How to Create and Schedule Your First Email Campaign

Getting Started

Creating your first email campaign is an exciting step in your digital marketing journey. Email marketing helps you connect with your audience and drive business growth. Unlike social media algorithms that can limit your reach, emails go straight to your subscribers' inboxes, providing a direct and personal way to build relationships.

Imagine connecting with your customers, not just once, but regularly. That's the power of consistent email. It's not just about blasting out messages; it's about building genuine relationships. Regular emails keep your brand fresh in their minds, nurturing that trust that turns casual browsers into loyal fans. And when you have exciting news—a sale, a new product, or even just some helpful advice—email becomes your direct line to those eager customers, ready to take advantage of what you offer.

It's also one of the most cost-effective marketing strategies, offering a high return on investment and valuable insights to improve future campaigns.

Ready, Set, Goal!

Before you dive into a template, take a moment to set your goals and plan what your email is for. If you’ve never sent an email before, you might think to yourself that you don’t know what your goals would be. What do you want to achieve with this email? Whether it’s promoting a sale, introducing a new product, or starting a newsletter, having a clear goal will guide your design and content choices. Consider the metrics that would be important to you, such as open rate or click rate. 

If you’re sending a newsletter just to keep your audience informed, you might care more about how many people opened it. If you’re running a promotion to your online store, you might care more about how many people clicked on the links to take them to your website. It wouldn’t hurt to check what your average rates are for your industry or similar industries. Don’t shoot for the stars when the moon is just fine!

Understand your audience by considering who you’re sending the email to. What are their interests and needs? If you don’t have this information, maybe start with sending them an email that includes a poll or survey that asks for insight on what they are interested in learning or gaining from you. You can also customize the Update Profile form so contacts can make updates to their information and list preferences. 

Planning your email content ensures your message is organized, clear, and impactful. A well-structured email with key points outlined will capture your audience's attention and boost engagement. Personalizing content to align with your audience's interests will make your email more relevant and lead to higher response rates.

Prepare Images and Documents for Upload

Images are key to making your emails shine. High-quality visuals elevate your emails, making them look professional and polished while enhancing your brand image. Visually appealing content grabs attention and keeps your audience engaged. 

Plus, optimized images ensure quick loading times, preventing subscribers from losing interest. To ensure your images look great, keep these tips in mind:

• Size and Resolution: Aim for images that are at least 600 pixels wide. This ensures they look sharp and clear in your emails, making your content more appealing and professional.

• File Type and Size: Use JPEG or PNG formats and keep the file size manageable to ensure quick loading times. A fast-loading email is more likely to be read and appreciated by your audience.

• Editing Tools: Use the built-in tools on your computer to resize and optimize your images. Both Windows and macOS have simple tools for this. Well-optimized images can significantly enhance the visual appeal of your email.

When your images are ready, you can start to add them to your email.

Choose a Template

Customizable, pre-designed templates save time and effort, allowing you to focus on other aspects of your email campaign. They also ensure that your emails look professional and credible, building trust with your audience and aligning with your brand identity.

Use the search feature to find templates that match your industry or the type of message you want to send.

If you need more flexibility, consider starting with a basic template and building it out. This way, you can customize every element to fit your brand and goals. A well-chosen template can make your email look professional and aligned with your brand, which can increase trust and engagement.

Customize Your Email Template

A well-customized email captivates your audience and keeps them hooked. Think of your email template as your brand's digital storefront – it should reflect your unique style and personality. By customizing your template, you create a consistent brand experience that builds recognition and trust with your audience. This means using your brand colors, fonts, and imagery to make your emails instantly recognizable.

It's not just about looks. Tailoring your content and design to your audience's preferences can significantly improve your email's effectiveness. This might involve segmenting your audience and creating different versions of your email for different groups, or simply using language and visuals that resonate with your target demographic.

A customized email shows your audience that you care about their experience, leading to better engagement, higher click-through rates, and ultimately, stronger results.

Schedule The Email

Before you hit that send button, make sure your campaign is ready. Check for errors and preview your email on different devices to ensure it looks good and functions correctly.

A well-polished email reflects well on your brand and increases the chances of a positive response. Consider the best time to send your email. For example, if your audience is mostly corporate, sending the email around 9 AM can increase visibility as they start work and check their inbox. Timing your email right can significantly boost your open rates and engagement. 

Depending on your contact list, you might want to segment your recipients to target specific groups. Tailored messages are more likely to be relevant and effective, leading to better engagement. If you’re unsure about the subject line, use the A/B Testing tool to send different versions to small groups and see which one performs better. A compelling subject line can make the difference between an email being opened or ignored. Don’t be afraid to be creative and playful if it feels like the right hook. You can also include emojis!

Review The Reporting

Once your email is sent, it's time to review its performance. Track key metrics like open rates, click-through rates, and bounces to gauge the success of your campaign and pinpoint areas for improvement. If you need to share the results, export the campaign data as a CSV file. Sharing this data can help you get valuable feedback and support from your team, enhancing future campaigns.

Consider resending the email to those who didn’t open it initially and compare the performance with the original send. This can help you reach a broader audience and boost your overall results.

Reviewing the reporting offers valuable insights into what works and what doesn’t, allowing you to refine your strategy. By analyzing your results, you can make data-driven decisions, leading to more effective future campaigns.

Creating an impactful email campaign involves setting clear goals, understanding your audience, planning your content, optimizing images, selecting a suitable template, and customizing it to reflect your brand's identity. By following these steps, you can craft emails that resonate with your audience, drive engagement, and achieve your desired outcomes.