Paid marketers and even business owners often dismiss the power of email marketing. This is typically because they have run an unsuccessful campaign in the past and didn’t reap any benefits from it. Research shows that for every dollar spent on email marketing, a company makes a resounding $40. Those are staggering statistics and the return on investment is better even than SEO, internet display and keyword ads. The problem is that it is hard to stay out of the junk folder and people often don’t do the prep work necessary to make their email marketing campaign a success. Here are a few tips to keep your clickable content in the inbox and in front of dubious consumer eyes.

Email List Segmentation

This really boils down to knowing your target audience and understanding key differences. Each customer is different and will respond differently to the same email, so it is better not to use a generic approach. Generic emails almost always end up in the spam folder or the trash bin. Recipient relevant emails are shown to drive 18 times more revenue than generic emails, so segmentation is key. Take a targeted approach and divide your email list into easy to manage subgroups. Segmenting your emails by age, gender and geographic location automatically improves open rates, customer acquisition, retention and a whole host of other elements beneficial to your business.

Keeping Reader’s Attention

Okay, they have opened the email and maybe even subscribed to the newsletter. Very few marketing pros talk about keeping the audience’s attention once they’ve opened the email so here’s a valuable tip: try to keep emails about Twitter length, which is about 140 characters. Of course, you want to keep the content relevant and meaningful. However, studies show that teens and adults alike check their email between ten and 40 times per day and nobody wants an email a page long. If you need more space, use easy to read titles and bulleted lists. Don’t forget more and more people are checking their emails from a mobile device so you will get a better response if it is short and concise. Avoid unnecessary information and only use one call-to-action per email.

Think Outside The Box

You are already segmenting your emails to make them more targeted, so take it a step further and try to personalize each email as much as possible. Be bold. If you have the recipient’s first name, use it. Actually address the email to them using their name in the body. Ask a few easy but relevant questions to soften it up. Studies show that emails with a personalized subject line have a higher chance of being opened by over 25 percent. Those are statistics which give you motivation to personalize things. Sign the email with your name. If you have a picture of yourself, use it. People like feeling special and if you make them feel important in your email marketing campaign, it will show.

Utilize A/B Split Testing

This is the best email marketing tip available. If there were only one tip that would make a difference, this would be it. Split test your emails. Use A/B versions and see which version of your email campaign gives you a better response or higher conversions. Then you know which one to use. Do this frequently and it will show you where to tweak your campaign. Split testing your campaign can show you what subject lines work best and help you better understand what your customers want to see.

Use these email marketing tips to explode your sales. Those who say it doesn’t work have probably overlooked their own shortcomings in this area. Email marketing does work, and it is a fantastic way to boost sales. These tips will keep your approach competitive and successful.