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We keep asking digital marketers and businesses to be lovable, but we know that it’s difficult to adopt a strategy that sounds a lot like a “marketing gimmick.” Now hear this, what if I told you that if we actually start putting Lovable Marketing into practice, we’ll see that it not only makes perfect sense, but you’ve also been doing some of it already!
So now that we have a special term coined to it, let’s go over the 5 ways your email marketing can be more lovable:
1. Personalization Beyond [First Name]
Automated personalization is one of the best opportunities technology has created for marketers. Imagine how much time you’d have to spend to manually send a personalized newsletter to each subscriber. You’d have to keep one or two full-time employees just for this task alone! And that’s why it confuses me to see how we, digital marketing experts, make so little use of this technology. It’s not just about the subscriber’s first name!
Think beyond, think about the company they work at, the city they live in, the challenges they are facing … you can personalize all this data. Subscriber information is collected from the forms on your website (even the simple contact form you have). For an instance, if you plan to send newsletters based on the challenges your subscribers are facing, you need to have the appropriate custom form fields on your landing pages beforehand.
If you get many re-conversions, employ smart fields, which are visible only if the user hasn’t shared that information in the past. Use ALL data you have! But organize it before.
Now, let’s talk about a whole different level of personalization. Humans like communicating with humans, not computers. So, if you want your users to know that the email newsletter was written by a human being like them, add your data at the end of the email. Let them know that it’s Samantha or Mike reaching out to them. Add an image, so they can visualize you. We love the things we can see, so reveal yourself!
2. Smart Relationship-Building
Resist the temptation to sell. Email marketing is a great selling tool for B2B companies and many B2C companies, but you need to focus on smart selling. Sell your brand, and they’ll buy your product. Don’t ask them to buy a new car for $9,999 in an email. Instead, focus on building relationships with your leads.
Ask them how their day is going, what issues they have that you can help with, send them useful and fun information, etc. Keep the word “relationship-building” in mind when writing your next newsletter.
Having said this, you should make sure that your customers can convert if they want to. Optimize your newsletter with relevant links, calls-to-action, and buttons. Direct them to your landing pages, and let them make their choice.
3. Don’t Be Needy. Let Them Miss You
It doesn’t take a relationship coach to know that annoying your friends will make them want to unsubscribe. Here are 2 very important phrases you need to remember:
- Not too often: Remember that some of your new leads may be in an email workflow, receiving automated lead nurturing emails for the next 2-3 weeks. If you keep sending them your regular weekly emails as well, they might get annoyed. Don’t be that friend who calls every day to tell about their life for 3 hours straight; let them miss your content a little.
- Not too long: Keep your emails short and scannable. Your readers receive dozens of email newsletters daily, they run businesses or care for their families, so they don’t have the time to read a 2-page email. Use clear titles and subtitles, format your newsletter for the human eye, and keep it short.
4. Reward Them With More Than Your Love
We know your love feels really warm, but let’s be real … your readers need just a tiny bit more than that. Sure, you can think that they’ve already received the offer they signed up for, so you’re even, but a smart marketer would use every chance to reward their exclusive email club and make the subscribers feel special.
Referrals and word-of-mouth can bring you new business, so make your current leads feel special. Share exclusive information, give them early access to reports and demos. Every time you’re about to release a new product or service, let your email list know about it first. Your Twitter followers can find out later!
5. Ask for feedback …
Finally, keep it mutual. If you’ve been sending a lot of love on their way, don’t be shy to ask your leads for some love back. If you’ve done your job well, your readers will want to give you their opinion, suggestions, or simply say “Thank You” for the fantastic content you’ve been developing. Encourage them to reply, start conversations, even if it’s not going to lead to marriage or sale.
And if some of your readers are complaining about an issue, keep in mind that a negative comment is not a disaster for a marketer, it’s an opportunity!
In the midst of all that commercial noise in their inbox, your lovable email packed with truly caring and helpful information might create a smile on your lead’s face … and everything starts with a smile.
Wait, we have more to share! Learn about smart marketing and the Zero Moment of Truth by downloading our latest ebook below; it’s free and ready to take your digital marketing to new horizons.
