Email marketing is not new. But it is still one of the most effective and cheapest marketing strategies out there with a strong ROI. For every $1 spent on email marketing, the ROI is $42.
Also, email usage is continually growing worldwide. It is estimated that the number of email users will reach 4.3 billion in 2023.
Source: Oberlo
So, it is a great move to incorporate email marketing into your business strategy to increase B2B sales.
93% of B2B marketers are already using it.
Source: Lyfemarketing
However, there are specific crucial tips that you need to implement in order to increase sales. Here are the ten essential tips you can follow to boost B2B sales:
1. Keep in mind that you are addressing informed customers
Your B2B clients are unlike your regular direct customers. They know what they want and will be making sensible decisions based on what is essential for them. They will also be looking for high quality versus price ratio. So, you should address them accordingly.
Here is a breakdown of the different kinds of clients you will be addressing:
- Businesses that need your products to manufacture other goods.
- Businesses that implement your goods for secondary tasks like office automation.
- Agencies and institutions that need your products.
- And reseller companies.
2. Create attention-grabbing headers
Businesses receive tons of emails daily. It is said that the average office employee receives 121 emails per day. So, to ensure that your email gets opened and not sent to the trash, your headers need to be attention-grabbing.
Let’s have a look at how Birchbox does it.
Source: Campaignmonitor
Their creative header image has all the information about their loyalty program. It entices the recipients to click to discover more details about the points they’ve grown, and also make a subscription.
Another excellent example of a company that makes great use of the preheader text is Sublime Stitching.
Source: Campaignmonitor
Their preheader text is simple, and it has their logo and some links to their site. They make it easy for subscribers to read and get the message across with ease.
3. Craft the perfect subject line
Considering that 33% of email subscribers open emails seeing catchy subject lines, you will have to work on crafting subject lines that will entice your recipients to open and read to take the required action.
Personalizing subject lines is an excellent idea as it has higher open rates and click-through rates.
Source: Social Media Today
You can use your recipient’s first name in the subject line to catch their attention.
Source: Constant Contact
Or simply talking about their interests and giving an offer or discount can also significantly increase open and click-through rates.
Another trick that marketers use is creating FOMO, the fear of missing out. Reportedly, email subject lines that create a sense of urgency and scarcity have a 22% higher open rate.
You can use words like last chance, last day, ends tomorrow, 75% off, extra 25% off, etc., to create a sense of urgency.
Source: Lead Quizzes
Also, apply the K.I.S.S rule. Keep it short, sweet. Studies have shown that subject lines with 1 or 2 words are opened more as opposed to subject lines with many words.
Source: Lead Quizzes
Using emojis and emotions to entice your recipients are other strategies you can implement.
4. Adopt a problem-solving approach
As mentioned, your clients are people who are well-versed about marketing strategies and have in-depth industry knowledge. Thus, you will be selling more if you adopt a problem-solving approach instead of a sales-centric approach.
When sending emails, let your prospects know how your product will help to solve a problem or scale their business. And send interesting and valuable emails regularly to catch their attention.
Here’s an example of an email where the salesperson reveals the problem faced by a company and offers to solve it.
Source: Close Blog
You can boost your B2B sales by sending such emails that reveal your prospect’s pain points and offering to solve them.
5. Conduct regular surveys
One of the best ways to know what your prospects are up to and what they are interested in is to conduct regular surveys.
You can take the help of an online survey maker to create and share surveys over emails. It will help you to know their preferences, requirements, purchase behavior, and more.
While you are at it, don’t forget to ask for feedback or suggestions if they have already used your product. You can use the information to modify and improve your product.
If users are dissatisfied with your product, act fast, and try to resolve the issue. Apologizing can go a long way in building a good relationship.
6. Create interactive emails
You will benefit a lot by sending interactive emails to your prospects. An interactive email increases open rates by 73%.
Source: Social Media Today
Adding GIFs or videos can help you to create engaging and interactive emails. It also gives you a competitive edge as you can show off your products in a unique way.
For instance, you can use attention-grabbing GIFs to show all the different color options for a product.
If you haven’t done it before, tools like Giphy are great for converting your photos or videos into GIFs.
Or you can create a video or add a YouTube video that you have already created before. Adding videos can increase your email click rates by 300%.
To help with your marketing strategy, you can use effective user onboarding tools. It will help you to offer interactive product tours and personalize onboarding experience. The tool is also great for measuring and understanding the user’s engagement with your product and helps you to re-engage lost users.
7. Personalizing emails
Adding a personal element to your emails works! It not only increases customer engagement but increases ROI as well. It is estimated that personalized email marketing brings an ROI of 122% on average.
Start by segmenting your audience and craft your content according to the interest of each group. It is said that segmentation can lead to an increase in revenue by 760%.
Source: Campaignmonitor
It happens because your customers are more likely to engage with your content if they are interested in it.
A great way to segment your audience is by using targeted signup forms. For instance, you can allow subscribers of your newsletter to select their preferred editions when they sign up. In this way, you can send content relevant to the subscriber’s local area.
Another way to personalize email is to create dynamic content. The idea is to create one email but change the images and message based on the interest of the subscriber.
It ensures that you provide personalized, real-time content and eliminates the need for individual campaigns that otherwise have to be sent to each segment of your list.
When email marketers were asked about their most effective personalization strategy, 65% of them said that it is dynamic content.
Also, you can develop buyer personas based on demographics, gender, income, or other traits. It will help you to give a more personalized experience to your customers.
8. Make it mobile-friendly
If your emails are not mobile-friendly, people are most likely going to get rid of it in a few seconds. It will end up in the trash.
A study found out that 66% of emails are being opened on a smartphone or tablet.
Source: Foundation Inc
And another study points out that 15% of mobile users will unsubscribe you send emails that can’t be easily read on mobile phones.
To make your emails more mobile-friendly, keep your subject length to about 25-30 characters maximum. Otherwise, it will not show. But before you optimize your email subject lines for mobile, first use tools to find out what percentage of your audience uses smartphones, tablets, or desktop to open their emails.
Another great tip to follow is keeping your copy concise. The content should be easily scannable and consumable. Use headers, bullet points, and keep the paragraphs short.
Note that not all mobile devices are designed to display images by default. To fix this issue, you can create content that makes sense even without showing images.
Also, be careful where you place your call to action. It is best to place it near the top to create a mobile-friendly experience. Most readers will be busy and not want to waste time. So, get to the point quickly. For maximum clickability, your CTA button should be at any rate 44 x 44 pixels.
Source: Campaignmonitor
And don’t forget to test your emails across different devices before sending them out.
9. Use emojis
You will see many marketers using emojis these days. It is an easy way to communicate, engage, and connect with the readers. And the power of engagement in marketing can’t be overlooked.
When you use emojis in your emails, it adds personality and uniqueness to your brand. Plus, it increases your open rates and click-through rates. A study found out that adding an emoji in an email’s subject line increases the available rate by 29%. It also increases the click-through rate by 28%.
Just ensure that you don’t overdo it. Studies have it that 59% of consumers between 18-34 years think companies are exaggerating their emojis.
10. Use user-generated content
As per studies, user-generated campaigns are 20% more effective than any other media when it comes to influencing buyers to make a purchasing decision.
User-generated content can create engagement and encourages users to take action.
For instance, you can run a contest and ask your customers to post pictures enjoying your product. Offer a prize to encourage them to participate. And don’t forget to promote your content on social media.
You can also collect customer reviews or get user-generated content featured in an email. It is a great way to engage your customers and generate interest in your brand.
To increase engagement, improve customer retention, and give your customers a personalized onboarding experience, you can further make use of user onboarding tools like Whatfix.
Wrapping-Up
Whether you are a small, medium-sized, or a large business, you shouldn’t avoid implementing an effective email marketing strategy.
It is not only professional to use email, but it can help you to boost sales by reaching out to your prospects, engaging them, and providing value.
Focus on creating eye-catching headers and subject lines, know your audience, and adopt a problem-solving approach, conduct surveys, and so forth.
However, the main goal of any business should be to provide superior customer experience and make users happy. If you are doing everything right to offer a great customer experience, your sales will automatically increase.
Also, marketing trends keep changing. So try to stay up to date with the latest trends to stay relevant.
