If you're not mastering mobile email marketing, you could be missing out on a huge opportunity to reach your target audience. Mobile usage continues to grow at a rapid rate. The following statistics indicate just how important it is to use mobile email marketing to your advantage:

• 74% of smartphone users check email from their devices (Gartner)
• 51% of email opens are done via mobile (Litmus)
• 80% of email users are expected to access email via mobile by 2018 (Radicati)

A study done by Equinux meanwhile showed that less than 12% of email marketing campaigns use a responsive design that is designed to work on mobile as well as desktop. That low figure shows that despite the huge potential offered by mobile, very few brands are actually planning for mobile email marketing.

How can you be sure that your company isn't left behind? To help you get the most from your mobile email efforts, we have put together a guide on how to plan a strategy that truly excels.

Getting the Most from Mobile Email Marketing

Mobile responsiveness is more important than ever before – especially where email is concerned. According to Campaign Monitor, email opens on mobile devices increased by 30% from 2010 to 2015. Keeping in mind how few marketers design their emails for mobile responsiveness, that accounts for a huge potential loss in readers, messaging and conversion.

Image: Campaign Monitor

‍What can you do to ensure that you don't become another statistic? For starters, you can consider the following simple approaches to enhancing your mobile email marketing efficiency:

‍1. Watch your subject lines

‍You have a matter of seconds to capture the attention of your reader. Subject lines can be a make or break factor in email open rates. They can also be the difference between dodging a spam filter or having your email get lost in spam folders. While your email subject lines need to be enticing, catchy and relevant, they also need to be the ideal length. Return Path has an interesting study that analysed over 2 million emails from 3000 different senders. In this study, they found that the majority of subject lines were between 41-50 characters. Keeping in mind that even on desktop email clients, characters in a subject may be cut off after a certain limit, it is important to note that smartphone email clients may have an even lower character limit.

To be on the safe side, it's better to keep your subjects short, clear and focused. It's also best to find a happy medium – a length that will work on all devices... desktop, tablet and smartphone. You may want to do some deeper research into what your target subscribers are using, too. Knowing exactly what the majority of your subscribers use to access their email will allow you to make changes based on your primary audience.

‍2. Use pre-header text wisely

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‍An often underutilised area of the email is the space between your header image and subject. In most emails, this text says something like, 'Email not displaying correctly? View in browser' or along those lines. On a mobile device, this text is shown far more prominently compared to how it appears on a desktop internet browser. After the subject line, this is therefore the first thing that people see when your email arrives in their inbox. As such, you can put this bit of text to good use by adding an enticing intro instead of the standard stock phrase.

‍Smart Insights says that the role of the pre-header is to supplement and support the subject line, sell secondary content, position a call to action ,and even highlight functional links. Keep in mind however that this approach is not for everyone. The pre-header's detractors say that it messes with the email's overall aesthetic, while others think that it can interfere with your primary message. It is worth considering this though. You could also consider a split test to see whether it is effective.

‍3. Ensure that your email design is responsive

‍Responsive email design is everything if you want to improve your open rates. Will your audience have the same experience with your emails whether they are viewing them on a smartphone, tablet or desktop? If you cannot answer that with a resounding 'yes', it is time to put serious thought into how you can ensure that your emails are responsive. Using a template that works fine on a desktop email client but not as well on mobile email apps will have a direct impact on your success rates. For this reason, it is especially useful to work with an experienced marketing automation expert, who will assist with fully responsive email templates that are designed to increase open rates and click-through rates.

‍4. Pay special attention to your calls to action

Image: Smashing Magazine

‍Calls to action are important on desktop, mobile and any other device email. Simply put, calls to action (CTA) provide a prompt to help readers click through to your content. They can be generic, in the form of Read Now!/Shop Now!/Learn More!/Get in Touch!, or they can be tailored to the content and theme of your email. For example, you could use a direct CTA for a shopping website specials email, inviting readers to Shop Autumn Collection Now. While these are important on any device, they are especially important for mobile email marketing because readers need to be able to view and click on CTAs quickly and easily.

If you have gotten your reader past your subject line, enticed them further with a pre-header text and wowed them with your stellar content, flawless images and beautiful responsive email, you will need to seal the deal by getting them to click that button. Buttons and links should be clear enough to find easily on a smaller screen, without being too obtrusive or off-putting.

‍5. Build trust right from the start

‍Last, but certainly not least, the most important thing to keep in mind is trust. This is built in a number of ways. Are your emails being sent from a recognised company name? Or, are you using your personal name to send business emails? Do you have a clear, easily visible opt-out link? Once subscribers opt-out, are they fully removed from your list, or will they keep getting email until the end of time?

Trust is something that is earned rather than bought. If you do not have a transparent reputation from the very beginning, you may never develop one later down the line. Spamming your subscribers, opting them in to offers that are not relevant or useful, and hiding or removing your opt-out button are just some of the ways that trust is broken. If, on the other hand, you are consistent and above board at all times, you will quickly establish trust and a solid reputation.

Looking for further assistance with your mobile email marketing strategies? Grapevine is here to help. Contact us today to learn more about our innovative products, and find out how to take your mobile email marketing to the next level.