Fashion Mode

Creating an email campaign for your practice is an excellent start to extending your internet marketing reach. However, just producing an email message for your list isn't good enough. Emails are difficult to get opened; many are deleted from your contacts' inboxes very quickly. There are several keys to success when it comes to writing high quality email messages.

Focus on the benefit

Writing an email announcing a new product or discount is valid - but only focusing on how it is going to help your practice in the message is counterproductive. Focus your message on why this benefits the customer - why they should be interested in this update from you. Provide your email subscribers offers that other clients don't receive as an incentive to sign up.

Segment your list

By segmenting your list, you ensure that subscribers only receive emails they actually care about - and therefore, emails they will open. When someone signs up to receive your newsletter, have them fill out a survey regarding what topics they want to hear from you about. This will mean higher open rates for your practice, and higher amounts of potential sales.

Shorten subject lines

Long subject lines have a much lower chance of getting opened by readers - they don't want to read long emails from you, which is what a long subject line suggests. A good rule of thumb is to keep your subject lines under 50 characters, including spaces. That's not a lot of room to work with - if it seems difficult, write a longer version first and work on cutting it down.

Write as if you're writing to a friend

Use a tool that lets you include merge fields - for example, writing "Hi, Jane" at the beginning of your email is much more effective than just writing "Hi". Another good tip is to not use a lot of HTML formatting in your emails... you wouldn't include fancy banners and moving graphics when you email your best friend, so don't bombard your list with those features either. Keep your tone casual, yet informative.

Don't try to sell in your subject line

There are several words that will immediately encourage your readers not to open your emails... and that obviously is not the goal. If you use words in your subject line that suggest you're selling something, such as, "Percent off", "Join", and "State of the art", your emails are much less likely to get opened.

Break up the text

Write your email in a fashion that can be easily scanned by readers... breaking up the text in short paragraphs helps your readers spend minimal amounts of time on your message, which is ideal.

Become a resource

Include information in your email messages that your readers want, and likely can't get anywhere else. Fill them in on news in your community and dental industry news... that they care about. Knowing they will learn something from your emails will ensure your emails get opened much more often.

Test different messages

Some subject lines and email messages will succeed better than others; even when the substance of the message is essentially the same. Try changing a few words in your subject line or the length of text in an email to see what your audience responds better to.

Test drive

Make sure to test copy to yourself to evaluate how it all looks BEFORE sending it out to everyone else. This is a very easy step and can help you see what your patients/colleagues might see.

Overall, email campaigns are an excellent way to reach your audience. When executed correctly and with care, they can lead to more involved clients, more potential clients, and good publicity for your practice. Do your research before beginning an email newsletter, and find out what your audience prefers.