Why did you open this blog?
Maybe it’s because you view my blogs regularly and enjoy the ideas I share.
Maybe you’re trying out my ideas to see if you think they can help you.
Maybe you just saw the title and were curious.
The reality is that getting your buyers and customers to open, read and then take action on your emails is now more difficult than ever.
It’s tough with people that know you and so you can multiply that problem by 10 with those that don’t know you!
So how can you get buyers to open your emails?
Here are 4 steps to consider when you are engaging with a new buyer for the first time.
Subject Line
Subject lines are CRUCIAL to you getting your email opened.
You have to create intrigue and curiosity and entice the reader to think “What is this about?”.
Be honest now. Did the subject line I used today make you think ‘What is this about’?
Did it make you think ‘What the hell is he on about’? If so good. Then it worked.
If it had said ‘Newsletter from James White – Number 345’ you might have thought ‘I don’t have time for this’ but as it created curiosity you opened it.
The numbers I used in my subject line came from some amazing research from Sales Loft that showed how the number of words within email subject lines affect open and reply rates!
Who would have thought that emails with just 1 word in them have an 87% chance of being opened where emails with 10 words fail miserably!
Maybe this insight alone from this email will make you reconsider how many words you use in subject lines in the future?
Body of Text
The image below shows that people read emails in an F format.
As you can see from the Heat map of where people read in emails, people start on the left-hand side and their attention dwindles the further down they go.
What does this tell us?
That you have a very short space of time to make an impact in an email with a new buyer. Very short.
If you are sending long drawn out emails which share lots of details about your company then stop that right now. It doesn’t work.
Neither does ‘weeing’ all over the buyer. What do I mean? We do this. We are great at that. We have worked with xyz, blah blah blah…
You need to ensure you make your emails direct, and to the point but ensure you add value in the process. Build some authority up front by showing you understand the problems of the audience and that you are working with people very similar to themselves to solve these problems.
If you can share an insight which is unique or which makes the buyer think ‘Wow this person is helpful’ then that’s a good start. It may not result in them emailing you back but it’s going to mean when they next see your name in their inbox that they think ‘This could be worth a look’.
Ensure your email is 3 or 4 paragraphs max. Any more than this to a potential buyer who you haven’t built a relationship with yet is a waste of time.
Try and focus the email on them, their issues, and how you can solve their problems. Do that in as short a way as possible.
Then be clear about your call to action.
Call to Action (CTA)
I’ve had many people say to me that their email messages aren’t working. When I look at the email I see there is no CTA or that the CTA that they have is too much.
Why would someone who doesn’t know you give you their precious time off the bat?
You may have been very lucky to land an email in their inbox at exactly the right time but in most cases, it doesn’t work straight Away.
What does?
A story of someone who solved a problem, or a Research article which outlines a solution to a key problem.
A call to action which asks for something basic from the buyer such as a ‘yes I want the guide’ is going to stand a far better chance of getting a result than you asking for 20 minutes of someone’s time initially.
But whatever you do ask for, do ask for something.
If you don’t ask, you don’t get.
Final Noteworthy Point
Emails on their own are now unlikely to work. Buyers just get too many of them.
1 email or maybe 2 is nearly certain not to work either.
If you have done your work and created a clear sales plan and KNOW that these customers are perfect for you then why only email them once or twice?
Engaging new buyers now requires a mixture of engagement across multiple channels and, being honest, over multiple touchpoints.
I’m not suggesting you harass people but a targeted approach over several weeks using multiple channels (such as social, video, direct mail and email) is the way forward.
If you want to stop wasting time and learn how to do this properly then I’m creating a new course in February. More info will be sent next week on what the course looks like and how it will work but I intend to share the campaigns I’ve been implementing for my top clients (who pay thousands for this service) with a small group at the end of February and I would love for you to be part of that.
Want to know more? Email FEBRUARY to hello@jameswhite.business to join the waiting list for the course and receive first invitation.
If you want to that is, and if you are fed up with your emails to potential buyers being ignored.
If you’re not, then carry on as you are! It’s only your time that you’re wasting 😉
Buyers are bored of emails which don’t talk to them, which are long and which have no purpose. they will press delete on them all day long.
Change your approach now if you want to make an impact with your emails.
