If your inbox looks anything like mine, crowded with emails from all sorts of websites, clients, groups and networks, all vying for your attention, how do you possibly decide which ones to read and where do you find the time to sort through them all.  The same goes for your clients and prospects. 

You may be thinking, my email campaigns have such great and relevant content that will compel your contacts to open and read your emails, but if your contacts don't open them then your email campaigns are not achieving the goal you want and need.

So what are some of the ways you can increase your chances of your emails being opened, read and possibly receiving contact from these clients and prospects? 

Here are 5 to think about:

1. Setup specific mailings lists

Do you currently just have one database list with all your contacts in it?  I don't necessarily think having one giant list is the way to go - we have multiple audiences and the "one size fits all" might not be working for them or you if you really think about it.  Setup groups so that you are targeting your members specific interests.  The more you tap into their interests - the higher your open rates will be.  Here's an example of different groups you can set up:

• Prospects
• Former clients
• First Time Home buyers
• Sellers vs. Buyers
• REO
• Agents
• And so on...

Having smaller, more targeted groups and emails that speak to your contacts increases the likelihood that your emails will be opened.  If your currently have one giant list - why not start a little at a time refining these lists and see the great results you will get with a more targeted group and email campaign.

When you get an email about something you are truly interested in and that is relevant to you, you are more likely to open it.

2. Gain interest with your subject line

We all know that blog titles are what initially may encourage someone to click on our posts to further explore the topic we are covering so the same goes for your email campaigns. 

It's especially helpful to show the contact that there's a benefit to reading your email - WIIFM (what's in it for me.)  This is also why you don't want to be sending all your emails to all your contacts - target your content to specific groups.  For example, if you have an email that is full of great content about refinancing you wouldn't necessarily send it to someone that is a First time home buyer would you?   If it's not relevant to them - they will not be compelled to open it and find out more.  Everyone is busy and you need to share content specific to your contacts that will convey to them that they will be missing out if they don't open your email.

When thinking of titles consider these tips:

• Keep it simple and short
• Pull from the content of your email
• WIIFM - state what they will gets "3 tips for remodeling"
• Ask a question to your readers that will prompt them to open
• Speak to your reader by using "you" in the title (You can save....)

3. Determining the best times to send your emails

Is there one great time or day to send your emails?  You'll never determine the "best" day or time but you can get closer to having the results you want.  One way to do this is to review your last campaign.

Look and see how many were opened

• When were they opened (morning, afternoon, evening?)
• In your next mailing send to half your list in the morning and then to the other half in the evening - which got you better open rates?
• Determine if more of these emails in your database are work vs. personal email addresses.  Work email addresses will ensure that more of your emails will be opened during the day vs. those with personal email addresses are probably going to be opened more in the evening.

Note: Again it's important that you have already worked on finetuning those lists by creating specific groups for each of your email campaigns or your results will not accurately reflect why emails are not being opened.

4. Does your email look like it came from you?

I know if I don't recognize a name on an email, I simply won't open it.  In this day and age when so many viruses are attached and embedded in emails with links, who would want to open something from someone they don't recognize.  Increase your open rates by having a recognizable email address and "from" name so your contacts know they are receiving an email from you.  This could mean having your full name and company name,or something specific that your contacts will recognize so they know it's ok to open the email.

5. Determining how often to send and what to send

There are 3 reasons in my mind for why emails are not opened

• I get too many to open
• Content is not relevant to me
• I don't receive the emails I want regularly so I lose interest

One thing you can do is either ask your contacts how often they want to hear from you - weekly, monthly or based on a specific topic.  You can do this when they initially sign up or you receive their contact information or by simply sending them a survey to gather that information.  Think of it as another great opportunity to connect with a potential client - getting to know them and their needs is what will make them more receptive to you and your services.

Think about the content you are sending.  Do you only send one email that has ALL the information you want to convey to all contacts?  Instead why not have separate emails for your newsletter, topics you cover, open houses, new listings, and so on.  This will help you determine which of your emails your contacts are responding to more and will allow you to make the necessary adjustments so that your campaigns are working for you and your contacts.

Serious email marketing requires a strategy.  Not having one is a waste of everyone's time.  If you want to have your email campaigns taken seriously and you want to stand out in someone's inbox, then you will need to commit to testing, measuring and refining your campaigns so you are getting the results you are hoping for.

Stay Tuned: In future blog posts I will further explore with you calls to action, links, and key words to use in your campaigns to ensure you have greater success - I hope you'll stop by to share your experiences and possibly learn new ways of improving your email campaigns.

Do you know the answer to this question:

Do you currently have an email campaign strategy and how's it working for you (and your potential clients)?