Is anyone reading your email during the holiday season?
And if they are reading or listening to your message, does it pass the threshold of caring?
I’ve written before about how only about one-third of email recipients read beyond the fourth paragraph. What do you do if you have news to share with your community but can’t compete with offers from Amazon and every other retailer on the planet?
If your open rates are plummeting in December, here’s what you can do to fight the tide.
- Be Linkable–Pictures, logos, copy: If it doesn’t link to your sales funnel, it shouldn’t be in your December emails.
- Be Listable–Bullet points = Better readership
- Be Brief–Dense copy and the internet have always had an uneasy relationship. If you can’t distill it down to one sentence, don’t waste your readers’ time. The same principle also applies to video. If your video is 90-seconds, it’s at least 60 seconds too long.
- Be Visual–Use an image at the top of your email that captures the essence of your topic. If the image sticks, readers who care are more likely to continue, and if they don’t scroll down, at least you made your point.
- Be Humble–One of my least favorite emails to receive in December is the company bragalog retrospective. This list of accomplishments might be great for internal company morale, but outside of current and potential investors, you’d be hard-pressed to find an external audience that cares. If you must produce an annual review, consider your audience, and shoot a video instead.
- Be Silent–Sometimes, the best idea is to say nothing. Every year, thousands of companies send out the stereotypical holiday greeting email. Do yourself a favor and cross this To-Do item off your list. If you feel it’s a necessity, share it on social media instead. One more email in the inbox has become the modern-day equivalent of gifting a fruitcake.
Email inbox fatigue is a real thing, and I expect it to appear in the next revision to the DSM. Don’t contribute to this psychological menace this year.