Email marketing is a great way to get your message directly in front of members. But if you’re crafting each email with your organization, rather than your members, in mind, it’s likely that your emails will go unread.

E-newsletter guru Alex Lieberman, founder and CEO of the popular newsletter Morning Brew, offers these five tips for a successful email marketing strategy:

Know who your members are. What kind of content do your members want? And more importantly, do they want that content via email? Understanding member needs will help determine the rest of your email strategy.

Make the format approachable. Content quality is important, but how you present information will either keep readers reading or turn them away. Keep paragraphs concise, with a tone and style appropriate for the audience.

Write a short, engaging subject line. “Your inbox is the new homepage,” Lieberman says. “There’s a whole lot of mail and very little attention span and time. You need a short subject line (less than 5 words) that creates some level of intrigue.”

Optimize deliverability. If you notice certain members not engaging with your emails, take them off your email list. That way, you deliver communications to those you know want it and don’t risk annoying members who don’t.

Implement a referral program. “Assuming you have come to the conclusion that email is a valuable channel for your audience and that your audience loves your email product, it is essential that you put a referral program in place to turn your biggest advocates into your best salespeople,” Lieberman says.

For Better Decisions, Be Transparent

🎵 Secrets, secrets are no fun 🎵
In this post from our archives, @jamienotter makes the case for #transparency. https://t.co/SxmDg7IsL2 #associations #assnchat

— Sidecar (@sidecarglobal) October 26, 2019

Where does your association stand on organizational transparency? Sure, it might not seem like your whole team needs to know every nitty-gritty detail, but the more they know, the better decisions you empower them to make.

“Traditional management says we achieve [good decision-making] by distributing information on a ‘need to know’ basis, but in today’s complex, fast-paced world, it’s not possible for the center of an organization to know who needs to information ahead of time,” says Jamie Notter on Association Success. “If you make things visible to everyone, you enable better decision making, because everyone has access to the critical information right when they need it.”

Have bad news? Share that, too. “Remember that every time you decide to withhold information out of fear that releasing it might have bad consequences, you’re providing an opportunity for your people to make up something even worse,” Notter says.

Other Links of Note

Having trouble finding the right influencer for your influencer marketing initiatives? Social Media Today outlines tools to find someone relevant to you.

Hosting a wintertime event? BizBash offers winter wonderland meeting inspiration.

A creative workplace culture is an innovative one. Entrepreneur shares how leaders can cultivate creativity—and how employees can get their ideas heard.

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