Welcome emails are a great opportunity to introduce your new lead to the way your brand does things. Some companies use them to share the benefits of being a subscriber, like specials, product announcements, and content. These emails are also a chance to set expectations, like how frequently your subscribers should expect a new email. Measure Your eCommerce Email Marketing Like A Pro Published by Murry in Metrilo Updates and Use Tips. We’re focused on helping you with your eCommerce email marketing because we see it as a great way to engage and retain customers.
Your ability to build brand recognition relies heavily on how consistently you represent your brand in everything you do.
Your marketing emails {or newsletters} are no exception!
When someone gives you access to their inbox the last thing you want to do is drop the ball by deviating from your branding. That’s only going to dilute your brand building boom juice.
Email is when you really need to bring it. It is the most personal touch point you have with your audience.
This is when you have the ability to talk to someone not in the rush and fleeting attention of their social feeds but in the comfort and safety of their personal space. It’s how wisely you use this personal touch point that will determine how deep a connection you can form.
The secret to branding emails is to bring all the right fixings to the table. Here are the 6 fixings you need to brand your emails:
A TEMPLATE
I have this hard and fast rule I swear by for creating visual content. And it’s this…
Any type of visual you’re going to create more than once {and that’s goes for social media images, blog images, resource guides, cheat sheets, presentations, etc} needs a template!
Why?
Templates ROCK because:
1. They’ll make creating new visual content easy breezy
2. They’ll help you maintain consistency across your visuals
3. They’ll help your audience instantly recognize your content
Soooo, the first thing you need to do is select a template {or two} that you will use for your emails.
All the major email marketing services {including Aweber, MailChimp, Constant Contact, iContact, etc} have free email templates you can select and customize.
Email templates come in all shapes and sizes, including one or two column styles, and an assortment of layouts. With a little customization you can take a canned template and turn it into a branded work of art.
Email templates are especially invaluable because…
They’re mobile responsive (if it’s not, don’t use it!), and seeing how up to 70% of emails are ready via mobile devices (via emailmonday) making sure your template is responsive is NOT optional.
They come pre-coded so that specific elements, like images and columns, don’t get skewed or unformatted. You don’t want your emails looking all wonky, right?
They can be easily customized (header, footer, fonts, color palette, etc) and saved for use again and again. We call that a one and done!
Prior to selecting a template take some time to outline what type of content you’re usually emailing and how you’d like it to be formatted.
Here are examples of the two templates I use for my emails:
Template #1: Header, main content section and footer, which I use for most emails.
Template #2: Header, main content section, 2 column section and footer, which I use when I’m promoting multiple blog posts or want to put a couple reminders for upcoming events that are the secondary purpose of the email. The additional 2 column section creates a nice disruption in the content and draws the eyes attention, not to mention it keeps the additional images and content nicely formatted to make sure things stay aligned.
LOGO
Since your logo is arguably one of the most iconic pieces of your visual branding it’s an important fixing for your emails.
It’s the non verbal ‘howdya do’ that you need front and center in your emails.
You want to greet your readers with familiarity so they get comfortable with you. Over time that comfort will increase your open rates and build trust, which is the foundation on which deeper connections can be built. The fact is, there’s a comfort that comes from repetition.
The best way to foster that comfort right out of the gate in your emails is to make sure they immediately and visually recognize you without a single word needing to be read.
You wouldn’t walk up to someone and start babbling without a proper introduction in person, so don’t do it in your emails. Your logo is the best handshake or high five you’ve got in your visual branding arsenal, so use it wisely!
COLOR PALETTE
Your color palette is one of the most frequently used visual assets you have, which makes it the perfect fixing to brand your emails with.
I want you to think of of your emails as an extension of your website. The same branding ingredients you use there should be used on your emails. Another words, you need to stick to your branding guidelines, which includes infusing your color palette in the ways you’ve already defined it to be used.
You can apply your color palette in your:
1. Headlines and sub headlines
2. Links and buttons
3. Borders, frames, and/or content dividers
4. Images
Working with what you’ve already defined is going to take ALLL the guesswork out out of branding your emails. True story!
IMAGES
Using images to break up the text in your emails makes them the most delectable fixing of all.
And there’s no need to reinvent the wheel here!
Some creative ways to repurpose images for your emails are:
1. Using your blog post image to promote a new post
2. Using a screenshot OR video thumbnail image to promote a new video
3. Using a slide to promote a new presentation or mini course
4. Using one of your social cover images to promote a social profile of yours
Images are proven to grab attention faster than a screen of text, so including at least one image per topic in your email will help you pull in the readers who are skimming on the go. Oh come on, you know you’ve done it!
We’re all busier than ever these days, it’s the nature of our online lives, so a lot of times we skim an email to see if anything worthwhile jumps out at us. In the same way an image can catch someone’s attention while they’re feverishly scrolling on social media an image in your email can qualify it for the ‘must read later’ bucket in a way text might not.
Don’t lose readers by fighting the skimming habits they have. Let your images do the fast talking for ya.
Note: Make sure you reduce the size of your images when you use them in your emails. They don’t need to be as mighty in size for emails as they do for your website or social media.
SOCIAL ICONS
How many times have you read an email from someone and immediately hit their website looking for links to explore down their social rabbit holes? {raising hand} Me too!
Providing social icons linked to your social profiles is yet ANOTHER opportunity to strengthen your connection with your readers…so you’d be a fool to forget this fixing.
Like any delicious spread there will be things some people eat up that others won’t touch, that shouldn’t stop you from offering it! One man’s ranch is another man’s ketchup, at least that my story and I’m sticking to it.
Include small social icons in the footer of your emails for those that want more of you. They shouldn’t have to work so hard to feast on your full buffet.
VOICE
Every scrumptious spread has a great host or hostess behind it. When it comes to your emails that’s represented through your voice.
No two people use the same wordage, speak in the same tone, or come to the table with the same approach. Your voice is the most unique factor in your brand building boom juice, so great care should be taken to perfect this fixing in your emails. Remember, this is the most personal touch point you have.
The power of your voice should not be undervalued, because without it your spread will very likely end up looking and tasting B-O-R-I-N-G! It’s this fixing, your voice, that will ultimately transform a new subscriber into a loyal brand ambassador.
Your vocal chords and the unique personality that pours out of them is second to none in your emails. Your voice is the magic that brings all the other fixings to boom status. Without, just just have something nice to look at, and that’s not good enough!
WRAP UP
Branding doesn’t end when you score a subscriber, it simply gets a LOT more personal! The venue may change but the brand building requirements haven’t. You want their journey to and from your web real estate {social media and your website} to their inbox to be one that builds deeper awareness and trust, not degrades it.
That means you need to dress your emails to impress by making sure these 6 fixings are on the menu.
Without them you’re diluting the brand building momentum you’re fostering with your readers, and ultimately you’re robbing them of the consistency and familiarity they need to know, like and trust you.
Let your unique brand style build the comfort and brand recognition that comes from seamlessly representing your brand in everything you do, including your emails!
ONE MORE THING before you go…
THE QUICK & DIRTY GUIDE TO BRANDING FOR SOLOPRENEURS
This 25+ page ebook is a bloat free recipe that will help you gather, prepare and assemble ALL six main ingredients you need to create a unique AF brand identity your peeps will love eye guzzling.
Brand Your Emails Like A Professional
PLUS, the entire ebook is loaded with tons of exercises, resources and examples, so you’ll have everything you need to start creating your brand identity TODAY, regardless of where you are in your business.