Top 6 Email Marketing Hacks That Will Boost Conversions & Engagement

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Jumping to conclusions like “Email marketing is dead” or “Email marketing is no longer effective” is common nowadays. 

If you are the owner of an eCommerce store and have similar thoughts, you need to stop. 

It’s normal to think, “how can implementing a few eCommerce email marketing tips increase your sales?”.

But, the truth is: You can practically increase your store revenue by employing a few straightforward yet powerful email marketing strategies!

Top e-commerce businesses have been utilizing a number of e-commerce email marketing hacks to skyrocket their conversions. 

And you can, too! 

So, if you are also looking for some top email marketing hacks to boost conversions, let’s get started. 

Email Marketing Hacks!

Let’s go!

1. Do a Competitor Analysis

One way to find out what messaging works in your industry is to spy on your big competitors– ethically, of course!

You can use several online tools to do this, such as Mailcharts, which allows you to view emails sent by a competitor brand. Aside from the email sequences’ content, you can also observe their subject lines and use them as an inspiration.

Another great tool to consider for email marketing competitor analysis is Milled.com, giving you just the right amount of competitor insight you need.

2. Automate Your Personal Messages 

Don’t you wish your subscribers’ email messages were already prepared? 

Why not automate emails so you can concentrate more on other elements of managing your company?

With the appropriate email advertising platform, automating personalized messages is simple.

You can email your connections based on whether they satisfy a given set of criteria by using email marketing platforms like Mail Chimp, SendX, and Marketo. 

For instance, if an individual has visited your store more than twice in the past month, and hasn’t bought anything you may write them an email with the subject line “I hope we’re not disturbing you”. 

Then, offer something extra to help them go through that purchase. 

But also make sure not to send mass emails to your whole network without giving them any thought, as you could end up damaging your brand.

Instead, make the most of your automated emails by spending more time on their creation and segmenting your lists based on user interaction.

That way, you’ll make sure the right message is delivered to the right prospect.

For example, this welcoming email from Wild is an automated response they send out to all their first-time subscribers:

3. Ever Think About Abandoned Cart Flash Sale Email

The majority of brands typically focus on generating quick  sales in their email marketing campaigns instead of nurturing the leads first 

Therefore, after delivering a second email alert as part of their “abandoned cart flow” or drip campaign that encourages consumers to finish their incomplete transactions, marketers typically don’t generate desired results.

In one case with a genuine customer, Melanie Balke‘s team, CEO of The Email Marketers, discovered that conversions dropped from 25% to 1.6% between emails one and two in the abandoned cart cycle, which was a telltale proof that the campaign was really not functioning.

By including a third email with a one-day-only flash discount on the recently abandoned items in the cart, Balke found a way to extend the drip campaign. 

Balke claims that the third email should explicitly be created to not resemble a component of the abandoned cart campaign and should be sent out after a significant amount of time has passed. 

This strategy allowed the online retailer to give the customer some time to think things over. In the end, this one-day-only, deeply discounted flash sale makes customers feel pressed for time and dramatically increases conversions.

You can do it like Etsy did here:

4. Give A Touch of Personalization To Your Emails 

You should regard your receivers as humans, not as numbers. 

After all, you need to build a connection with them. So, you should write your emails in a personalized tone rather than a business-like tone

Here’s how:

  • Use the subject’s first name when greeting them rather than saying “Hello!” (“Hello, Sarah!” is perfect). Some contend that buyers already know their names were generated by the software. As a result, run A/B tests to see whether this method is beneficial
  • Use the personal email account of an employee, such as Josh from Sephora: [email protected], when sending emails instead of using the company’s domain: [email protected]
  • Customers must be given the option to reply to your messages, and you must encourage them to do so. You must then, of course, respond in kind. Make it simple for them to start a dialogue by simply responding to your email

This is significant because it demonstrates to the recipients that the organization values them and treats them as individuals. It lowers obstacles to purchasing by enabling consumers to seek assistance with anything they require.

  • Incorporate Your Brand’s Personality – Incorporate your brand’s personality by expressing it throughout the email (via language, photos, your signature, and more). Your emails should all be relevant to your brand and not boring. This enables you to establish a powerful, consistent brand and develop a personal relationship with the customers.

5. Welcome Embedded Surveys In Your Emails 

Over the past ten years, email marketing has contributed significantly to market research. Email simplifies data collecting more than ever before because it can reach a huge mass of audiences at once. 

Market researchers are, unfortunately, victims of one of the intrinsic weaknesses of email marketing: conversions are only as effective as an email’s click-through rate. Let’s explain it more openly.

Most email surveys feature “Take Survey” or “Start” buttons that open a new browser tab and launch a solo survey for the consumer. 

The issue is that not enough users click on this CTA button, which leads to low response rates and sparse data. Instead, try using embedded surveys. 

Marketers can avoid the inevitable user drop-offs and gather many times more responses than they otherwise might have by including the entire questionnaire in the email body.

Data demonstrates that when compared to conventional surveys that require users to leave their email inbox, integrated email surveys have a response rate that is 125% higher.

A user’s product evaluation, NPS or customer satisfaction ratings, the completion of customer information, a user’s engagement, and other uses are all possible with embedded surveys.

Have a look at the email below with an embedded survey;

6. Leverage The Fear of Missing Out (FOMO)

Consider that your favorite headphones are currently on sale for a flat 60% off, but the deal will end in two days. 

This is referred to as “Fear of Missing Out.”

To help you understand better, here are some statistics:

  • About 60% of consumers make purchases out of FOMO. And within the first 24 hours, they carry it out
  • Individuals ranging in age of 18 and 30 are the ones that are most affected by the FOMO marketing strategy.
  • FOMO is an everyday occurrence for 69% of millennials (those born between 1980 and 2020)

While social media accounts and advertisements are excellent ways to generate FOMO, delivering them via emails is also great.

And here’s an example of how eCommerce retailers leverage the “FOMO” effect to enhance their sales.

Similar to this, you can create an email for your shop and send it out during the end of deals or seasonal sales; this should help increase your sales quickly!

Make sure your audience understands all you want them to know, including the end date, any discounts, and any other special instructions.

Going Forward

Emails require a distinct type of material. Therefore, you need a different content approach for your emails if you want people to connect with your business.

Test and evaluate the email content, recipient list, and timing before sending. 

Plus, pick a theme. Test out various themes to see which makes your content stand out.

Don’t forget to position your logo at the very top. As soon as your subscribers read your email, they recognize it as coming from you, which improves brand awareness.

At the end of the day, it’s all about knowing what your target customer wants.

About the Author

I have been in the 'online business' space since 2009 when I started an eCommerce business selling motorcycle parts (sold in 2012). Since then I have owned and operated several successful online business (and had a fair share of failures), along with owning offline home services businesses. Currently my focus is online businesses that are profitable with paid traffic. As a 'self employed individual' I do not use Linkedin, but you can connect with my on my personal instagram and youtube which largely revolve around my mountain biking passion!