Email Marketing: 10 Etiquette Rules To Improve Performance

Mind your manners!

 How many of us grew up hearing that phrase from our parents when we talked around a mouthful of breakfast cereal or forgot to say “Thank you” to the aunt who had just given us a sweet treat? Manners matter when you want to smooth relationships with those around you—there is a reason Judith Martin’s infamous “Miss Manners” column is still going more than 40 years after it began.

 Etiquette matters in marketing, also, especially in the world of email, where you enter your readers’ homes, in essence, through their inboxes. If you want to be invited back, and you want them to think highly of you, you’ll need to mind your manners.

 This infographic from Blue Mail Media outlines 10 ways to polish your email marketing manners and get the results you want.

 Some of are obvious concepts when communicating in person—tell readers about the things they are interested in, ask before sending, use the reader’s name and speak directly to them. And now that more and more business communication is shifting to digital from in-person conversations, our emails need to replace those face-to-face conversations, while applying the same etiquette we would use in person.

 Some of the etiquette discussed is more serious than just smoothing relationships. Failure to comply with anti-spam regulation can actually cost you thousands in fines. (Get more information on specific regulations around the world here: Spam-Free Emails: Understanding the Rules Around the Globe.)

 If you want a better understanding of how marketers like you are using email, check out our latest mini-report on email marketing with the results of surveys of more than 3,400 marketers worldwide. Find out what types of email other marketers are investing in, how often they email customers and how engagement has changed in the last year.

 If you have questions about the bigger picture, and how email fits as part of a comprehensive integrated marketing strategy, request a consultation to chat about your goals and opportunities.