It seems like just yesterday that emails had been straight text with no formatting and no images. But over time this changed and design became part of emails. Color and layout then become popular almost to the point of gaudy and now it seems we’ve pulled it back a bit again. No more big ugly links, no more animated graphics and no more color palettes that leave you running screaming from your desk. So what’s the right way to do an email marketing campaign? How do you ensure your subscribers actually read what you send out?

Stay Within the Ability of the Email Client
The most important thing you need to remember is that while you can create incredibly fancy emails the purpose of email is to deliver a fast and efficient message. Browsers have evolved, but email clients mostly refuse to make change and so what looks good on a web page may look terrible in email or it may not even load properly.

Just the Basics
Keep your design simple, which will keep your life simpler, and your subscribers happier. The more intricate your layout design the more opportunity that something will go wrong. Think old school and most of all make sure you test enough. What will work right with one email client may not work right with another email client. The only way to know is to test properly.

Place a Link at the Top
Sometimes email messages come through as garble if the transmission is interrupted or other glitches occur. This is why you should have a link to a web page that’s the same as the email message, and that link should be right at the top. Don’t use this link for anything else or you could annoy your subscribers.

The Landing Page
You might already be familiar with the importance of your landing page. It should be very interesting and it should hook, grab, and pull your viewer in quickly. You only have seconds before your visitor moves on. Make sure your landing page is working properly and that links go to pages that are working. Once again, testing and ensure there are no problems.

Stay on Topic
The subject line is an important component of your email marketing campaign. This is the most immediate connection between you and your subscriber and it lets them know what to expect in the email. That means it needs to grab their attention. Make your subject line:
* Personnel
* Ask a question
* Use a punch line
* Use a number (5 solid tips)

And remember to keep your subject line brief.

Creating an email marketing campaign that’s successful isn’t as difficult as you might think.