There is no shortage of email marketing tips online. Since technology is always in flux, it is essential that marketers stay on top of what’s most important on a regular basis. 74% of marketers believe email will produce future ROI and believe it is core to their business (Pardot), making it a clear priority in the marketing landscape today.

Email Marketing Etiquette 2015

These are our top of the list items for what to pay attention to in 2015:

Finger Friendly

Mobile friendly emails are easy on the eyes: short subject lines, fast-loading images, bullet points, single-column content, etc. But often forgotten is the fact they should be easy on the fingers too:

Easy-to-click CTAs: your call to action should not be an image. Instead, encode your CTA in your email or use plain text that is hyperlinked. Either way, it should be no less than 50 pixels wide.

Unstacked links: the closer your links are together the easier it is for your reader to click the wrong one. Space them apart and do not stack them.

Get Automated

Automated marketing is so important in personalizing messages and reaching your audience at the right time. Consider marketing automation software that can trigger emails based on your contacts’ actions on your website, like filling out a form or downloading an ebook. A personalized note stands out in the mass amounts of email each of us receives every day.

GIFs & Video

Include different types of media in your emails that will catch the attention of your reader. Include a still shot from your video with a play button over top of it so that it mimics a real video clip, enticing the reader to click, and have them directed to your YouTube clip. Or, include a GIF of the video to give a quick preview and include animation in the static email (some versions of Outlook do not show GIFs).

Respect Privacy

Your list should be your list—it should only be made up of customers or subscribers who have specifically requested to receive email from you. In addition, always include an unsubscribe, opt-out, or email preferences link in your email footer. Do not hide it or make it hard for the reader to find, this will leave a bad taste in their mouth.

Adhere to Frequency Desires

Consider your recipients and how often they want to read your email. Survey and poll your readers every so often asking them how often they’d like to receive your information. Also provide subscription options so they can choose their frequency without completely opting out.

Link It Up

Whatever content is in your email should be a teaser for the full length content elsewhere, whether that be your website, social properties, videos on YouTube, etc. Link the images, headers, and words within the descriptions so that readers can click wherever they’d like to get to the goods.

For the Future…

Also be on the lookout for changes in coding capabilities, email viewing preferences, and highly-targeted data segmentation. Want to learn more? Check out these links:

Just like email marketing, there is proper etiquette for having a lead-generating website. Learn the 25 website “must-haves” in this free ebook:

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