Social media interaction may be the “in” thing these days but email still remains a great way to reach prospective customers. Unfortunately, this isn’t exactly a secret to everyone. So expect tough competition for inbox space whenever you send an email pitch.
To keep your email from landing in the junk folder or being labeled spam, think about giving your email strategy a makeover. You can do this by following these tips:
Create a Good Impression
You can always send hundreds of emails to a prospective client at any given time. It is better, however, to think that you only have one chance to deliver your pitch. This way, you wouldn’t slack off but rather, work hard on making a good first impression on your prospect. Failing to make an impression puts you at risk of losing not only that sale, but also the chance to secure future deals with them.
Engage your prospects better by opening with a question or a scenario and ending with a strong call to action. Whatever it is that you want to say, remember to be clear and persuasive. And as with delivering business presentations in person, the pitch you send over the Web should be short, relevant, and direct to the point.
You may also want to highlight the benefits of using your products or services. Just remember to appeal to the emotion instead of simply spewing facts.
Don’t Pressure Your Audience
Your email pitch doesn’t have to pressure the reader into making a purchase right there and then. Instead, it should draw attention to some important points to promote future conversation. A good pitch compels prospects to say “tell me more,” not forces them to hand over their money.
The purpose of sending an email pitch is to generate some kind of response. So when you write your email, make sure that your goals are clear. Do you want your prospects to fill up a query form? Or you want them to visit your shop?
Regardless of your goals, do not pressure your prospects into buying immediately. Here’s a trick: Whenever a sentence you are writing starts to sound too “sales-like,” consider changing or removing it altogether.
Be Personal but Professional
Sending generic emails is a waste of time. People nowadays don’t take too kindly to receiving correspondences that are straight out of a sales template. Make sure to customize your emails according to a specific prospect. This may take more time but it can certainly help improve your response rate.
Potential clients deserve information that is relevant to them. Success Design‘s Mandy Porta suggests that you do your homework and know what exactly these prospects are looking for. Define your customer base, but also look at your competition.
Don’t rely on canned messages. Make your sales presentation fresh, relevant, and directed to the targeted audience specifically. This means everything – from handouts to copy – should be client specific.
Email is a useful tool for reaching your target audience. As long as you do it right, your email pitch can make a difference in establishing a strong relationship with your customers.
Reference
Porta, Mandy. “How to Define Your Target Market.” Inc.com. June 22, 2010. Accessed May 6, 2014.
Nations, Daniel. “Serious Question: What Exactly Is Social Media?” About.com. Accessed May 6, 2014.
