5 Tips for Engagement-Driving B2B Email Marketing

B2B email marketing - Outbrain Blog

Even in the midst of shiny, new innovations that help brands reach and engage with customers, email remains a crucial component of successful B2B marketing strategies.

Generating $38 for every $1 spent, email ranks as one of the best channels for return on investment. But don’t think results simply start and stop at increased ROI. Emails pack a punch when it comes to generating and nurturing leads as well as boosting conversions.

So the question really is, are you harnessing the power of email?

Whether you’re looking to integrate email into your marketing mix or refine your existing strategy, here are five brainy B2B email marketing tips to help you craft email campaigns that drive results:

  1. Hook ‘Em with the Subject Line
  2. Maintain a Clean Email List
  3. Nail Down Your Optimal Send Time
  4. Stick to One Call-to-Action
  5. Slice and Dice Your Target Audience

#1 Hook ‘Em with the Subject Line

In the fight for limited attention, standing out in a crowded inbox is the name of the game.  And one way to achieve this is with a killer subject line. In fact, 35% of recipients open an email simply based on the subject line.

To set yourself apart from the clutter, give the following subject line pointers a try:

  • Keep it succinct, aiming for 50 characters or less.
  • Incorporate a sense of urgency with time-sensitive phrases.
  • Include numbers and emojis to stand out in a sea of words.
  • Ask a question to pique curiosity.

#2 Maintain a Clean Email List

If you’ve noticed a downward trend in deliverability and open rates, chances are your email list could use a much-needed scrub.

Aside from retention efforts, it’s imperative to remove idle subscribers from your list. However, before you grab the shears and begin cutting away, consider running a re-subscribe campaign.

Asking for another chance to opt-in gives unengaged subscribers the opportunity to decide whether or not they still want to receive communications from your brand.

To ensure an engaged email list, don’t fall into the ‘set it and forget it’ trap — nurture your list by creating a consistent cleanup schedule.

Check out our re-engagement campaign below for some inspiration!

Opt-In Campaign, Email

#3 Nail Down Your Optimal Send Time

You’ve probably heard that Tuesdays are the magical days to send emails. While this may seem like a cold, hard fact, in the world of email marketing best practices, truth is, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all answer.

Carefully tracking email metrics is an effective way to uncover your optimal send time. Make sure to test various days and times, paying close attention to peak activity associated with open and click-through rates.

No time for testing? No worries! Major email service providers (ESPs) offer send time optimization features that do the heavy lifting for you. This is accomplished through list behavior analysis, which determines an ideal time to deploy your email based on customer engagement patterns.

#4 Stick to One Call-to-Action

Whether you’re looking to secure a call, increase webinar registrations, or drive to a landing page, the universal goal of a B2B email is to get recipients to take an action. This is typically accomplished with the call-to-action (CTA) link or button.

Incorporating multiple CTAs within one email is a recipe for disaster as it can distract recipients from accomplishing the goal you established for the email.

For example, Headspace does an awesome job at keeping things simple with one CTA driving users to their feedback-searching survey. (Read here how to identify your true audience)

Headspace

#5 Slice and Dice Your Target Audience

When messaging isn’t relevant, subscriber engagement takes a tumble. Long gone are the days of the notorious ‘spray and pray’ email blasts. Subscribers expect content that’s crafted just for them.

And now, with more tools and data at your fingertips, segmenting audiences down to the individual level is easier than ever. Best part?

According to MailChimp, segmented email campaigns come out on top when compared to generalized blasts considering that recipients are 75% more likely to open a personalized email.

Strava crushes the personalization game by leveraging data to speak to their audience on an individual basis.

strava email

Bonus: Test, Test, Test!

When it comes to email marketing, A/B testing is your best friend.

Be sure to test your subject lines, send times, and CTAs to discover what works best for your emails.

Final Takeaways

A smart email marketing campaign can work wonders for your B2B marketing strategy.

By implementing the five tips highlighted above, you’ll be able to cut through inbox clutter with engagement-driving messaging aimed to help you deliver results.

Read more about the Top Email Marketing Tools 

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