Email is a powerful tool in a marketer’s toolkit. It’s cost-effective, easy to measure, and drives sales. But despite its potential, many companies find it challenging to get results with email – and it’s usually because of a few common pitfalls. Let’s look at 9 email marketing mistakes you could be making, too, and how you can avoid them.
Did you know that, in 2024, there are more than 4.6 billion email users worldwide? Fifty-three years since the first email was sent, it’s a channel that’s only continued to grow. We use it every day at work. Businesses use it for transactional messages. For companies like yours, email is also a marketing avenue worth pursuing. It gives you direct access to your audience’s inbox and lets you personalize communication at scale.
Are you making these email marketing mistakes?
Email is so simple: you write a message and hit send. However, several factors go into creating email marketing campaigns that work. It would help if you ticked all the boxes, from getting your email into your recipient’s inbox to writing a compelling message that prompts action.
Many marketers get things wrong during this process. You won’t be one of them once we go through these nine common email marketing mistakes. Furthermore, you’ll learn how to make your emails more effective to enjoy a higher ROI.
#1. Your subscribers haven’t opted in
Your email list is your primary email marketing asset. Its quality will impact your results, so how you build it is paramount. Rule number one: avoid purchasing a database. It’s a mistake many companies fall prey to, thinking they can take a shortcut, but it only hurts your business.
For your email marketing to work, build your own email list and ensure that every subscriber has opted in to receive your emails. Once they sign up, set up an automated email that requires them to click a confirmation link. This step will help you build a healthier and more responsive email list. If you’re not sure how to set up a sign-up form on your WordPress website, you can always get help from a Codeable freelancer.
#2. Your contacts are outdated and invalid
More than a quarter of the average email database degrades every year, a ZeroBounce study shows. So, while you’re adding new email addresses to your database or CRM system, you also have to check the validity of your current and older contacts. Otherwise, your emails will bounce back and tarnish your reputation with inbox providers. Letting your bounce rate exceed 2% puts your campaigns at risk of going to the spam box.
The most efficient way to check your email list is to use an email verification service. Within minutes, this type of software can identify invalid addresses, along with other types of contacts that may impact your email deliverability. Remove them from your database to keep your metrics up.
#3. You chose the wrong email marketing platform
The platform you send emails from also influences your email deliverability, which describes the rate at which your emails land in the inbox. Trying to cut corners and going with a cheaper provider can be a costly email marketing mistake in the long run. You could be doing everything right, but if your sender is unreliable, your emails won’t make it to the inbox.
To ensure your email campaigns and newsletters achieve the highest email deliverability, consider reassessing the quality of your email sending platform. If you notice poor inbox placement, even after you clean your list, test a few other platforms and go with a more reputable service.
#4. You ignore spam reports
Another critical aspect of your email deliverability is your spam complaint rate. When many recipients report your campaigns as spam, your future emails could go to the spam folder. That’s why ignoring spam complaints is such a risky email marketing mistake.
So, how should you handle spam complaints? First, set up a process where every complainer is automatically removed from your list. You don’t want to send another email to someone who reported you as spam. Then, analyze your emails carefully: are there any elements that may cause your subscribers to think you’re a spammer? Adjust if the answer is “yes.” For your emails to go to the inbox, your spam complaint rate must stay under 0.3%.
#5. You send too many emails
It’s a common email marketing mistake, and ignoring it can cause your engagement rates to plummet. What’s more, you may see an increase in your unsubscribes and spam complaints. Many of your recipients may not look for the unsubscribe link and instead, they may report you as spam.
To keep a healthy sending schedule, stick to what your subscribers expect. If you send a weekly newsletter, avoid bombarding your audience with two extra promotional emails during the same week. This approach will lead to list fatigue and lower engagement rates.
#6. You don’t segment your list
Sending everyone on your list the same email isn’t a great way to go about boosting results. In the age of personalization, your subscribers expect content that’s relevant to them. So avoid this email marketing mistake and split your list into segments instead.
If they apply to your business, begin with simple criteria like location or gender. Additional filters you can use relate to shopping patterns and behaviors. Once you have your different groups, create emails that address their specific needs. The more you can fine-tune your personalization, the more your audience will engage.
#7. Your emails are way too promotional
If your email list is healthy and segmented, but you’re still not seeing engagement rise, your content may need some tweaks. For instance, not every email you send can be self-promotional. Your audience may tune out when all they get is sales pitches.
To draw people in and command their attention, strive to hit a healthy balance between educational and promotional content. Many marketers swear by the 80/20 rule, where only 20% – or, for some, as low as 10% – of the content focuses on conversions. Sharing helpful resources is the most effective inbound marketing tactic.
#8. You don’t authenticate your emails
Email authentication is now a must for organizations sending more than 5,000 daily emails to Gmail and Yahoo subscribers, the two tech companies announced earlier this year. Microsoft stated it will also enforce this rule soon for mass email senders. Even if you don’t send 5,000 emails every day to Gmail, Yahoo, or Outlook users, authenticating your emails is still a smart move.
Email authentication is a set of protocols that verify your identity as a sender. With spoofing and other cybercrimes on the rise, email service providers need to ensure that a message sent from your domain comes, indeed, from you and not an impersonator. Once your email passes this check, it can make its way to your recipients’ inboxes. Otherwise, it could land in spam. Use a DMARC monitor to protect your domain and build trust with email providers.
#9. You’re inconsistent
This is one of the most common email marketing mistakes. Sending a campaign only to disappear from your subscribers’ inboxes for months hurts your performance in several ways. First, it affects your sender reputation by making you look more like a spammer than a legitimate business. Taking long breaks also increases the risk of spam complaints as your audience may forget who you are and why you’re showing up in their inboxes.
To keep a good reputation with both email service providers and your subscribers, find a sending schedule you can commit to and stick to it. Not every email will be a hit, but with every email you send, you’re adding another building block to your reputation and brand authority.
Bonus tip: fine-tune your subject lines
Email marketers often obsess over subject lines – and for good reason. If your email subject line doesn’t grab your recipient within a couple of seconds, your email may not get opened. That’s why writing sloppy subject lines is an email marketing mistake you can’t afford to make.
But how do you write a compelling subject line? Think of it as if you were writing a newspaper headline: sum up the most intriguing and newsworthy part of your email. Also, don’t forget to add preview text, which shows up in your recipients’ inboxes right after the subject. Sharing an interesting detail in the preview text may prompt more of your subscribers to open your email.
Bio: Corina Leslie is the PR Manager at ZeroBounce, an Inc. 5000 email validation, deliverability, and email finding company. Connect with Corina on LinkedIn.
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