Miranda Burford
Five ways to make your email design shine.
Email may seem like Twitter’s older, less attractive sister. Yet surprisingly, it still remains one of the most cost-effective channels for marketers all around the world. Email marketing isn’t dead. In fact, it’s more important than ever. No other digital marketing channel can cut through the noise of busy news feeds quite like email. An engaging, creative email will capture your sole attention for at least a couple of seconds. When you compare that to a plain text ad in Google search results or one of the many news feed ads in Facebook, an email inbox is prime marketing real estate available at a relatively inexpensive price.
So, how do you create a killer email design for your next campaign? Here are five ways to make your email design shine.
1. Make an entrance
Your emails always need to professionally designed, aesthetically pleasing and packed with relevant content that your audience will find useful and love. You should always take pride in your email’s appearance as it’s a direct reflection of your brand values. Be sure to include your logo at the top of every email in order to create trust, familiarity and integrate seamlessly with your existing online presence. Your audience should instantly recognise every email communication you send to them, so it’s best to come up with a consistent style that can easily be tweaked and adapted for future campaigns.
2. Create a stand out header
The header of your email design is prime real estate. After opening, it’s the first thing that your audience will see. Ensure that your header design is easy to skim read, bold and attention-grabbing, without being overdone. Include a compelling headline at the top which instantly communicates the value you’re offering. It could be as simple as an exclusive offer, promotion or even a featured piece of content. You’ll need to tie in your primary offering with a simple call-to-action above the fold. Don’t be afraid to ask your subscribers to take action right away.
3. Focus on the message
It’s important to keep your email messaging simple and focus on promoting one primary offering at a time. Don’t bombard your audience with mixed messaging and multiple calls-to-action. Include one featured topic and support that with secondary content. It helps to break up your copy as much as possible with clean headings, subheadings and bullet points. You should always use short sentences and paragraphs which helps to make your email content easier to skim read. Think about your tone, be personable and write for your audience. Always double check your copy for spelling mistakes.
4. Make a visual impact
Your email design should always make a visual impact, no excuses. Remember that images speak louder than words. You should incorporate beautiful, eye-catching imagery which supports the message you’re trying to convey. Consider the hierarchy of your email design upfront and make sure that you draw attention to all of the right places. Choose your colours wisely and make sure that your headlines and buttons pop.
5. Consider mobile
All of your email designs should be responsive and render correctly on all popular mobile devices. Be sure to think about how your email design will be delivered to those on smartphone or tablets. Most popular email marketing applications include visual testing tools so you can quickly and easily see how your email displays on portable devices. Make sure you test every single campaign and tweak your design to meet recipients on the go.
Miranda Burford is the marketing manager for Swiftly, a new service by 99designs for small design jobs.
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