Email marketing gets personal—3 tips to make yours work

Email marketing is so easy and inexpensive that anyone with a computer and an Internet connection can create a campaign. But not all eamil campaigns are created equally--or are equally successful. I'm a huge fan of Emma, the Web-based email marketing and communications service that we use create customized email marketing campaigns for our clients and our own company. Did you know that organizations using email personalization saw their order values increase an average of 57%?

To help you employ this cost-effective strategy yourself, here are three of Emma's Eight Top Tips for Creating a Successful Email Marketing Campaign:

1. Decide what it is you want your e-mail campaign to accomplish. Do you want people to buy a product or service, or do you just want them to go to your Web site and opt into an e-mail list?

2. Make sure your e-mail marketing campaign is consistent with your brand and message. That means making sure that your brand and your message and your goals extend all the way through from your e-mail to the signup page to whatever special landing page you've created for the event [or product] you're trying to promote through your e-mail. Also, make sure the design and tone of your email reflects the design and tone of your Web site, so there is an instant connection.

3. Engage readers right away with an intriguing subject line. The subject line is the most important sentence of your entire e-mail campaign. People are busy, so your subject line needs to intrigue your readers and draw them in. For example instead of using the bland subject line "February Newsletter," spice it up by having it read "Ideaworks August Newsletter: How Good Is Your Web site? Take Our Quiz and Find Out…" Check out a sample of our own award-winning e-newsletter here. Or sign up to receive it automatically every month.