How To Kill Your Email Delivery by Making These Simple Mistakes

The worst thing possible when sending out email follow-ups is to have them NOT inbox as expected. However, there are many other fundamental flaws you should avoid when running an email campaign to promote your content or products. Over the years, I’ve tested out many types of email marketing strategies and found some elements to work better than others. I’ve played around with different headlines, SMTP relays, body-text, keywords, etc., and I was impressed with the results. The most value information I gained from running these tests was how to optimize your email marketing so your messages get inbox and how to avoid some very basic mistakes. I was surprised what other factors will influence your email delivery other than a spammed follow-up message.

Here are 4 errors you can avoid to ensure you don’t kill your delivery rate…

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Buying a List

I’ve bought several lists in my blogging career and I would suggest not investing in purchasing lists. You have to remember, the core of email marketing is having an effective relevant niche-based list. However, that’s not the only problem you’ll face because you have to ensure all the email addresses are still valid so you’ll have to invest in cleaning your email list, which can cost anywhere from $500-$2000 dollars continuously over several months. However, keep in mind, many of these people have not given you approval to email them from your domain so you might run into problems sending them a message. The point is this…

Purchasing a list from a vendor will do nothing for you but increase your complaint rates. It will force your IP address to get blacklisted and going forward, you’ll have a difficult time getting regular email messages delivered through your account. In the end, you’re killing your deliverability and destroying your reputation at the same time. Here’s something else that happen to me…

I was using SMTP relays and when email addresses starting bouncing because of non-delivery, I was banned from using relays going forward. This hurt my reputation with many providers, etc.

Not Getting Approval

One of the biggest flaws in email marketing is NOT asking people for their permission before sending them follow-ups. These people are well aware of the blogs and/or websites they’ve subscribed to and will mark your message as SPAM if they don’t recognize your messages. Here something else you should know…

Not gaining the proper approval goes against the email CAN-SPAM, which outlines the regulations as they apply to sending messages to people. If these people mark your message as “Report as SPAM”, then you can be in a lot of trouble, depending on how many complaints you’ve generated. Protect yourself and your blog by asking for permission before sending people messages.

Sending Opposite Content

Here’s something I’ve seen happen over and over again. You’ll have people subscribe to your newsletter promising certain type of content, but send them something completely different. By doing this, you’re abusing the subscribers trust and you’ll lose them as loyal visitor if you start practicing this type of messaging. You have to be clear about your content and why people are joining your newsletter. If they’ve joined to receive a FREE eBook, then provide them exactly that, but you can always let them know you’ll be sending other relevant content. Next,

You have to keep consistency in your content when sending follow-ups. If your blog is on “link building”, then make sure everything you send is relevant. People subscribed to your newsletter because they want information on “link building” and have put their trust in you to provide it. Here are some more tips…

  • Know your objective
  • Remember what you promised them
  • Trust is the most important element between you and a person so don’t jeopardize it for anyone.

Low Frequency

Here’s something many of you probably don’t think about because you have a preconceived idea that sending too many messages will hurt subscription count. However, did you know NOT sending enough email follow-ups can have the same effect? When people sign up to receive newsletters, it’s a privilege because they could have joined your competitor’s newsletters. Remember, there is NO shortage of competition in your niche so people can find high quality information on several websites. As a matter of fact, your subscribers are probably part of several newsletters so it’s very easy for them to forget what blogs they’ve actually joined. This is why it’s important to keep your blog in circulation so they recognize the name each time they receive a follow-up. In the beginning, when I started my blog, I was nervous sending out follow-ups every week. I would send them once every 1-2 months and I lost enormous visitors. Why? Simple…

When I would send them a follow-up after 2 months, many of them forget my blog and thought it was a SPAM message from someone who purchased a list, etc. Instead of taking the time to read my message, they deleted it right away, which was a complete waste of a lead, hence, conversion. Here’s the lesson I learned…

Always keep a steady follow-up sequence and this doesn’t have to be difficult. Many ESPs like Aweber.com will allow you to schedule a follow-up sequence and once set-up, you’re hands off from the whole process. Each new person who subscribes will go through the same sequence and, over time, will automatically remember your blog. It’s a great way of building trust, loyalty, and credibility.

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