Best Practices for Powerful Emails & Deliverability-CHEAT SHEET

Marketing and selling new homes has its share of challenges, but effective email communication doesn’t have to be one of them. As a consultant at Lasso, I get asked about this topic a lot. How frequently do I email prospects? What should I say? How do I get into their inbox?

Email marketing can be very powerful, but as anyone with an email address knows, it’s important to have on-target messaging and concise, relevant subject lines.

Here are a few tips to ensure your email lands in your prospect’s inbox and aligns with their expectations.

Subject Lines

I’ve listed below some specific dos and don’ts with email subject line, but it’s also important to ask yourself: Would I open this email?

As David Ogilvy, the father of advertising, has been quoted as saying, “On the average, five times as many people read the headline as read the body copy. When you have written your headline, you have spent eighty cents out of your dollar.”

This concept can be applied to the subject line. Treat your subject line as the valuable real estate it is. If there is no interest, the rest of the email might as well not have been written.

And keep an eye on your email inbox for inspiration. What subject lines grabbed your attention? What emails landed in your junk folder?

DO:

• Keep it short – no more than 50 characters
• Create urgency – use urgent words like Now, Final, Today, Only
• Personalize – you can add a registrant token to personalize the subject line
• Keep it relevant – subject lines should be relevant & timely

AVOID:

• Punctuation marks – no more than 2 per subject line
• Exclamation points!
• ALL CAPS

With your subject line, there is always the temptation to lean towards funny or clever. We all love those emails that stand out and are different, so nothing wrong with testing out a subject line that may differ from the standard ones you use if you do it right. However, you need to make sure your message is still clear and relevant.

Keep it simple – and concise!

Now that your prospect has opened the email, make sure the content of your email is relevant.

Keep the information concise. A shorter email with one to five photos is more appealing to customers than a long email with 20 graphics. Remember most customers will be looking at email on a mobile device. Deliverability will also suffer with long emails – you don’t want your message to end up in the spam folder!

And don’t forget to mix up the messaging – every email doesn’t need to be about your homes. Much like social media marketing, emails about events in your community, tips on selling a current home, or even design trends can keep the message fresh.

Call to Action

EVERY email you send should move the buyer along in the process. The best way to get your buyer to do this is with a great call-to-action. Sending a “touch base” email without having a link back to your website or featuring a tour or reminding them to reach out doesn’t cut it. The call to action that keeps the buyer engaged is a fundamental component to your email communication.

Tips:

• Have a clear Call to Action (CTA) button in a branded color
• Keep the CTA short (2-3 words)
• The goal is URGENCY. NOW is a powerful word.
• Use first person words: “Download My Guide” or “Explore My Home” (remember you’re talking to a person, so use language the resonates with them.)
• Good CTA Words: Get, Read, Try, Explore, Here, My.
• Poor CTA Words: Submit, Enter, Buy, Click, Do

Pixel Perfect Pictures

People love pictures. Whether it’s your homes or the activities they can do around your community, include visuals that will resonate with your buyer and look good!

• Check images on all displays before sending.
• Send a test email and check on mobile and desktop/laptop.
• Link images back to your website, including your logo!
• Name images with a proper name – e.g., Brookstone Floor Plan – Kitchen

If you’re sending an email as if it’s coming from a you (as opposed to a generic marketing email), you don’t always need images. A text-only email that’s personal can be effective too.

Reporting & Testing

After all the work you’ve done in setting up an email, take time to review the results. Look at your email reports to understand what’s specifically working for you so you can adjust. If you’re using Google Analytics for your website tracking, you can also use UTMs to gauge your traffic.

And one last note…carve out time to test your subject lines, CTAs, and content. It’s important and one of the best ways to improve your email marketing program. You may be surprised what you find!