on the list. Find something you currently offer and use it as a prize; you'll be surprised to see how much activity you can generate from your email list.

+ Don't spam/overdo it +

The fundamental rule of email marketing is to never spam your subscribers. Besides being downright rude, spamming also ruins your branded image - being labeled as a spammer quickly spreads around the net and can harm more than just your sales. Likewise, don't push out a new email each day - people are busy and don't want to be overwhelmed with information 24/7.

+ Get the community involved +

Subscribers and your community can be a great way to build a fun and enjoyable email list. When customers and subscribers join into the participation on your list through feedback, testimonials and sharing their stories; they strike up inspiration to others on the list that can lead to even more involvement.

+ Use a clear call-to-action +

To be successful with your email marketing campaign you can't forget that you're trying to generate business. When you release an email with a marketing message always include a clear call-to-action to tell the readers exactly what you want them to do such as buy a product, subscribe to a service or give you some form of feedback.

+ Test, test, test +

Every email you send should be tested thoroughly so you can later use to build an even higher optimized list. Test every aspect of your email from the headline to body content - record all your results so they can be called upon at a later date.

+ Utilize powerful headlines +

Second to having your subscribers taking action is having your email opened in the first place. Your headlines should be created in a fashion that peaks the subscribers interest to open your email but also convey what they can expect - never deceive your readers by bait and switch tactics.

+ Keep it short and sweet +

People are very busy in their day to day lives, keep your emails short and sweet so you don't waste time (or get stuck in spam filters).

+ Gain feedback for the future +

Much like testing your email, you should also use the occasional email to gain feedback into how your business is doing. People on your list will often be passionate to tell you the honest truth; collect data from your subscribers to later be used to improve your business.

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