Last week we looked at building trust in our email marketing campaigns by creating a recognizable ‘from’ line to our messages; optimizing the copy that is viewed through the preview pane; and encouraging subscriber communication. This week we complete the process with three more tips to polish your email marketing appearance.
4. Include full contact details in your footer.
Publishing your company’s full contact information allows your subscribers to trust in what you have to say. People are more open to content from credible sources and showing that you are a real company (with a registered name, mailing address, and contact numbers) will enhance your credibility. Including these details in your footer also creates accountability for everything you say in your emails.
5. Match email design to your brand.
The design of your emails should be consistent with all other materials you use to promote your business online. While you don’t need to copy your website’s design and layout down to the last detail, it is best for you to match your emails to its theme, colors, and graphics. This will help extend the trust you’ve built through other promotional activities beyond your email marketing campaign.
Once you’ve created a design that suits your image, use it consistently in all your emails. Doing so will continue to build trust through branding and recognition. You may consider showing a sample email to new subscribers so that they become familiar with the look and know what to expect. Once they receive your email, they will be more likely to read through it.
6. Email design doesn’t need to be fancy.
Some email marketers get so caught up designing their emails that they forget to focus on functionality. While the use of fancy code can make your emails look flawless, they will appear far from perfect if not in good working order and will do nothing to gain respect from subscribers. They need to look professional and work properly for subscribers.
To produce a successful email marketing campaign and gain trust from subscribers, you need to make sure that the design you use will work and does not appear broken, leaving subscribers feeling you don’t really know what you’re doing.
For this reason, make sure your emails render properly in at least the major email clients. You should also make use of proper alt attributes (an alternative text description for images that displays before the image is loaded) in case the images get blocked.
Appearance plays a huge part in gaining trust from your subscribers. As long as you keep these tips in mind when planning your email marketing campaign, you should be able to establish your reputation as a trustworthy and credible source of relevant information.
Please share your thoughts and experiences by leaving a comment.
Jeannine Clontz, IVAA CVA, MVA, EthicsChecked™, owner of Accurate Business Services is a Virtual Assistant (VA). ABS provides ‘as needed’ marketing and social media support, training and consulting to busy entrepreneurs. Clontz is a writer, author, VA Coach, and speaker on business topics including business ethics. For her FREE 10-Step Guide to Finding the Right VA, or herFREE Report, Social Media Marketing Benefits, visit: http://www.accbizsvcs.com. Find out more at www.VAbizcoach.com or her book website http://www.entrepreneurialfreedom.com
-- For quick access to a few recent posts:
I was part of a group of women business owners, and members of the St. Louis Chapter of NAWBO (National Association of Women Business Owners) who were invited to participate in a video about the organization which aired on St. Louis television this past Sunday. Sponsored by www.allaboutbusinesstv.com who did a fabulous job. Check it out!
The National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO), of Metropolitan St. Louis, recently announced their annual Public Policy trip to Jefferson City which includes their members, and participants from 15 statewide organizations including the St. Louis Minority Business Council, Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Women Impacting Public Policy – Missouri, MidAmerica Minority Business Development Council, and the St. Louis Black Leadership Roundtable, just to mention a few.
This is going to be a great NAWBO St. Louis meeting – and you get a FREE book with your registration – hope to see you there! 
The National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO), St. Louis Chapter, is pleased to announce their January program featuring Susan Elliott, one of the first female programmers at IBM and later founder and chairman of SSE, a national firm recognized globally
Tags:
email marketing,
email marketing tips,
Internet Marketing,
Internet Marketing Tips,
marketing,
Marketing Tips
