Tips to Building Successful E-Mail Lists, Part 3 of 3
7. Test. “As direct marketers, you know that testing is important,” Brady noted. Test in your subject lines and the body of your e-mails. Try the following tests:
- dollars off vs. percentage off;
- hacker-safe logo vs. no logo;
- different headlines (e.g., click here vs. get); and
- landing pages (e.g., the color of the “Buy Now” button).
8. Incorporate customer reviews. Customer reviews build credibility. "If you have them on your Web site," Brady said, "then also try including them in your e-mails.” She cited the example of Bath & Body Works, which tested the inclusion of customer reviews in its e-mails vs. e-mails without customer reviews. The e-mails with customer reviews netted a 10.4 percent higher average order value. Recipients viewed 7.5 percent more site pages and sales were up 11.5 percent compared to recipients of the e-mails with no reviews. Remind customers in the e-mail that they can rate and review your products, she advised.
