In my last blog post, I raised some important questions about all the “fancy features” available to you in MailChimp / Infusionsoft / etc., and whether you should actually use them.
But I never answered the questions I raised.
But I now shall.
So here’s the first question:
WHY is it better to keep your emails simple… and ignore all the fancy features you *could* use?
2 reasons:
The first has to do with your results/conversion.
See, email done well…
Is extremely personal.
And that’s one of the reasons why this marketing medium produces far higher ROI than any other medium; when used well, it can feel to the reader like you are having a quiet, fireside chat with them, glass of whiskey in hand, each of you peering into the flames of the fire and each other’s souls.
But in order for you to truly “harness” this wonderful potential of email, to feel deeply personal…
You must make your emails feel personal!
You must make them feel like emails which might have been sent by a close friend.
And let me ask you, dear reader…
When your mom, or room mate, or daughter sends you an email… do they use fancy graphics, and glitzy templates, and the like?
Of course not.
They send you simple, mostly-plain-text emails.
With an occasional picture or two.
So go and do likewise; make your emails feel like they could have been sent by a mother, or a father, or a close friend.
But there’s a second reason why it’s good to keep your emails simple, and ignore fancy features;
And that’s that the simpler you keep your emails, the less work it takes, and so the more likely you are to actually send the gosh-darn things. Consistently. Once or twice a week. Without fail.
Yes, this is a very pragmatic, earth-y reason, if you get what I mean; but it’s extremely valid in my experience nonetheless.
Half the battle with email marketing is simply doing it; simply sending the emails, consistently offering your subscribers value in some shape or form, week in and week out. Keeping your list “warm.” And so the more you can simplify the process, and make it easier on yourself, the more likely you are to actually do it.
So keep your emails simple.
Forget the fancy features.
And then come back to my blog tomorrow, and read my answer to the question, “When should you make an exception to the rule, and start using the fancy features which email marketing software offers?”
For as always, there are exceptions.
But until then, write on!
