A single email message can be powerful, but additional messages that go out in response to actions your prospect takes are even more effective at eliciting a response. Triggered email only goes out when an event makes it happen. You might send triggered emails to remind a prospective customer about items left in a shopping cart and never checked out or to make contact again after a set length of time without getting in touch.
To make the most of triggered email, keep these guidelines in mind and tailor your triggers to events that are relevant to your clientele.
Personalize
Personalized emails always have more of an impact than generic messages, and that’s true for triggered email too. Birthday coupons are a classic example of personalizing triggered messages, but they’re far from your only option. Changes to a prospect’s status on preference pages can be useful triggers; someone who changes “Miss” to “Mrs.” or updates an address with a new ZIP code presents a new opportunity for triggered email.
Create a Connection
Whenever possible, tie the triggered mail both to the event that triggered it and to a customer’s current needs. Take a look again at the shopping cart a prospect filled but didn’t buy. That abandoned shopping cart may contain items that are no longer in stock, triggering an email message that reminds potential buyers that while they’re too late on this model, these similar items are still in stock.
Use Multiple Data Sources
Data enhancement is critical to maximizing the utility of triggered emails. With a more complete customer profile, you’re able to choose from a wider range of possible triggers and find which ones bring the highest response rates. If all you know is your recipient’s place of business, you have relatively few options; add in key characteristics such as job title, buying authority, income, hobbies and age, and you have a wealth of additional options for reaching that customer with targeted, triggered email.
Be Patient
The point of triggered automated email is that you don’t have to micromanage it. Once you’ve set up your triggers, you can focus on other aspects of your integrated marketing strategy while the system does the work. That means you can set triggers for weeks or even months away, allowing you to reintroduce yourself to recipients on a larger timescale. If you were to rely on manual email blasts, some of your best leads could be lost; with automated email triggers, that isn’t an issue. You can afford to be patient.
Direct Your Prospects
Triggered email still needs a strong call to action and a direct purpose. Making the reason for your email clear and putting your CTA above the fold is even more important with triggered messages because it’s a reaction, not just a connection. An introductory email or sales message has a little more room to expand; a triggered email should be brief, concise and tightly focused on the event that made it happen.
Contact our email marketing experts today at 855.867.3224 to help you devise your email marketing strategy.
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