Industry insights

We’ve teamed up with Really Good Email’s Matt Helbig and a group of email experts for a roundup of the hottest email design trends.

How can you incorporate email design trends into your brand? 

“You have to know what's right for your audience, your brand, and your company. Don't just adopt a trend because it's the cool thing to do. 

Focus on the foundations, what makes a really good email is this email is customer-centric and solves a problem that someone might have. 

A lot of the time, company emails are very self-serving, but keep in mind that the person at the other end is not just a dollar sign; they are people as well. Use human language and not corporate gobbledy. 

Be clear about what you are making, why, and who it's for. Its really important to communicate your message clearly and tell people, you know, come to our site, come visit us. Send emails with a purpose and think about, “How can I make this person's day better?”

Accessibility is always a big thing. At Really Good Emails, we see a lot of all-image emails and that’s rarely ever accessible. You want to meet your readers where they are, whether it's on a mobile device or they have a disability and can't access your email. 

Beyond just including something like alt text, it's making sure your email is available on all devices that they might be reading on.

Lastly, just treat the inbox as a sacred, personal, and safe place. It is a safe place and you have some responsibility behind what you're sending to your audience. Your email should be a delight and a nice surprise in an inbox filled with annoyance and filtered spam emails. People should look forward to receiving your email in their inboxes.”

_{Matt Helbig, Integrated Manager at Beefree & Really Good Emails}

Email design trends for 2024 & beyond 

#1: Raw & unfiltered 

“As an amateur photographer myself,  I'm always excited to see that this trend continues to gain momentum. It's all about capturing images in their most natural state with minimal to no editing or retouching.

Unlike traditional stock photos or marketing images, which are often very produced, very stylized, very polished – raw and unfiltered embrace imperfection. This style, this trend, shows real people, real environments, and it captures genuine moments.

It's often characterized by natural lighting, minimal post-production editing, and authentic expressions and scenarios, which makes it feel very spontaneous and very candid. 

This trend is becoming popular largely due to social media. We're very used to seeing what at least appears to be authentic situations and with consumers demanding more transparency from brands we are kind of skeptical of overly polished images or images that we may feel are too photoshopped. 

Another plus of “raw and unfiltered” is that it can evoke a sense of nostalgia and help to strengthen the connection with your audience. 

Finally, and one of the most important, I think, is that it can be very cost-effective. You don't have to pay for the big production, the expensive photographer, or all the editing.”

_{Kristy McCarley, Founder & Managing Director of Pure Firefly.} 

#2: Chunky text

“This trend of oversized text is really dominating the visual space. If you're a design geek, this can be super fun to experiment with to add a sense of playfulness and grab a reader’s attention as soon as the email is open.

This trend is really popular because of the rise in appreciation for minimalism and the need to create quick digestible content. It allows you to convey that message in a really concise way. 

If you're trying to decide whether to experiment with this or if it's right for your brand, just keep in mind that you don't want it to be overwhelming. There should be a balance between the size of the text and its chunkiness so that it doesn't affect readability.” 

_{Kristy McCarley, Founder & Managing Director of Pure Firefly.} 

#3: Deep & dark

‘’This trend was sparked or spurred by the prevalence of dark mode, but think we've moved way beyond that now. 

I just love the spectrum of dark colors that I see brands bringing into the inbox to create this kind of mood instantly within their email. 

‍

My cautionary tale is to test the heck out of it beforehand. For a few email clients with some partial color inversion, darker tones turn into a salmon pink, which can strain the eyes. You obviously don't want to accidentally serve the audience that wants dark mode, something that's way outside of your brand guidelines.’’

_{Laura Sullivan, Head of Brand & Marketing at Inbox Monster}

#4: Color blocking

"These big, bold areas of color usually help you differentiate visual hierarchy in emails or make a section in an email stand out.

If you do a little bit of Googling on the history of color blocking, apparently this is a big fashion trend coming back from the 1960’s which is what gives color blocking a little bit of a retro feel."

_{Justin Jordan, Head of Strategy & Community at Beefree}

#5: Longing for Dial-up

"This trend combines old-school nostalgia with some of the new fun trends we’ve mentioned previously. This is all about the nineties being cool again. 

This summer, I have gone to so many concerts with 90s bands coming out and playing. For example, I saw a Green Day show, and they played the entirety of Dookie because it was Dookie's, I think, 25th or 30th anniversary of being released. That night, I felt like I was 18 again. The next morning, maybe not so much. But I was totally willing to relive 18 for an evening. 

If you've got that demographic, then take advantage of it. This is not for every brand; you really have to know your audience, know your style, and see if it works."

_{Justin Jordan, Head of Strategy & Community at Beefree}

#6: Ticker GIFs 

"Ticker GIF also known as the repeating text, usually at the top of the email, really grabs attention and makes the email feel lively and energetic. It can add playfulness similar to the chunky text, and it's eye-catching.

I’m kind of on the fence about ticker text because I'm affected by movement in email. So sometimes, if it's a little too fast or if it just feels like too much, I will look away, but I know there are other subscribers, the audience that loves it and really get into it.

I say be very thoughtful about the use of it. Make sure you have enough contrast. If you're using it to highlight a key message, it can be great. Or a sense of urgency for like a promotion or limited time offer. Just be aware that it can overwhelm some subscribers and it may be distracting and sometimes it's just not the right fit for the campaign."

_{Kristy McCarley, Founder & Managing Director of Pure Firefly.} 

#7: Styled letter 

"This trend is leading in popularity because it approaches email with a human voice instead of a product or brand. With the rise of AI, people’s spidey sense is up for things that aren't authentic and real and this approach helps tackle that. 

Style letter is a good balance between using plain text and brand elements like fonts and colors to make it feel a little bit more personalized.

In the example below, which is written by Justine, is all written in her voice, like when I read it, I could hear her reading it.

This trends is relatively low effort. You don't always need a designer to do something like this. You can make things stand out by using bullet points or adding a GIF. 

I like to think of email almost like as a tool belt, you know, you can use a plain text email or you can use a well-designed email. It doesn't have to be one or the other. 

You just know that your reader has this problem that they’re trying to solve, and you can use different types of content to make your email get the job to be done"

_{Laura Sullivan, Head of Brand & Marketing at Inbox Monster}

#8: Hover effects

We are seeing brands do some really cool, fun hover effects in email. It's a good way to tell people that something's clickable.

I think it's catching on because it's interactive. I think it catches your eye when you're scrolling, especially on like a desktop environment where it's supported. And some of these, especially hover effects, are little things you can add at the end of the email that may not change the whole design, but they show that you are spending the time and attention on your email designs and your marketing.

_{Matt Helbig, Integrated Manager at Beefree & Really Good Emails}

Honorable email design trend mentions: 

Typography: Weird fonts

Typography: 3D Text

Shapes: Waves

Imagery: Hand models

Interactivity: Choose your own adventure

Movement: 360 rotate

Messaging: Sustainability

Final hot take: 

"It’s important for me to share the disclaimer that trends are not going to save your business; however, they can help you better communicate your message. 

I've mostly been on the B2B side of things for my entire career. And so every time I look at what all the cool things that retail and e-commerce brands are doing, I'm reminded that B2B doesn't have to be boring.

While all of these trends may not not be totally a “hot” for your brand,it cool to at least be informed about what other brands are doing in the space and maybe one of them will work for you.

This is not an endorsement for any trend in particular. Choose your trends responsibility. Don't use it if it might not be for your brand. 

And finally make sure that whatever you do, you continue to be really good and make some really good looking emails."

_{Matt Helbig, Integrated Manager at Beefree & Really Good Emails}

‍You can watch the entire live event with Q&A here. 

‍

Maximizing your agency’s ROI with Madison Taylor Marketing 

Founded over 15 years ago, Madison Taylor Marketing has become a well-known agency in Denver, Colorado, for its success in bringing unprecedented results to clients. The agency's smart strategies have helped clients ensure alignment, reduce costs, optimize their resources, and, more notably, maximize ROI by almost 300% across all marketing efforts. 

In a live session with Chris Copen, Chief Operating Officer, Cassie Renier, Creative Specialist, and Andrea Davis, Creative Manager, they shared their insight into how agencies can maximize their ROI with email marketing. 

What is ROI? 

“ROI, or Return on Investment, is one of our most important performance indicators as an agency. 

ROI is not just a metric, but it measures the profitability of our business and our investments and helps us understand the value that we're generating from our efforts and resources. 

By tracking ROI, we are trying to ensure that our strategies are effective, identify areas for improvement, and make data-driven decisions.

For agencies, achieving a high ROI is really important because it reflects our ability to deliver value to our clients and continually optimize operations. Ultimately, this empowers us to drive growth for ourselves.

For our clients, our ability to achieve high ROI demonstrates our ability to use budgets wisely to deliver maximum value and achieve their business goals efficiently.”

_{Excerpt from Chris Copen at our live session with Madison Taylor Marketing.
Optimized for readability and engagement} 

With a return of $36 per $1 spent, why do agencies struggle to increase email marketing ROI? 

“We have found that that email is a powerful tool for achieving ROI for our clients. It's been around for a long time, and it's a tried and true tactic. While people have changed their media consumption habits, email continues to produce results for us. Email marketing connects our clients directly with their audience segments, allows us to deliver personalized content, and drives conversions.

Despite its potential, though, we have definitely experienced struggles over the years.

For both ourselves and our clients, we’ve found that the main challenge with email marketing is how much time and effort it takes.

Creating visually appealing and effective email campaigns requires significant time and effort.

We have found ourselves really bogged down in the minute of design details and trying to craft the “perfect” layout and visual elements. While important, this detracts from strategic activities that might yield higher returns.”

We've also experienced the challenge of hard coding emails and getting those emails to work across platforms. This process is not only time-consuming but also prone to errors. Little mistakes in the code can lead to rendering issues across different email clients, which has obvious consequences for a campaign’s effectiveness and ROI.

In addition to that, there's the issue of too much back-and-forth. When we collaborate on email campaigns, this often involves multiple rounds of feedback and revision. 

All of that just adds to the cumbersome and lengthy process and leads to diminishing returns - addressing all of those is critical in unlocking the full potential of email marketing for ROI. 

_{Excerpt from Chris Copen at our live session with Madison Taylor Marketing.
Optimized for readability and engagement} 

How can agencies optimize their email marketing ROI

“By optimizing our email creation process, leveraging automated tools, reducing manual coding, and streamlining our feedback mechanisms, we were really able to improve our ROI. Cassie has been one of our leaders in helping us find the right tools and helping us increase our productivity and efficiency.”

^{- Chris Copen}

1. Find the email marketing tools 

"Finding the right tool enables and empowers us to execute our vision and our client's vision without hindering their goals.

As a designer, when I'm looking for the right tool for email marketing, there are a few things to look for.

Ease of use is the first thing. Whatever tool you use should be user-friendly, intuitive, and allow me to create and customize designs quickly and effectively. 

Another need is a high degree of flexibility. I need to be able to create unique and visually appealing emails that align with the specific branding of all of our clients. We shouldn’t have to sacrifice elements of a client's brand to fit within the constraints of a design platform. 

The collaborative nature of a tool is also crucial. The right tool should facilitate seamless communication and collaboration, not only with our clients but also internally, throughout the revision process. That includes features like real-time editing, feedback, integrations, approval workflows, and so on. This helps us ensure we are always on the same page internally and with our clients.

Lastly, the right tool should integrate smoothly with other platforms and tools, such as CRM systems, analytic tools, and marketing automation platforms. This helps ensure that we have a cohesive, streamlined process from design to delivery and analysis and are not bouncing between a bunch of different platforms. 

Our previous process before finding Beefree was inefficient and unsustainable. It was clear that our approach was hindering our ability to meet client expectations and deliver high-quality, unique campaigns. 

Recognizing this was the first step toward improving our process. We needed a tool that would propel our agency to go above and beyond what our clients had asked for."

_{- Cassie Renier}

_{Excerpt from our live session with Madison Taylor Marketing.
Optimized for readability and engagement} 

2. Optimize your design and collaboration processes 

“When it comes to making something like email marketing work, alignment between vision and capability is so important.

When we're working as a team of marketers and designers, we need to effectively collaborate on an idea from start to finish.

Often, agencies run into issues executing on a vision because of limitations in capabilities, whether human, tools, or resources.

What we've found that works really well is to first clarify the client's situation and goals to ensure we're moving in the right direction. Involving design teams early in the process is crucial to understanding the full context and aligning on the vision.

Then, we need to be able to move from strategy to deliverables in the most cost-efficient manner. This means reducing the time spent on ideation, creation, and revisions. This is another reason why finding the right tools is important.

Beefree, specifically, allowed us to streamline our processes and enabled us to produce high-quality designs rapidly, ensuring timely and relevant communication with our client’s audiences. With Beefree’s collaboration features, all team members communicate in one place, reducing the time spent on back-and-forth and ensuring everyone is on the same page. Also, with real-time collaboration clients could see changes as they happened, reducing the need for multiple rounds of revisions.

By simply optimizing our email and collaboration processes we were able to reduce the time spent on designing while still producing high-quality assets. This allowed us to respond more quickly to market demands and time-sensitive opportunities, improving our ROI.

‍_{Excerpt from Andrea Davis at our live session with Madison Taylor Marketing. 
Optimized for readability and engagement} 

How should agencies measure their ROI

“In terms of measuring external ROI, setting clear, measurable goals for each campaign is important. 

Whether it's increasing engagement, generating leads, or driving sales, having specific objectives helps define what success looks like and provides a benchmark for measurement.

Track all related costs accurately. This includes not only direct expenses like ad spend but also indirect costs such as team hours and the cost of tools we use to streamline email creation and deployment. Knowing your total investment is crucial for an accurate ROI assessment.

Analyze your key performance metrics. These metrics might include open rates, click-through rates, conversion rates, and overall engagement. Analyzing this data will provide insights into how well campaigns are performing and how the use of efficient tools contributes to these results.

Consider both short-term and long-term impacts. Immediate results, such as sales from a campaign, are important, but so are long-term benefits like customer retention and brand awareness. Understanding the broader impact helps paint a complete picture of ROI.

Regularly review and adjust strategies and processes based on our findings. ROI measurement should be an ongoing process, helping refine tactics and improve future campaigns, but also providing internal operations insights. This iterative approach ensures continuous improvement and better outcomes over time.

Evaluating distinctly the ROI of internal investments. This includes the tools and technologies we use to enhance our productivity and efficiency. Analyze the effectiveness of these tools in helping you streamline your processes.” 

‍_{Additional insights shared by Chris Copen, Chief Operating Officer at Madison Taylor Marketing.} 

How Madison Taylor Marketing cut down email development time by 66% with Beefree

CEO and Founder Aimee Meester shares how her team uses Beefree to create engaging and personalized content faster than ever before. Learn more about the business impact of Beefree on Madison Taylor Marketing.

Effective email marketing in healthcare can have immense ROI. After all, it is a cost-effective and direct line of communication with your patients that, when done right, can drive engagement, encourage repeat visits, and help build ongoing trust and credibility. However, healthcare providers are faced with unique challenges when it comes to using email marketing. 

On the one hand, the goal is to engage patients and provide value to help build long-term relationships. On the other hand, the goal is to promote your services and, ideally, boost revenue via this marketing strategy. This balance can be tricky to achieve due to the sensitive nature of the healthcare industry; however, it is not impossible.

‍
We’ve compiled 5 examples of healthcare emails done right. These top brands have excelled in the art of healthcare emails by blending valuable, informative content that addresses patient’s concerns with promotional content that presents itself as an empathetic helping hand.  

Healthcare newsletter examples

Sending monthly or weekly newsletters is an excellent way to strengthen relationships with patients or customers. These regular communications serve as a direct line to your audience, allowing you to engage and educate them on relevant health topics consistently. 

Each newsletter provides an opportunity to share reliable and practical health tips and update patients about clinic changes, new services, or special offerings. 

Everlywell 

Everlywell offers folks with at-home “health and wellness solutions.” In a recent newsletter they focus their message on addressing stress, a common concern among their audience. The email begins by empathizing with the reader, reassuring them that stress is a widespread issue, therefore establishing an immediate connection with their readers. 

By offering a free solution—specifically, a list of vitamins and supplements known to alleviate stress—Everlywell demonstrates its commitment to customer well-being. Simultaneously, by subtly promoting its own supplements within the email's content, it reinforces the message that Everlywell not only understands the reader's concerns but also provides practical solutions. 

Seasonal health campaigns 

Another great way to connect with patients beyond the clinic is to send seasonal health campaigns. These campaigns are highly effective because they relate to current health concerns and conditions prevalent during specific times of the year.

Seasonal health campaigns allow healthcare providers to proactively address issues that are top-of-mind for patients during different seasons. 

Natalist

Natalist offers “fertility, pregnancy, and postpartum essentials.” To ring in the new year, their email “TTC in the new year?” leans into the possibility that with a new year, folks begin to consider trying to conceive, thoughtfully tapping taps into the natural inclination people have to reflect on life changes and set new goals as the calendar turns.

This thoughtful and well-timed campaign exemplifies how healthcare providers can connect with their audience by aligning their messaging with their customers' lives' natural rhythms and aspirations.

Promotional healthcare emails 

Promotional healthcare emails can significantly increase patient engagement. Offers tailored to patient needs can inform and encourage them to consider services they may not have known about. However, healthcare promotion emails come with their own set of challenges, HIPAA being the biggest hurdle.

ivee

Ivee offers “individualized medical care” services directly from home, including urgent care, diagnostic testing, IV therapy, and more. In a promotional email about their Membership and Programs, ivee takes the route of promotion through education.

Promoting medical treatments and procedures can be complex and often leaves patients with numerous questions and uncertainties.

ivee’s promotional email addresses this challenge by ensuring the content is clear, concise, and informative. Instead of overwhelming patients with technical jargon or complicated medical terms, Ivee breaks down the information into 3 digestible segments that guide the reader through their offerings:

1. What the patient will receive
2. How the program works
3. What the next steps are 

ivee’s educational approach in its promotional email informs and empowers patients, building trust and confidence in their services. 

By addressing potential questions upfront, ivee reduces any concern that the patient may have regarding this service. This method of promotion through education is particularly effective in healthcare, where informed patients are more likely to engage with and benefit from the services offered.

‍

Patient testimonials and success stories 

Using patient testimonials and stories in healthcare emails helps build trust and credibility. When potential patients read or hear about others who have successfully navigated similar health challenges, it reassures them of the effectiveness and reliability of the services offered. These narratives humanize the healthcare experience, which can sometimes feel cold and direct, by showcasing real people and their journeys. 

Much like any healthcare email, this one is particularly affected by the US HIPAA regulations. These emails require explicit consent and the careful handling of personal information. 

Additionally, it is crucial that these testimonials and stories remain authentic. Fabricated or exaggerated stories can damage credibility, and it's important to avoid over-promising outcomes. 

GoodRx

GoodRx provides telemedicine to track prescription drug pricing in the United States and offers drug coupons and medication discounts. In an email promoting their telehealth services, they use a patient testimonial to communicate the ease of their service.

GoodRx balances this strategy with maintaining client privacy by using anonymized testimonials and obtaining explicit consent from the patient. Anonymized testimonials protect the identity of the patients by removing any personal identifiers, ensuring that their privacy is not compromised while still providing authentic feedback about the service.

Transactional healthcare email examples

Transactional emails play an important role in healthcare, allowing providers to share essential information that brings ease to the patient’s experience. More specifically, transactional emails improve operational efficiency. Some examples of transactional emails in healthcare include

• Appointment confirmations and reminders
• Prescription and medication updates
• Follow-up care instructions
• Billing and payment notification
• Patient portal access 

Hims

Hims is an “online telehealth platform that provides virtual healthcare and support for men's health.” In the order confirmation email below, Hims offers the patient important order information such as order ID, date paid, total charge, and payment method. 

This transparency ensures patients have all the necessary details about their purchase, enhancing their trust in the platform. Additionally, Hims goes beyond just transactional information to offer patients peace of mind by reminding them of all the other free services they receive through their platform.

By highlighting these benefits, Hims reinforces the value of its service and strengthens its relationship with its patients. This approach confirms the purchase and reassures patients that they feel supported in various aspects of their health journey.

Start designing healthcare emails with Beefree 

Navigating healthcare regulations can be challenging, but your email design doesn't have to be. With Beefree's intuitive design tools and templates, you can simplify your communication efforts to adhere to industry standards and focus on what truly matters: delivering exceptional care and valuable information to your patients

Sign up today -- it's free!

‍

The SaaS industry is a fiercely competitive marketing currently valued at $317.55 billion. With projections indicating growth to $1.23 trillion by 2032, it is becoming increasingly important for SaaS companies to find ways to not only stay competitive but also lead the market for sustainable growth. 

So, how can SaaS businesses stay ahead when customer needs constantly evolve and switching from one application to another is just a matter of a few clicks? For many, email marketing is the answer. 

With an average ROI of $36 for every $1 spent, email marketing is a versatile and cost-effective solution that benefits every stage of your marketing funnel. From brand awareness to retention, email marketing in SaaS helps meet your customers where they are.

What is SaaS email marketing?

SaaS email marketing refers to strategically sending emails to leads, prospects, existing customers, and former customers to drive engagement and business growth. While, email marketing offers a range of benefits for SaaS, the number benefit is it’s role in reducing churn.

Customer churn is the rate at which a user stops using the application over a given period of time. According to Vitally, for SaaS to maintain sustainable growth, the annual churn rate should be under 5%; however, in both small and large SaaS companies, “monthly churn rates ranked around 3.5% for the first quarter of 2024.”

According to Precursive, the top 3 factors leading to customer churn are wrong product fit, lack of engagement, and onboarding. Email marketing emerges as a powerful solution to address each of these issues proactively.

Reducing churn due to wrong product fit & onboarding

Wyzowl’s Customer Onboarding 2020 Report states, “80% of users have uninstalled an app due to their lack of understanding of how to use it.” 
‍
That’s where onboarding and product education emails come in. They educate users not only on how to use the application but also how to maximize its value. In the onboarding stages, SaaS should gather user data, such as industry or role, and create tailored campaigns highlighting features and use cases based on their unique needs.

Reducing churn due to lack of engagement

Consistent and targeted email campaigns help keep users engaged, as they are reminded of the ongoing value your SaaS application delivers. Through interactive content such as surveys, polls, quizzes, or regular usage tips and best practices, you can encourage users to stay engaged and informed about new and exciting ways to use the application.

Types of SaaS email communications

Each type of SaaS email communication is designed to address specific needs, goals, and challenges faced by both the SaaS company and its customers. Tailored email content to specific segments allows SaaS to deliver relevant, timely, and compelling content that enhances the overall customer experience.

1. Welcome emails

In SaaS, a welcome email is a high-level introduction to your application. It is sent immediately after a customer subscribes to the tool and tells them what to expect. 

In this example from Coda, the user is welcomed to the application and the different “solutions” they can create with Coda. Additionally, this email offers other resources to help the user familiarize themselves with the tool, like their help center and learning hub.

As you can see, this is a high-level email that does not go too in-depth into a specific feature. This email helps ease users into a new application without overwhelming them.

Free welcome email template: https://beefree.io/template/first-welcome

2. Onboarding emails

Unlike a welcome email, an onboarding email focuses on a specific feature or activity that can be achieved with your application. For SaaS, an onboarding sequence is usually a better strategy than compiling everything in one email. It helps guide users through the product gradually, allowing them ample time in between emails to explore the solution.

These emails could include feature highlights, tutorials, or step-by-step guides. In the example below, users are introduced to Miro’s collaboration capabilities. 

In SaaS, the onboarding process should be treated as part of the users' “consideration” stage. In fact, 63% of customers consider the onboarding period when deciding to subscribe to a service or purchase a product.

Due to this, the onboarding process should be seamless, educational, and personalized to serve users with relevant content that meets their unique needs.

Free onboarding email template for SaaS: https://beefree.io/template/get-started

3. Product update emails

Product update emails aim to educate users on new or improved features. They are a valuable way to encourage product adoption, show users you listen to their feedback, and offer resources for further product education. 

The following example from Airtable highlights their new AI feature, briefly sharing what it does, the benefits, and links relevant resources to learn more, including promotion to their AI webinar.

Free SaaS product update email: https://beefree.io/template/features-discovery

4. Transactional emails

Transactional emails for SaaS help enhance the user experience. Through prompt and clear communications regarding account activities, SaaS businesses ensure customers are informed, providing peace of mind and increasing brand trust. 

Each transactional email should have a clear focus that addresses the user’s immediate need. These emails often include password resets, billing and invoices, security alerts, subscription renewals, and more. 

The following email example from Stampsy is a great example of a transactional email that is clear and to the point.

‍

If you’re not sure of where to start with your SaaS transactional email, Beefree’s Transactional Template Kit offers a good starting point for on-brand emails.

5. Re-engagement emails

Re-engagement emails help to retain users who haven’t interacted with your brand or software in a while by reminding them of the value and benefits of your SaaS. Through targeted and timely email campaigns, highlighting the unique value proposition of your SaaS you can help to extend the duration of customer relationships and recapturing lost revenue before it’s lost. 

Some examples of re-engagement emails in SaaS include highlighting new features, offering a special discount, requesting feedback, or a simple “we miss you” email reminding them of your solution.

The following email from Mailchimp is an example of a re-engagement email sent in the onboarding process. 

Based on the content of the email, we can infer that this user still needs to complete their registration. 

Mailchimp uses this to remind the user how easy it is to get started “with just a few clicks.” Additionally, it addresses any potential roadblocks the user may have. It offers solutions such as a comprehensive article to help users “breeze through the registration process” and a 1-1 call with their Onboarding Specialist.

6. Feedback emails

Feedback or survey emails in SaaS are vital for gathering insight into user experience and satisfaction. For the user, these emails serve as a way to give direct feedback, making them feel valued and strengthening their engagement. 

Feedback or survey emails should be clear about the ask and concise to respect the reader’s time. Offering incentives or discounts is also a great way to promote engagement, further strengthening user relationships. 

The following email from Miro is a great example of requesting feedback.

To start building your next SaaS survey campaign, Beefree’s Survey Template Kit offers a wide range of designs to choose from. 

7. Renewal and upgrade emails

Renewal and upgrade emails in SaaS are essential for maintaining customer retention and driving revenue growth. While their purpose is typically a friendly reminder about upcoming renewals, it also serves as an opportunity to encourage users to upgrade to unlock more features.

These emails should specify when the subscription ends, how to renew or upgrade, and the benefits. The following example from YouTube highlights all of the benefits of renewing your premium plan and offers a clear CTA on the next steps to help avoid friction for the user.

Free SaaS upgrade email template: https://beefree.io/template/upgrade-to-a-higher-plan 

8. Event invitation emails

For SaaS specifically, events can help amplify the brand’s credibility and recognition, generate leads, and provide ongoing value to existing users. Event invitation emails are a valuable part of this strategy to encourage attendance and user engagement.

The following example from Customer.io invites users to a webinar hosted by industry leaders. The email concisely communicates the webinar's topic and the value it will bring to its users.

These event invitation emails are usually followed by reminder emails to encourage attendance and registration further.

Start designing your next event invitation emails with Beefree's Webinar Template Kit.

9. Milestone emails

Milestone emails in SaaS help celebrate a user’s significant achievement or a stage in their journey. They provide positive reinforcement and motivation for a user, increasing their likelihood of continued use of the product. For SaaS, these emails also serve as a way to highlight the value of the software by showing the users the progress they have achieved and where they can go with continued use. 

Grammarly is an excellent example of an effective milestone email.

Free milestone email and page templates for SaaS: https://beefree.io/templates/annual_review

Kick off your SaaS email marketing program with Beefree

Reducing churn with SaaS email marketing is not just about sending the occasional reminder or offer - it's about creating a well-rounded, strategic approach that addresses every stage of the customer journey. Your email campaigns should respond to user needs and challenges before they arrive -- positioning your SaaS as the ideal solution for them.

From personalized onboarding emails that ensure new users feel welcomed and informed, to regular engagement emails that keep users active and invested, each type of communication plays a vital role in minimizing churn. While designing campaigns for each touchpoint might be time consuming at first, know that you don't have to do it alone.

Beefree offers a myriad of email templates to support each stage of your customer lifecycle. The best part? It's free. Get started now!
‍

In healthcare, your relationship with your patient is paramount. From notifying them of their next appointment to educating them on the importance of a yearly check-up, your relationship is a vulnerable and sensitive exchange. With patient interaction limited, email marketing emerges as a strategy for fostering client relationships beyond their appointment.

With a higher-than-average open rate of 41.23% and an average click-through rate of 3.0%, it’s clear that patients appreciate email communications care about what their providers have to share. However, healthcare providers struggle to balance personalized, engaging communication and adhering to industry regulations. In this guide, we’ll explore the strategies and best practices healthcare professionals to help you tackle this balance with ease.

Unique considerations for healthcare email marketing

While the benefits of email marketing in healthcare are expansive, there are unique considerations the industry faces due to the nature of their work. As you develop your email marketing program, keep the following in mind: ‍

HIPAA compliance & other legal regulations

Aligning with legal requirements is a critical aspect of healthcare email marketing that shouldn’t be overlooked. Healthcare businesses are legally bound by a range of laws, regulations, and guidelines to ensure patient privacy, data security, and ethical marketing practices. 

HIPAA:

Any emails containing protected health information should be encrypted, secure, and only shown to authorized personnel. Avoid including medical history, treatment, or any personal identifiers in any of your email marketing material.

Additionally, use a HIPAA-compliant email service provider so any unauthorized users can’t access your patients’ email addresses. Also, your email vendor must sign a HIPAA business associate agreement (BAA).

GDPR:

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) requires businesses to obtain explicit consent before sending any marketing emails. To ensure adherence, your sign-up form should include the option to opt-out of email communications and all emails should always contain the option to “unsubscribe.”

CAN-SPAM:

This Act requires that all marketing emails include accurate sender information, clear subject lines, opt-out mechanisms, and that all email senders comply with unsubscribe requests. 

Before starting your email marketing program, ensure all team members understand legal compliance, data security protocols, and best practices for email marketing to mitigate risks and ensure adherence to regulations.

Increased importance of accessible email design 

In healthcare email marketing, another crucial consideration is ensuring that emails are accessible to all recipients, including those with disabilities and visual impairments. Accessible emails help ensure everyone can effectively engage with the content and understand the information. Some elements to consider include: 

Color contrast and readability:

Proper color contrast helps ensure that individuals with color blindness or with low vision can differentiate text from background colors. To further help ensure readability, choose easy-to-read fonts and avoid small font sizes. 

Structured layouts and navigation

Organize email content with a clear and structured layout that includes headings, subheadings, and bulleted lists.

Accessible links and buttons: 

Ensure that hyperlinks and buttons are accessible and easy to use for individuals using assistive technologies or keyboard navigation. Use descriptive language that indicates the destination or action associated with the link. 

Mobile responsiveness: 

Many users access emails on mobile devices, so test emails across various devices and platforms to ensure consistent accessibility and readability.

Screen reader compatibility 

Optimize your email designs for screen reader compatibility by using clear and descriptive alt text for images, headers, and links. 

Healthcare email marketing strategies

Once you've implemented processes to ensure that all email communications are in compliance with legal regulations and accessibility guideline, it's time to get creative! 

1. Build welcome sequences to introduce new patients to your practice

Your email marketing is an excellent way to welcome new patients. For anyone new to the practice, set up a pre-designed welcome series introducing them to your staff, services, patient portal, and more.

2. Foster trust through education 

Trust is fundamental in healthcare. Patients look for providers not only for treatment but also for guidance. Email marketing can be used to educate people on preventive measures and wellness strategies. These resources should be accurate, evidence-based, and easily digestible for patience, helping build credibility and trust in your expertise. 

3. Propel your business forward 

Email marketing can be used to attract new patients and retain existing ones. For new patients, offer promotions and deals on elective services. For existing customers, remind them of your available services and offer a complimentary consultation. 

On the other hand, you can use email marketing to encourage existing patients to leave reviews and testimonials or request feedback on their experience, which can help improve your client experience. 

4. HIPAA-compliant personalization

Although personalization can feel limiting in healthcare due to regulations, segmentation is one way to personalize your emails. Prior to signing up to your email list, you can ask for patience to choose the kind of material they would like to receive from you. By organizing your email list based on interests, you can send relevant content that aligns with their needs while assuring compliance and consent. 

5. Humanize your brand  

Conversations in healthcare, even virtual ones, benefit from a human and empathetic touch. Using a conversational, human tone in your emails can help nurture the provider-client relationship beyond face-to-face interactions. Humanizing your brand can help create meaningful connections and encourage open communication, which are elements crucial for patient satisfaction. 

Start designing your healthcare emails with Beefree

Beefree offers a range of professionally designed templates that are not only visually appealing but also optimized for accessibility. Our catalog of 1,700+ email templates adhere to accessibility standards by incorporating clear alt text for images, readable fonts, high color contrast, and structured layouts. By using Beefree email templates, healthcare providers can streamline the creation of accessible emails, ensuring that their messages reach and resonate with all recipients.

Start designing for free! 

For marketing agencies and their clients, email marketing serves as a powerful method of acquiring and retaining clients. In a 2023 survey, 50% of B2B marketers name email as their most effective marketing channel, performing 13% better than social media posts and 11% better than social media ads.

This emphasis on the importance of email marketing, while opportunistic, also presents a new wave of challenges for agencies to tackle.   

Unique challenges in agency email marketing

As a marketing agency in the digital age, staying on top of evolving trends, strategies, and algorithms is hard enough. The pressure to perform doubles when paired with client expectations to quickly develop, monitor, and execute the latest. 

So, how can agencies balance multiple brands and clients wanting to experiment with the newest trend with tried-and-true best practices while maintaining brand integrity?  

Email templates have proven to be a great asset in cutting down email production speed and increasing efficiency and productivity. Jim Maddock, Freelance Email Developer and CRM Consultant has developed over 670 emails for a wide range of departments, artists, and organizations, all extensions of only a few templates he built with Beefree customized to fit different brands. 

Benefits of using HTML email templates vs. custom coding or text-only emails

The days of email specialists and developers being the only ones involved in the email design process are long gone. Text-only emails are now mostly reserved for everyday communications, while HTML emails are used by a wide range of brands and organizations for internal communications and marketing material. 

Unlike text-only emails, HTML emails are dynamic, engaging, and personalized to showcase a brand’s identity and instill brand recognition in readers. 

Because all email-sending platforms support HTML,  email makers benefit from peace of mind knowing that their emails will display as intended across devices and email clients. 

While historically, manually coding HTML emails is known to be time-consuming and tedious work, the rise of no-code email builders is saving agencies valuable time and resources when building emails. To take it one step further, HTML email templates are becoming standard practices. Much like Jim Maddock, agencies only have to create these templates once and reuse them for multiple brands. 

Another option is to source an HTML email template that has already been built and tested for responsiveness, allowing your team more time to work on other deliverables. 

How to choose an HTML template

When choosing an existing HTML email template, there are a few considerations to take into account:

• Customizability and usability: When working with multiple brands, it is crucial that your agency delivers on-brand designs. When choosing a template, the ability to customize it to fit into any given brand identity easily is non-negotiable. This means colors, fonts, font sizes, images, and more.
  
  
• Versatility: Whether you’re creating an HTML email template from scratch or sourcing one, you’ll probably want to start with a few templates that can be used in multiple ways to decrease the amount of time spent on repetitive designs. An effective template should have all of your email's basic elements: hero, footer, and nav bar, and it should be flexible enough to add or remove blocks as needed. 

• Best practices: The right HTML template follows email design best practices, including mobile-first design, dark mode, and spam prevention guidelines, to ensure an optimal viewing experience and delivery. 

By choosing an HTML template that fulfills all of these elements, you can quickly iterate the template to try new strategies (pleasing your client) while standing upon a strong foundation of what makes an effective email campaign (pleasing your agency). 

3 Essential email templates for marketing agencies

If you’re unsure where to start on your search for an HTML template, you’ve come to the right place. Below, we’ve curated three essential email templates for marketing agencies in the Beefree catalog. 

The Beefree HTML template catalog hosts 1,700+ templates for a wide range of industries, holidays, and usage. All templates are free to use on the Beefree editor and completely customizable to fit any brand style guidelines. The email builder also ensures that all emails created with Beefree render properly across all screen sizes. 

While assigned to a specific category, the following templates have been chosen due to their versatility. With a little creativity, each of the following templates can be used for a wide variety of email campaigns, industries, and brand styles due to their layout and simplicity.

Welcome email template

A welcome email template is just as it sounds - an introduction to who you are. While the contents of an email template may vary depending on the industry or purpose, there is usually a similar story told through them: this is who we are and this is what we do. Here is an example of an email template designed for an agency: 

At the top, the email provides a space for a logo, a nav bar, and a title. 

‍

‍

Above the fold, the template kicks off with an introduction of “Who are we” which answers to a welcome emails main purpose: introduce new audiences to who you are and connect with them off a first impression. 

‍

‍

As we scroll, the email layout changes to help guide the reader through “what we do” and an introduction to the team with clear CTAs with next steps.

‍

The email ends with a footer containing vital information. 

‍

Browse all Welcome email templates: https://beefree.io/templates/welcome

Newsletter template

A routine newsletter is an excellent way to nurture leads and maintain relationships. Depending on the business, a newsletter offers readers various resources, updates, or offerings. An effective newsletter template offers multiple content block formats to pick and choose from. 
‍
In this example, the template contains a prominent hero section with a bold CTA leading to resource #1. We recommend starting emails with a strong hero section to grab the attention of the reader above the fold. 

‍

As you scroll, new resources are presented using a different layout to help differentiate the multiple pieces of content. 

The final resources in the template are presented in video format, which can easily be interchanged with an image to suit different brands' needs.

‍

Browse all Newsletter templates: https://beefree.io/templates/newsletter

Survey email template

Surveys are excellent ways to gather feedback from different audiences. A survey email template should be short, clear, and concise. The purpose of the email should be easily digested and understood. 

The following template pulls the reader in with a large and clear header and body that clearly communicates to the reader that their feedback is wanted and why.  

This template offers two different ways to collect feedback, making it versatile for a brand’s needs. Below, you’ll see the survey embedded in the template and a CTA linking readers to the brand survey. 

‍

Browse all Survey templates: https://beefree.io/templates/survey

The value of email marketing for agencies

The value of email marketing for agencies and their clients is undeniable. With an ROI of $36 for every $1 spent and being generally low-cost, it is one of the most effective ways to communicate to multiple audiences in one location—their inbox. 

Email templates help agencies save time and resources in email production so that your team and clients can benefit from more time to: 

• Refine a brand’s messaging to ensure it aligns with its ideal customers. 
• Personalize emails for the segmented recipients 
• Grow the brand’s emailing list
• Optimize email communications and increase conversion
• And so much more.

Explore Beefree’s email marketing template library

HTML email templates can empower your email marketing agency to create responsive, high-performing, and engaging emails with ease. Beefree makes this process even quicker with its extensive template library and intuitive drag-and-drop builder. In addition, Beefree’s agnostic nature allows you to easily integrate with your client's sending and marketing platforms making it a seamless experience from start to finish.

‍

For fast-paced digital marketing agencies, it's common to focus on nurturing and expanding your clients' businesses, that you leave little room to promote your own services. While this is unintentional, this oversight may be hindering your agency's growth potential.

That's where email marketing comes in as a game-changer forbusy agencies. With email creation becoming more intuitive, powerful, and 37% of brands increasing their email budgets it's clear to see that email continues to grow as an effective marketing solution.

Let's delve into the best practices that can elevate your agency's email marketing game and unlock new avenues of success.

Why email marketing benefits digital marketing agencies

With 4.3 billion email users, email continues as a sustainable, cost-effective, and high-converting solution to effortlessly balance client acquisition and client retention.

This single strategy enables targeted outreach to engage and move audiences through different stages of the buyer's journey. For new audiences, email marketing can be used to show them your work, promote services, and reasons to work with you. For customer loyalty and retention, email can be used to upsell and/or communicate the consistent value you bring to your clients.

Email marketing presents a lucrative opportunity for marketing agencies of all sizes to thrive and grow. By consistently engaging potential clients and ensuring your presence remains prominent, you establish top-of-mind recall for marketing services.

#1: Segmentation to keep the balance

As your organization grows, you will notice that your audience has a wide range of interests depending on their demographics, business, and needs. Segmentation involves dividing your email list into different groups based on specific criteria, such as industry or stage in your client acquisition journey.

Segmentation enables you to send targeted and personalized content to each group, increasing the relevance and effectiveness of your campaigns and ROI. For example, if you have a segment of subscribers who are interested in social media marketing, you can tailor your emails to provide them with valuable tips and resources in that area.

Seer Interactive, for instance, is a digital marketing agency serving a variety of audiences from digital marketers who need to stay up to date on best practices to prospective customers. You can see in the example below how Seer differs their emails based on the audience.

Email for digital marketers:

Focuses on speaking to digital marketers who are interested in learning more about how to improve their services, what's new in the industry, and new tools and solutions.

Email for potential clients:

The second email targets potential clients who are likely in the discovery phase of what an agency does. Seer provides some insights to help the reader make more informed decisions with comparisons, a checklist, and an article with what to expect. This email, while does not directly promote Seer's services, let's the reader know that this agency is here to help keeping them top of mind.

‍

‍

Segmenting your audience using the customer journey funnel

As mentioned earlier, one of the most beneficial aspects of email marketing for agencies is the ability to maintain balance between client acquisition and customer retainment. In our professional experience, the best way to do this is to map out your customer journey and plan out how each stage serves your audience and of course moves them through the journey. While your client’s journey may vary depending on your services, but typically it entails the following: 

• Awareness: In this stage, prospects have heard your name but are just getting to know who you are. This is where you can create a sequence of emails for them to get to know your agency, the services you offer, and what makes you unique. 
  ‍
• Consideration: This audience is weighing their options about the best marketing agency for them. This is where you will likely begin to provide statistics about the returns you’ve achieved for other clients or share testimonials. 
  ‍
• Decision/conversion: This is the stage when prospects just need that final push to take action and sign on as clients. In this stage, you can offer incentives or a free trial of one services.
  ‍
• ‍Loyalty: This is the stage when a business has signed on as a client or made a purchase and your goal is to retain them. You’ll want to send these clients loyalty-boosting content like announcements about new products, appreciation for their support, and informative content that is helpful to them.

Ultimately, segmentation is a great way to keep your subscribers engaged and drive client acquisition and retention. Once you have a clear understanding of your client journey and the goals at each stage, now it's time to grow your email list.

#2: Building and growing your email list

To maximize the effectiveness of your email marketing campaigns, it is essential to first start building a quality list of people who are interested in what you have to offer and say.

1. Make it easy to subscribe: Whether you're using a form on your website or a landing page, make sure that your process is simple. Only ask for only essential information, ideally only up to three. Some suggestions are name, email address, and a question that could help you segment them into groups such as "are you looking for an agency?" This simple question could help segment new subscribers to cold vs. hot leads. Don't forget to use a clear CTA that communicated what the next step is.  
   ‍‍
2. Leverage social media: Promote your email list on social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Tik Tok, and Twitter/X to reach a wider audience and encourage sign-ups.
   ‍‍
3. Offer valuable incentives: Provide something of value, such as appealing discounts on a client’s first service or exclusive content like a guide to social media marketing in exchange for people signing up to your email list.
   ‍
4. ‍Regularly clean your list: While building and growing your email list, it is important to regularly examine your subscribers and remove those who are not engaging. This helps maintain a healthy list and ensures that your metrics accurately reflect subscriber engagement.
   ‍
5. ‍Don’t forget existing clients: Add your existing clients to your mailing list so they can stay up to date on your latest services and offers. Additionally create a segment of former clients who have not engaged with your agency in a while. This segment is perfect for targeted emails meant to re-engage them, like personalized information about where they left off in the process and a call-to-action button for them to jump back in.
   ‍‍
6. Provide compelling content consistently: Deliver content that is interesting, informative, and valuable to keep subscribers engaged and to make them more likely to tell others about your mailing list. The friends they tell may become subscribers and eventually clients.

Keep these best practices in mind to build a high-quality subscriber list who are genuinely interested in your brand. 

#3: Designing high-converting emails

The effectiveness of your email campaigns is directly influenced by the design choices you make. Research shows that visually appealing designs can significantly enhance engagement rates.

Email design best practices

Strategic design choices not only make your emails more appealing, but also drive higher conversions.

1. Personalize your emails: HubSpot ranks message personalization as one of the most effective strategies for email marketing. Tailor the content based on their interests or past interactions with your brand, such as by including a section for recommended services. This increases engagement and makes your emails more relevant.
   ‍
2. Use professional and high-quality visual design: Use high-quality images and graphics that support your message and reflect your brand's identity. A visually appealing email is more likely to capture attention and encourage click-throughs. In fact, according to Campaign Monitor, communications with visuals receive 650% more engagement than those without.
   ‍
3. Include a clear call-to-action (CTA): Wordstream found that one CTA in your email can garner 371% more clicks and over 1600% higher sales. Your CTA should be prominent, concise, and action-oriented. Make it easy for recipients to understand what they need to do next, whether it's making a purchase, signing up for an event, or downloading a resource.
   ‍
4. Maintain consistent branding: Ensure that your email templates align with your brand's colors, fonts, and overall visual style. Consistency helps build recognition and reinforces trust with your audience, and according to GaggleAMP, customers who feel connected to your brand account for 37% of revenue and spend twice as much.
   ‍
5. Design for mobile devices: According to eMarketer, over half of emails are opened on mobile devices. Be sure your emails are mobile-friendly so they still look clean and engaging for your recipients.

Leverage email templates

Email marketing templates are a great asset for your email design. Many email marketing tools offer pre-designed emails that you can easily customize to suit your needs and brand guidelines.

By using pre-built templates, your agency can significantly reduce the time and effort required to create engaging emails, ultimately boosting your return on investment (ROI) by maximizing the impact of your email marketing efforts.

Ensure responsive, mobile-optimized, HTML email design

When designing your marketing emails, designing in HTML helps ensure that your emails will be readable in nearly any email app (like Gmail, Outlook, and so on) and device. Fortunately, you don’t have to be an HTML coder to create HTML emails.

Now a days, there are many tools that offer an easy-to-use design interface so you can design your emails and export the HTML the solution builds for you. These tools, streamline and make the design process more efficient, without the need to have any knowledge on HTML or CSS.

By utilizing an HTML email design tool, such as Beefree, not only can you enjoy the peace of mind that your emails will render well, but you also benefit from a solution that helps you and your agency save time, increase productivity, and get more done with less resources.

However, not all HTML email builders are made equal.

#4: Choosing the right email marketing software for your agency

A stellar email campaign starts with effective and productive email marketing software. When choosing email marketing software, it's important to consider factors such as ease of use, customization options, integration capabilities with other tools, and more.

Factors to consider when choosing email marketing software

How do you determine which of the many email marketing tools is the best fit for your agency’s needs? Here are some important factors to consider while you weigh your options:

1. Check out the features: Every software has its own collection of features like scheduled sending, automated options for sending a series of emails, personalization, design capabilities, and so on. Compare tools and their features against your list of must-haves.
   ‍
2. Examine the pricing: Cost matters in your ROI. Pick a service that fits your budget.
   ‍
3. Consider other capabilities: Some tools offer email marketing along with other helpful services like social media ads, website analytics, and so on. Consider whether there are email marketing tools that will also replace some of your other software.
   ‍
4. Try A/B testing: If you’re able to try out multiple email tools at the same time, consider sending a few campaigns with each tool to see if one performs better than the other.
   ‍
5. Weigh the integration capabilities: Consider email marketing platforms that may integrate with some of the other tools you use, like your client management system. This applies to email tools that integrate with other email tools too, like BeeFree which provides a user-friendly way to design your emails and smoothly send them with nearly any email sending platform
   ‍
6. Preview emails: Check out examples of what other businesses have created using each email tool.
   ‍
7. Read reviews and research: See what other businesses (and especially other marketing agencies, if possible) have to say about each tool.

Recommended email marketing tools

Here's a quick rundown of some recommended email design tools that can help maximize your ROI:

HubSpot

• Key features: AI-driven marketing automation, built-in analytics, advanced segmentation, customizable templates.‍
• Benefits: Targeted emails improve ROI and overall marketing strategy. HubSpot's AI can help with segmentation and crafting tailored emails for each recipient.

MailChimp

• Key features: Easy usability, broad template selection, robust automation, analytics.‍
• Benefits: Good for beginners and seasoned marketers alike, MailChimp offers an intuitive platform with high flexibility.

Constant Contact

• Key features: User-friendly interface, diverse template library, event management tools, social media integration.‍
• Benefits: Great for small to midsize businesses. It offers a range of features that can help streamline and automate your email marketing processes.

GetResponse

• Key features: All-in-one platform, landing page builder, advanced analytics, webinar hosting‍
• Benefits: If you're looking for more than just email marketing, GetResponse offers a suite of tools including landing page and webinar solutions.

ActiveCampaign

• Key features: Advanced automation, CRM integration, messaging features, customer behavior tracking‍
• Benefits: ActiveCampaign is ideal for businesses with a focus on customer relationships. It offers extensive automation and tracking capabilities for a more personalized approach.

Beefree

• Key features: Specializing in HTML email design, with an extensive catalog of email templates to use and a drag-and-drop email editor for complete customization‍
• Benefits: While emails cannot be exported via Beefree like the above, Beefree integrates with all major email sending platforms for easy use with your favorite software. Additionally, the application offers free and cost-effective plans to help you get started.

To ensure you're choosing the right tool, consider your organization's unique needs, the tool's capabilities, and how well it integrates with your existing marketing tech stack.

#5: Automating Your email marketing efforts

Leveraging automation in your email marketing strategy can significantly enhance your outreach efforts and improve your email marketing ROI. By automating certain aspects of your email campaigns, you can ensure timely and targeted communication with potential clients, increasing the likelihood of engagement.

Automation allows you to schedule emails to be sent at optimal times and personalize content based on user behavior. This not only saves time and resources but also maximizes the impact of your emails. There are several ways that your agencies can incorporate automation, but here are some:

• Sending an email to clients who started but didn’t complete your inquiry process.
• Automated welcome series for new clients that introduces them to your work process.
• Automated follow-ups for webinars, events, or meetings.

Benefits of email marketing automation

1. Increased efficiency: With automated emails, you can reach a larger number of clients or reach clients more reliably without having to manually send individual emails.
   ‍
2. Engagement and lead nurturing: Marketing automation sometimes offers advanced features like lead scoring and nurturing. You can segment your audience based on their behavior or interests, ensuring that they receive relevant content tailored specifically for them.
   ‍
3. Advanced user segmentation: Automation allows you to segment your email list based on various criteria such as demographics, purchase history, or engagement level. This enables you to send personalized messages that resonate with each segment of your audience.
   ‍
4. Increased conversions: By sending targeted and timely emails through automation, you can significantly improve conversion rates. Whether it's encouraging a purchase or promoting an upcoming event, automated emails can help drive more conversions for your agency.

#6: Tracking and measuring for success

To ensure the effectiveness of your email marketing efforts, it is crucial to track and measure key metrics such as open rates, click-through rates, and conversion rates. This data helps you recognize trends, such as what designs or content resonate the most with your clients, and help make informed decisions for your next campaign.

Important metrics to track

Here are some key metrics that you should track throughout your agency’s email marketing campaigns.

1. Open rate: Shows the percentage of recipients who opened your email out of those who received it. It gives insight into the effectiveness of subject lines and sender names.
   ‍
2. Click-through rate: Measures the percentage of recipients who clicked on a link within your email. It helps you evaluate the effectiveness of your email content and call-to-action.
   ‍
3. Conversion rate: Tells you how many recipients took the desired action after clicking through your email. In the case of a marketing agency, that action could be filling out your website’s contact form.
   ‍
4. Bounce rate: Tracks the percentage of emails that were not delivered to recipients' inboxes due to invalid or non-existent email addresses.
   ‍
5. List growth rate: Allows you to assess how quickly your email list is expanding so you can adjust your acquisition strategies accordingly.
   ‍
6. Email sharing/forwarding rate: Measures how often recipients share or forward your emails to others. It can indicate whether your content resonates with your audience and has potential for increased reach.
   ‍
7. Unsubscribe rate: Monitors the percentage of recipients who unsubscribe from your emails after receiving them. High unsubscribe rates may indicate issues with targeting, content relevance, or frequency.

To learn more about how to measure and make informed decisions based on each metrics read: 8 Email Metrics That Actually Matter in 2024

Unlocking the power of email marketing for agencies

Digital marketing agencies have a unique business model and a unique use for email marketing. Unlike many businesses, you aren’t trying to use your email marketing to make a quick sale or appeal to impulse buyers. You’re trying to establish a genuine and ongoing connection with potential clients and show them the concrete value you can bring to their businesses. Agency-specific strategies like those above can help you make the most of every email you send.

Want a more efficient way to create compelling marketing emails? The Beefree "Business" plan is the perfect solution for growing agencies to scale their email marketing processes and campaigns. Start your free 15-day Business trial today! 

‍
Frequently asked questions for agencies

1. How can email marketing help digital agencies maximize their ROI?

Email marketing helps digital agencies maximize their ROI by allowing them to reach a targeted audience, build relationships with clients, and drive traffic to their website or landing page.

2. What are some best practices for email marketing in digital agencies?

Some best practices for email marketing in digital agencies include segmenting the audience according to interests or needs and other factors, personalizing emails, creating compelling subject lines and content, optimizing for mobile devices, and analyzing campaign data to make improvements.

3. How often should digital agencies send emails to their subscribers?

The frequency of sending emails will depend on factors such as the industry, target audience, and goals of the campaign. However, it is generally recommended to maintain a consistent schedule that provides value without overwhelming subscribers.

4. What metrics should digital agencies track to measure the success of their email marketing campaigns?

Digital agencies should track metrics such as open rates, click-through rates (CTRs), conversion rates, bounce rates, and unsubscribe rates to measure the success of their email marketing campaigns.

5. Are there any legal considerations when conducting email marketing for digital agencies?

Yes, there are legal considerations when conducting email marketing. Digital agencies need to comply with anti-spam laws like the CAN-SPAM Act in the United States and GDPR in Europe by including clear opt-in/opt-out options, providing accurate sender information in each email sent, and following other guidelines.

‍

‍

It’s no secret that newsletters are a powerful aspect of successful and impactful marketing strategies. With 81% of marketing professionals stating that email newsletters are their go-to type of content marketing, deciding whether to create and send regular newsletters to your clients is a no-brainer.

But what about your staff? Could employee newsletters be as effective and compelling for your employees as they are for your clients? The answer is “yes”.

Before creating your first-ever internal company newsletter, read our guide. Here, we’ll reveal the benefits of internal newsletters, the key elements to include, and how to create an internal newsletter for maximum reach and engagement.

According to a study by Ragan Communications, 83% of employees prefer receiving company news and updates via internal email newsletters.

It’s important for businesses to invest in internal newsletters because they play an important role in employee engagement, encourage better communication, and promote trust within the company. They represent an efficient way to share information, endorse company culture, and encourage employees to learn from one another.

Here are just some of the things you can expect to achieve by writing great company newsletters:

Enhanced staff commitment, motivation, and retention:

By using newsletters and emails to regularly engage employees in company news, updates, events, and celebrating individual accomplishments helps employees feel like essential stakeholders in the success of the company. This is more likely to help them feel involved in the company's success and be more open to providing feedback and contributing to the company beyond the day-to-day responsibilities.

Higher productivity:

When staff feel more involved and engaged, productivity follows. Gallup reported a 21% increase in productivity from highly engaged teams. Put simply, engaged employees are prepared to go above and beyond to complete their goals.

Better collaboration:

Regularly keeping your entire workforce in the loop allows them to communicate and collaborate more effectively.

How to Craft Compelling Internal Company Newsletters

Understand your audience's preferences

Your workforce likely consists of a range of folks varying in expertise, backgrounds, age groups, and interests.

So, to make sure your newsletters are read and engaged by as many people as possible, it is important to offer something for everyone. Which is, of course, easier said than done. This is where surveys and questionnaires can help. Before you create your internal newsletter, send out surveys asking questions such as:

• How often would you like to receive the newsletter?
• What are the three most interesting/useful/important topics you’d like to read?
• Would you be happy to be featured in the newsletter following a project accomplishment?
• What are your interests?
• Are there any resources you’d like for us to include in the newsletter to help support your everyday work? 

By involving your employees in creating your email newsletters, you can curate the newsletter specifically for their needs. Consider segmenting your audience and sending department-specific newsletters if you notice various interests and needs across departments. 

Craft relevant and engaging content

Now, for the most crucial bit: your newsletter’s content. We mentioned how vital it is to use simple, straight-to-the-point language. This, though, doesn’t mean that your content should be bland and dull. For your newsletter to hit the mark, it must include compelling, relevant, and insightful content that your audience loves to read.

Your content needs to not only provide information but also engage your audience if you want to develop a sense of community within your organization. It is also a good idea to seek feedback and revise your content strategy over time, as you want your content to stay fresh and captivating.

Align content with company values and goals

Whatever you decide to include in your newsletter must align with your company’s values, mission, and vision for the future.

Everything about your newsletter should be an extension of these aspects – from its tone of voice to its visuals. This can help reinforce your brand identity and help foster a strong company culture and sense of community among your readers.

Develop a budget for newsletter expenses

Who is going to manage your newsletter? Will you handle it internally or outsource it to an external party? Regardless of which you choose, there will be a varying degree of costs associated with it. To keep track of them, develop a detailed budget – preferably using automated tools. 

The exact budget will vary depending on your organization's size and requirements. You may have to factor in the costs of email marketing platforms, content creation, design, analytics tools, employee time, and potentially staff training. 

One highly effective option for budget management is to utilize budget management software. These tools are designed to streamline your expense tracking process, reduce the margin for errors, and allow you to effortlessly keep a close eye on your newsletter-related expenses.

By combining budget tools with other monitoring tools, you’ll get a good sense of how your internal communications affect your business. 

Make sure you look at various metrics to measure your newsletter's success. For example, quantitative results like open rate and the number of shares can be checked, as well as more qualitative metrics such as digital survey responses and feedback meetings. This will help you determine how useful your newsletter is and means you can create ROI benchmarks.

Managing the workload effectively

Did you choose to handle your company newsletters internally? Great, but you’ll need to ensure this doesn’t become too time-intensive. In all likelihood, the person (or people) assigned to create the newsletter will also handle other tasks.

With tools such as time and expense management software, you’ll be able to check exactly how much time your employee devotes to creating and running the newsletter. Does it seem insufficient, and the content is starting to suffer? Or are they spending too much time on it and not focusing on their core activities?

Tracking all this helps your employees work more efficiently, stay on top of content planning, and keep up with their other tasks.

Choose a format and posting frequency

If you’ve asked your employees how often they’d like to receive the newsletter, you should now know the ideal frequency. Suppose 60% of people said they’re happy with one monthly newsletter, while 40% would like to read it weekly. Go for a middle-ground alternative, such as bi-monthly.

You can use email marketing automation to send newsletters at optimal times, allowing for factors like employees working in different time zones. This allows your team to focus their energy on content creation.

The optimal time to automate your newsletters is midweek mornings, as Mondays can be hectic for workers catching up after the weekend, and on Fridays, they may be less engaged due to the upcoming weekend. Mornings are usually best, as that is when most people check their emails. 

Some things you’ll want to include in your newsletters are unpredictable, such as employee achievements. However, other company newsletter ideas can be planned and outlined in advance, such as details on training sessions, a new leadership team manager joining the company, and company events.

Consistency is extremely important when it comes to maintaining audience engagement. Creating a content schedule for planned content will allow you to deliver valuable information regularly and reliably.

Continuously refine based on feedback

Maybe you think you’ve been sending out the most amazing company newsletters using the best platforms, but how do your readers feel? Ask them! Your audience’s feedback is one of the most precious tools you have in refining and improving your company newsletters.

Whether it’s about the content, the frequency, or the length, keep asking for feedback, suggestions, and input. You can make this a fast and smooth process by leveraging automated feedback software, such as SurveyMonkey and Typeform.

Your audience will likely appreciate being asked for feedback as it will make them feel that their opinions are valued and that the content is being purposefully designed for them.  

Encourage reader interaction and sharing

A newsletter with a strong CTA can retain a lot of its potential. So, remember to include a clear and enticing call to action at the end of your email. This should encourage the reader to interact with the content, share it, and discuss it with their peers.

7 Key elements to include in an internal company newsletter

We’ve compiled a list of the 7 key elements you should include in your company newsletter. This will help you form the basis of your internal communications, which you can continue to reform as you explore what works for you and your employees.

1. Easy-to-understand messaging

When writing your internal employee newsletter, leave complexity out of it. Don’t use jargon. Speak clearly and straightforwardly, and try to appeal to as large an audience as possible. 

This is especially important if people from different departments with different backgrounds and interests read your newsletter.

2. High-quality images and graphics

The choice of imagery in newsletters takes on an important role. It's about capturing your audience’s attention and making employees feel seen and represented. When curating images and visual elements for your newsletter, it's essential to prioritize content that resonates with your diverse workforce. Including imagery that reflects a variety of backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives can foster a profound sense of inclusivity and belonging among your employees.

Adding interactive elements to an email newsletter can help spark your readers’ interest and keep their attention longer. So, remember to give your newsletter design some thought and include hi-res images, graphics, and other visual elements such as video clips and GIFs. 

By including images from all teams and team members, you’ll ensure that your internal company newsletter informs and reinforces a culture of inclusivity where every employee feels valued and represented.

3. Company updates and project spotlights

To get your team’s attention, you’ll want your newsletter to discuss important updates and highlights. Did you recently win an award? Are you going to organize a fun work trip or social event? Have you appointed a new manager for your marketing team? Is there any industry news that might be relevant to your company? Whatever it is, make sure it gets a mention.

4. Training information and helpful resources

Another must-have in your internal newsletter is useful information. This could be anything from the date and time of your next DEI training session to helpful resources about remote work and guidelines on new product releases. Remote work has become increasingly prevalent, and providing guidance and support in this area can greatly benefit your employees' productivity and well-being.

5. Leadership messages and staff contributions

Messages from your company’s leaders and internal shout-outs are two other things you’ll want your newsletter to have. These are especially important if your company has recently gone through something significant or a specific staff member has distinguished themselves in a project.

6. Employee highlights and achievements

Speaking of staff members, regularly include your team’s achievements and highlights. You could refer to a team or department or mention a specific person – it’s entirely up to you.

This practice of highlighting and celebrating employees success is instrumental in making them feel acknowledged and appreciated. It reinforces their sense of value within the organization and contributes to overall morale and motivation.

7. Culture reinforcement and community involvement

Lastly, remember to include a sentence or two about your company’s culture and tie it with anything tangible your readers can do to help the community. 

For example, if your company values becoming greener and more sustainable, you could scout for relevant volunteering opportunities in the area and add them to your newsletters. Or, you could mention what your company is doing to lower its carbon footprint and encourage your employees to help you achieve this goal.

Designing impactful internal newsletters with Beefree

If it all sounds like a lot and you’re not quite sure where to start, then remember: you don’t need to do it alone! Elevate your company's internal communications by leveraging the power of Beefree to design newsletters that captivate and resonate with your team. With its intuitive drag-and-drop editor, you can effortlessly create visually stunning layouts, incorporating eye-catching visuals and dynamic content.

Offering a broad spectrum of professionally designed templates, Beefree caters to various internal communication needs, including announcements, team updates, project milestones, and employee recognition. With easy customization options, you can effortlessly tailor these templates to align with your company's branding, tone, and specific messaging requirements.

Sign up for free and start designing! 

A training invitation email is designed to concisely provide the important logistical information relating to a meeting, including the date, time, location, and agenda, while also providing a prompt for recipients to confirm their attendance. It will also inform attendees of any preparations they need to make ahead of the scheduled session.

There are many different types of training, such as employee onboarding, professional development, technical skills improvement, sales, safety, leadership, health and wellness programs, customer education, and specialized training. These are all designed to match specific learning goals and the needs of the organization.

It is well worth investing the time to get your invitational emails just right as they not only provide attendees with important information in a streamlined way, but they can also set a positive tone for the whole training experience.

That said, creating a truly effective training invitation email can be trickier than it looks. After all, your employees are busy people. They can’t always set aside dedicated time to attend every mandatory training session. 

That means you need to persuade them that doing so will be worthwhile. For some the effectiveness of your invitational email may be the difference between attendance and non-attendance, so getting the initial message right is paramount.

Here’s why.

Why do well-crafted training invitation emails matter?

There are many challenges that can impact the effectiveness of your training sessions. These can range from low attendance, a lack of commitment and engagement with the content, or confusion about the training logistics and what is required of attendees. 

A well-crafted training invitation email can serve as a powerful tool to address these issues. 

In the following sections, we will look into how important invitation emails can be in achieving higher attendance, reducing miscommunication, and also how they can support data analysis, simplify the registration process, and boost employee accountability.

With that in mind, let’s explore the power of invitation emails.

Improved attendance and engagement

According to Gallup, only 32% of employees were actively engaged in the workplace in 2022. Their study highlights the challenge companies are facing to make sure their employees are enthusiastic about their work and the organization.

This is a significant problem as a workforce who experience low job satisfaction, will in turn lead to lower levels of productivity. It can also result in a high staff turnover and a negative culture in the workplace. This can leave a company finding it difficult to meet their organizational goals and a loss of a competitive advantage.

It’s crucial to find ways to tackle the problem. When it comes to training, that means motivating people to make the most of learning opportunities. Training plays an important role in boosting employee engagement. When employees realize that their company cares about their professional growth and values their progress, it tends to spark motivation and enthusiasm towards their work and the organization as a whole.

If you are looking for ways to improve employee engagement, an event invitation email can motivate employees by communicating its significance and relevance to their roles. You can also highlight the personal benefits they stand to gain, such as the potential for improved career prospects and valuable networking opportunities. 

That said, you have to get it right and show that you’re invested in employees’ career growth and value them. Your email must explain:

• Why you’re conducting the training
• Why the training content is relevant to them
• How it benefits their continuous learning

Minimizes miscommunication

Setting out the essential details guarantees everyone is on the same page. Event emails should incorporate the following:

• Basic details: Include training date and time, location, and key learning outcomes.
• Training topic: What is the primary training subject? What skills will the sessions cover?
• Training platform: Will these be in-person interactive sessions? Or via the company learning portal? 
• Deadlines: Highlight registration deadlines or a time period the training should be completed in.

Supports tracking and data analysis

Training invitation emails are useful for gathering data for analyzing.

For instance, you could include a link to a pre-training survey to collect feedback about employee expectations. Alternatively, you could track interactions, such as open rates, click-through rates, or completion of registration forms. All of these give you a clue as to how engaged your employees are in the process.

Simplifies the registration process

Staff are less likely to register for training if they feel it would disrupt their work or there’s not someone to cover for them. 

One approach is to use shift management software solutions. These tools make it easier to streamline staff schedules and find the best time for holding training sessions without leaving a gap in the workforce. 

Use your training emails to inform staff that their shifts will be covered. By effectively managing their schedule, you simplify the process for them, so all they have to do is confirm their registration.

With that in mind, keep the registration process itself straightforward. This is particularly important for remote and hybrid teams. Implementing regular training is an excellent strategy for boosting remote team productivity, but it’s crucial to handle it correctly.

Avoid asking people to email a particular person to confirm their attendance. Instead, include a registration link that automatically confirms their attendance or directs them to a form.

Boosts employee accountability

Sending out a training email that just provides basic information represents a missed opportunity. Devote time to the email creation process and message. Encourage staff to take accountability for their learning process and explain the impact it will have on others.

Highlight how the training program will help the employee make a direct contribution to the company’s success. Doing this can help foster a sense of community and remind employees that they have an important role to play in shaping not only their own future but also the future of their team.

6 steps for creating effective training invitation emails

So how can you create an excellent training invitation in practice? Here are a few tips to get you started.

1. Create attention-grabbing and informative subject lines

Chances are your employees wade through masses of emails daily. So take a cue from tried-and-tested email marketing strategies, and create a punchy email subject line so it stands out in inboxes. Keep it informative and concise, for example:

Boost Your Communication Skills: Mandatory Training – October 12

This has all the basic information, including the date, training subject, and the fact attendance is compulsory.

2. Organize the email for easy navigation and clear information flow

It’s tempting to create a catchy email design. But you should still make sure it’s easy to read and informative. 

Open with a brief intro explaining what the training entails and the benefits. This will pique your employee’s interest from the beginning. 

Then, give step-by-step instructions for how to enroll. This is where you include relevant links for registration and tracking purposes.

Finally, thank the reader for their attention and reiterate the valuable insights they’ll learn. Add  contact information in case they have questions or want to arrange an alternative training time.

3. Tailor training invitation emails, especially for new employees

Before you create your email template, consider the tone you’ll take and who will send it out. For example, an email from the CEO will add a certain gravitas, which is helpful for vital compliance training.

When it comes to new employees, try to be more focused and weave the invitation into the onboarding process. You can set up predefined tasks specific to each new hire using HR onboarding software. For example, let’s say you onboard someone who needs to hone their negotiation skills. You can automatically enroll them in a relevant online course. 

If this is something you discussed during their interview or job offer, reiterate that in your email. Make sure they understand the benefits in the context of their professional development.

4. Request prompt attendance confirmation by providing a deadline

Including a deadline gives employees a nudge to take action. Place this near the end of the email as part of your call-to-action. At this point, the recipient has already digested the main message and is motivated to move to the next stage.

That said, be careful with the tone. You don’t want to come across as too pushy or demanding in case that elicits a negative reaction. A simple, polite one-liner like this works well:

Please respond to this invitation by [time, date] to confirm your attendance.

5. Offer incentives for early registration to drive engagement

Of course, there are ways to up the ante a bit, such as offering incentives for people who sign up early. This is especially helpful when the training date is relatively far off.

Here are a few options to consider:

• Use an employee recognition platform to generate rewards for early birds.
• Provide practical perks for the first 20/50/100 sign-ups. This might include a digital coupon/voucher or entry to a prize draw.
• Offer access to priority list for other specialized role-relevant training.

6. Emphasize the tangible benefits for participating employees

We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: make sure you highlight why the training will be valuable to your employees. 

Offering training is a terrific way of boosting employee retention. But only if there’s a clear rationale behind it that will make your employees feel valued.

Avoid conducting one-off sessions. Instead, make them part of a continuous learning program that will genuinely benefit your team. In addition, listen to their feedback and ideas for future sessions. You can then refer back to this feedback in other training emails so employees can see that you are actively listening.

Start designing effective training invitation emails with Beefree

Elevate your training program with Beefree, the ultimate solution for crafting compelling and effective training invitation emails. Whether you're organizing professional development sessions, workshops, or corporate seminars, Beefree provides a user-friendly platform to design visually stunning and engaging email invitations.

Start from scratch or start designing with one of our Human-Resource templates. Create your free account today! 

In an era where algorithms evolve and trends shift faster than we can catch up, one timeless strategy stands resilient for small businesses - email marketing.A well-crafted email newsletter has the power to transcend the virtual clutter, connecting businesses directly with their audience. Yet, the challenge lies not just in sending emails but in sending the right ones.

Is Email Marketing Good for Small Businesses?

For small businesses with limited resources, budgets, and time, email marketing serves as a reliable strategy to maintain consistent communication. Communication efforts that are essential for sustainable growth and building a loyal customer base. Let's dive into some of the benefits:

• Personalized messaging:  According to Epsilon, 80% of consumers are more likely to engage with a brand that offers a personalized experience. Unlike broad advertisements, emails allow you to connect with your customers on a personal level.
• High ROI: The average ROI for email marketing, as stated by Constant Contact, is $36 for every $1 spent, making it affordable for businesses with limited funds.
• Builds Relationships: Regular emails help nurture relationships, turning one-time buyers into loyal customers.
• Flexibility: Whether it's newsletters, promotions, or updates, there's an email type for every message you want to convey.

If you're looking for a cost-effective way to make a big impact, then yes, email marketing is for you.

10 Engaging Email Marketing Ideas for Small Businesses

In the dynamic realm of email marketing, standing out is the name of the game. For small businesses, this means crafting emails that inform, engage, and captivate their audience with visuals and impactful messaging. Here are 10 engaging email marketing campaign ideas to help you showcase your brand's personality, all while keeping conversion top of mind.

Highlight and Share Customer Testimonials 

There's a reason why word-of-mouth remains one of the most trusted forms of marketing. Hearing real experiences from real people carries a weight that no amount of traditional advertising can match. For small businesses, showcasing customer testimonials in emails is like sharing little nuggets of trust and authenticity with your audience.This email resonates because it's all about relatability. When potential customers see others vouching for your products or services, it builds confidence and credibility. It's like having a friend recommend their favorite restaurant; you're more inclined to give it a try.In the image of an email below, Cladwell includes two different customer testimonials. Both reviews share their love for the brand and support Cladwell's mission to help people get more out of the clothes that they own with a capsule wardrobe.

By highlighting these experiences in your emails, you're not just showcasing your offerings but also building a community of trust around your brand. So, the next time a customer sings your praises, don't keep it to yourself—share it with your email subscribers and let the testimonials do the talking!

Send Birthday and Anniversary Promotions

Who doesn't love a little extra love on their special day? Sending birthday and anniversary promotions is a personal touch that goes a long way. In a simple way, this message says, "Hey, we remember you, and we appreciate you being with us!" Not only does this foster goodwill, but it also encourages sales. After all, who can resist a tempting offer, especially when it's wrapped up in birthday confetti?

But here's the real kicker: these promotions aren't just about sales. They're about building a bond. When customers feel valued and remembered, they're more likely to stick around. And in the world of business, loyalty is golden.

Read more: 10 Engaging Birthday Email Examples + Strategies 

Share Behind-the-Scenes Stories

Pulling back the curtain and giving a sneak peek into the day-to-day happenings can create a genuine connection. It humanizes your brand, making it more than just a logo or a product. It's about the people, the process, and the passion.

Here are some behind-the-scenes stories that can make a splash:

• The Making of a Product: Showcase the journey from idea to final product. It's fascinating to see how things come to life.
• Employee Spotlights: Introduce the rockstars behind your brand. Share their stories, hobbies, and why they love what they do.
• Office Shenanigans: Do you have a fun office tradition or a quirky team-building activity coming up? Share it! It adds a touch of fun and personality.

Remember, every brand has a story. And sharing yours can make all the difference in building a loyal community.

Create a Brand Ambassador Program

A Brand Ambassador Program helps cultivate a community of customers who love what you do so much that they can't help but shout it from the rooftops.

As we mentioned earlier, word-of-mouth is powerful. Recommendations from friends or family hold weight. When someone raves about your product or service, their circle listens. And guess what? That's organic marketing at its finest.

Brand ambassadors also provide invaluable feedback. They're your frontline, interacting with your product or service regularly. Their insights can help refine your offerings, ensuring you're always at the top of your game. So, think of a Brand Ambassador Program as a win-win: your brand gets love and loyalty, and your ambassadors get perks and a sense of community.

Utilize Subscriber-Only Discounts

It's simple: everyone loves a good deal. And they love them even more when it's exclusive. By offering special deals just for your email subscribers, you're letting them know that you value their readership enough to offer them unique opportunities.

PRO Tip: Go the extra mile and put to use your segmented groups to use! Create personalized offers to make discounts more relevant to your unique audiences and their needs, increasing the likelihood of conversion.

In a digital world, it's easy for brands to come off as faceless entities. But here's a little secret: people connect with people, not logos. Taking the time to humanize your brand can be the difference between a subscriber who engages and one who hits the 'unsubscribe' button. It's about building trust, showcasing authenticity, and creating genuine connections.

Take Time to Humanize Your Brand

In a digital world, it's easy for brands to come off as faceless entities. But the truth is, that people connect with people, not logos. Taking the time to humanize your brand can be the difference between a subscriber who engages and one who hits the 'unsubscribe' button. It's about building trust, showcasing authenticity, and creating genuine connections.

Here's how you can add that human touch:

• Share Your Origin Story: Every brand has a beginning. Share yours. How did you start? What challenges did you face? What's the passion driving you?
• Celebrate Milestones: Did you hit a significant number of subscribers? Launch a new product? Celebrate with your email community. They're part of your journey.
• Introduce Your Team: Put faces to the names. Share fun facts, birthdays, or even the office pet. It adds warmth and personality to your brand.

Remember, at the end of the day, business is about relationships. And relationships are built on trust, authenticity, and, most importantly, human connections.

Create a Monthly Newsletter

Newsletters are a chance to share updates, stories, and maybe even a few secrets. For small businesses, a monthly newsletter is a golden opportunity to keep your audience in the loop. It's a consistent touchpoint that reminds your subscribers, "Hey, we're here, and we've got some cool stuff to share!"

Why should you jump on the newsletter bandwagon?

• Consistency is Key: Regular updates mean you're always on your subscribers' minds. It's a gentle nudge that says, "Remember us?"
• Value-Packed Content: Share tips, industry news, or even a fun fact. It's not just about selling; it's about providing value.
• Builds Community: A newsletter can foster a sense of belonging. It's a space where you and your subscribers can connect and engage.

Offer Exclusive Previews

There's something undeniably thrilling about being in the know, getting that first look before anyone else. For small businesses, offering exclusive previews to their email subscribers is a golden ticket to building anticipation and excitement. It's like inviting your most loyal fans to a VIP backstage pass, giving them a sneak peek into upcoming products, services, or events.

By offering these exclusive glimpses, you're not only rewarding your subscribers for their loyalty but also creating a sense of community and belonging. They feel valued, special, and more connected to your brand. And when people feel a part of something bigger, they're more likely to engage, share, and, most importantly, shop.

So, the next time you're launching something new, consider giving your email subscribers the first look.

How Do I Start Email Marketing For My Small Business?

While the journey might seem a tad overwhelming at first, with the right steps, you'll be on your way to crafting compelling campaigns in no time. Let's look at the initial stages to ensure you kick things off on the right foot.

Step #1 Choose the Right Email Marketing Platform

Before you send out your first email, you'll need a reliable platform to do the heavy lifting. An email marketing platform helps you manage your subscriber list, design emails, and track performance metrics.

• Research Platforms: Look into options to see which platform is best suited for your needs.
• Features Matter: Ensure the platform offers templates, analytics, and automation tools.
• Ease of Use: Especially for beginners, a user-friendly interface can make all the difference.

Step #2 Segment Your Email List

Not all subscribers are created equal. Segmenting your email list allows you to tailor your content to different groups, ensuring it resonates and engages.

• Demographics: Group subscribers based on age, location, or purchasing behavior.
• Engagement Levels: Separate active readers from those who might need a re-engagement campaign.
• Personalization: Use segments to send personalized offers or content, enhancing the subscriber experience.

Step #3 Start with a Template! 

The design of your email plays a pivotal role in capturing your subscriber's attention. While crafting a visually appealing email from scratch might seem daunting, a template does all the heavy lifting!

Beefree offers a vast collection of over 1,600+ email templates, made with conversion and engagement in mind. Whether you're looking for a minimalist design or something vibrant and colorful, there is something for everyone. 

Beefree's drag-and-drop intuitive builder also makes it easy for those with limited design experience to build beautiful on-brand templates with minimal effort.

Step #4 Analyze and Iterate for Continuous Improvement

Once your emails are out in the wild, the journey doesn't end there. It's essential to keep an eye on how they're performing. Are your subscribers opening them? Are they clicking through? Or perhaps, are they sending them straight to the trash?

• Use Analytics: Most email platforms offer insights into open rates, click-through rates, and more. Dive deep into these metrics to understand what's working and what's not.
• Feedback is Gold: Consider sending out surveys or directly asking for feedback. Your subscribers can offer invaluable insights into what they love and what could be better.
• Iterate and Improve: Based on the data and feedback, make necessary tweaks to your content, design, or strategy. Remember, email marketing is a continuous process of learning and improving.

By adopting a mindset of continuous improvement, you ensure that your email marketing efforts remain effective and relevant, adapting to the ever-changing needs and preferences of your audience.

Additional email marketing tips for small businesses

While we've covered some essential steps to kickstart your email marketing journey, there are always more tricks up the sleeve to enhance your game. Here are a few additional tips to keep in mind:

• Personalize Beyond the Name: Sure, addressing subscribers by their first name is great, but dive deeper. Tailor content based on their preferences or past interactions.
• Avoid the Spam Folder: Ensure your emails are compliant with regulations and avoid spammy tactics. A high-quality email list and relevant content are your best allies.
• Celebrate Special Occasions: Birthdays, anniversaries, or local holidays—these are opportunities to connect and offer special deals or messages.
• Visuals Matter: Incorporate high-quality images and graphics that resonate with your brand and message.
• Mobile-first: According to Litmus, 47% of email opens occurred on a mobile device, surpassing desktop opens. This makes having mobile-friendly emails not just a nice-to-have but an absolute must for small businesses.

Small business email marketing made easy with Beefree

In the bustling world of small business, every minute counts.

Beefree's email builder is tailored to help small businesses create visually stunning and engaging emails without the fuss. Whether you're starting from scratch or using one of their myriad templates, you're in for a seamless experience.

Ready to elevate your email marketing game? Dive into the world of effortless email design with Beefree. The best part? It's free for small businesses with a limited budget! 

Fundraising is crucial for any non-profit organization, and sending emails is one of the most cost-effective ways to secure donations. In fact, nonprofits state that approximately 28% of their online revenue comes from email marketing. A substantial ROI earnings of $40 for every $1 spent on email have been reported by nonprofits, proving this channel to be a wise investment.

However, while financially it is a wise investment, email marketing takes brainpower. Due to the needed frequency of sending fundraising emails, to the reader, they can get repetitive. This can result in low open rates (and therefore donations). To be successful with email fundraising, it's critical to be strategic and create engaging content that lands in your reader's inbox and stands out. To do so, an understanding and application of best practices like segmentation, storytelling, and frequent optimization is necessary.

In this article, we’ll discuss some of these best practices on how to write engaging fundraising emails and share examples to inspire your next fundraising efforts.

1. Invest Time in the Subject Line and Preview Text

The subject line of your email is an essential tool in driving recipients to open it. An intriguing and compelling subject line can help you cut through the clutter of a crowded inbox and grab a reader's attention.

Here are some tips for crafting compelling subject lines:

• Keep it short: Long subject lines may get cut off, especially on mobile devices. Aim for no more than 50-60 characters. 
• Build urgency: If your email is time-sensitive, such as approaching the deadline for a fundraising campaign, let your readers know in the subject line to encourage them to open it now instead of waiting for later.
• Ask a question: Questions like “Do you know the impact $5 can have?” can spark curiosity and encourage the recipient to open the email to find the answer.

Preview text, also known as pre-header text, is a snippet of text that is displayed next to or below the subject line in an email inbox. As a best practice, align the content of your preview text with the subject line copy, and consider adding a call-to-action to gain immediate visibility to your request.

For example, if your subject line is “Do you know the impact $5 can have?” the preview text could say “Join Feed the Hungry in our effort to feed 1 million children today.” 

2. Create Segments Within Your Database

Segmentation is a proven way to make fundraising emails more effective and drive more than half of email ROI. 

By creating different segments within your database, you can target specific groups of varying demographics, psychographics, or behaviors and tailor your emails to be more relevant and engaging for their unique interests. 

For instance, by creating a group of past donors, you can send a specific message to this audience thanking the recipient for their past donation, showing them what their donation helped with, and asking them to consider an increase to their donation next time.

To start segmenting your audience, here are some tips: 

• Identify key criteria: Use the criteria most relevant to your efforts, including demographic information such as age or location, donor behavior, engagement levels, etc. As an example, if you were a national organization, you could include regional impact stories based on the location of your donor to increase relevancy for them.

• Track data regularly: Updating and tracking data is crucial for effective segmentation and keeping your database current. For instance, if donors have moved, you want to update that information in your database so you don’t invite them to a future fundraising event that is not near them.

3. Build Relationships with an Email Fundraising Campaign

One-time emails might be effective for fundraising, but establishing an ongoing conversation with your contacts through email campaigns often yields better long-term results. 

Here are some tips for creating a fundraising email series:

• Personalize Emails: Use your segmented lists to personalize the emails in your series and make your readers feel more engaged. For instance, if a donor clicks a “Learn More” button in the last email, the next email can reference that interaction – “Thank you for learning more about our cause. Would you like to subscribe to our email newsletter?”
• Be Consistent: Maintain a consistent look and feel to reinforce your organization's branding and drive feelings of familiarity. If your emails typically include photos of children your organization supports, ensure you’re consistently including the same types of photos – don’t all of a sudden include illustrations that would be off-brand as they may disengage readers.

Email design tools, such as Beefree, allow users to send cohesive and on-brand email campaigns by allowing the integration of style settings in the platform. This means that anyone in charge of creating emails will have predefined guidelines to stay on brand. In addition to this, Beefree has a Saved and Synced Row feature that permits content creators to save content blocks to be reused on future emails.

4. Utilize Storytelling to Convey Your Message

Stories are a powerful way to build emotional connections and motivate people to act. A story builds empathy for your cause, provides context, humanizes the content, and helps donors envision the impact they could have.

Here are some tips for how to incorporate stories in your fundraising emails.

• Use authentic content: A story about a real-life person or event will be more impactful than a hypothetical one, so when possible, use authentic content. For example, tell a story about Xavier, the boy from the local elementary school, who was able to buy school supplies with your donation and is very thankful for your support, versus speaking in general terms of “500 children who benefitted from your donation.” 
• Include visuals: Putting a face to the story will make it more powerful and help build a stronger connection to the message. In the example above, you would include a photo of Xavier with his school supplies or a video message from him saying “thank you.” You can use clip creator tools to help create visuals to make your content more engaging.
  

5. Incorporate Relevant Visuals

Sometimes images can convey emotions more effectively than words, so consider using high-quality, relevant images to enhance your message. In the fundraising email template below, the designer included images of children to support educational causes. 

Use this template in Beefree!

Use this template in Beefree!

6. Highlight the Impact of Support

Communicating the impact of support can motivate people to contribute to the cause. Stories of impact drive engagement and build trust by showing the actual results donations can achieve. When highlighting stories of impact, use specifics, such as “your $50 donation will help provide meals for 100 people,” and again, use visuals to support your story. 

7. Use Only One CTA

Be direct in your ask. As a best practice, only use one CTA ask per email to maintain focus on that specific goal. A great way to make the CTA stand out is through the use of buttons, as shown in the example below.

Use this template in Beefree!

Use this template in Beefree!

Read: How to Design Bulletproof CTA Buttons in Email

8. Make the Giving Process Simple

An intuitive and straightforward donation process makes for an easy donor experience, increasing the likelihood that they may give again.

On the other hand, if the donating process is too complex and involves too many steps and different pages, donors may be discouraged from donating. We usually only have approximately eight seconds to gain a reader's attention, so making the intention of the email clear and the process simple is essential.

Here are some tips for making the giving process easy.

• Clear CTA: As mentioned above, ensure your CTA is clear and easy to find. Consider short phrases like “Donate now,” “Join us,” or “Support the cause.”
• Use a landing page: To keep your email clutter-free, send donors to a landing page for more instructions about the donation process and a form to complete with their information. By collecting their information, you can re-engage them later on to donate once more.

9. Align Your Fundraising Email Campaigns with Other Marketing Efforts

Create a cohesive donor experience and reinforce your organization’s message by incorporating other marketing touchpoints with your email campaign. These could include companioning social media campaigns. Aligning organization-wide campaigns can optimize your resources and increase conversion rates through multiple channels.

10. Time it Right

The timing of your emails can impact their effectiveness, as people are less distracted at certain times of day and are more likely to read emails.

Best Time to Send Fundraising Email

When planning your email campaign, research past emails to see the best time for your audience historically. If you’re new to email campaigns, late morning/early afternoon is the recommended time for the most engaged contacts.

Best Day of Week to Send Fundraising Email

In general, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday are the best days of the week for emails to capture the audience's attention.

11. Optimize for Mobile

Optimizing email for mobile use will avoid alienating potential donors and seeing lower responses. Approximately 41% of emails are opened on mobile devices today, so ensure your text is readable on small screens. 

Responsive design can assist with this by adjusting the content to fit different screen sizes. As a best practice, make your CTAs prominent and easy to click for greater engagement on mobile. If your email is hard to read or interact with on a mobile device, then you may miss out on donations.

Read more: Email Design for Mobile: Best Practices to Take Your Email Marketing Up a Level

Best Fundraising Email Examples to Inspire Your Campaign

Only One CTA

In this example from Baldwin County Child Advocacy Center, the call to action is clear: DONATE. The message is kept concise, and the image of a child in a facemask shows a visual for emotional appeal.

Show The Impact

In this email example from the St. Louis Area Foodbank, the donor’s impact is highlighted “$25 provides 100 meals.” This description strengthens the message to show the donors how the foodbank works to stretch funds to provide a more significant impact.

Join Beefree’s Non-Profit Program and Take Your Fundraising Emails to The Next Level

At Beefree, we know that affordable and accessible design tools are essential to nonprofits. And as we mentioned here today, emails (fundraising emails to be specific), play a huge factor in how you make a difference. That’s why we are proud to provide nonprofits, big or small, with a $1,000 yearly credit for any plan.

Although we have a free plan that is available to everyone, we know that as your nonprofit grows, having a tool that grows with you is essential. Our nonprofit program is open to 501(c)(3) organizations in the United States, as well as international charitable organizations and NGOs. To learn more, visit beefree.io/nonprofits.

If you're transitioning from being consumer-oriented to B2B (business-to-business) email marketing, either because you've decided to sell exclusively to businesses or have added new products/services for businesses, it's essential to adapt your email strategies for effective and profitable B2B campaigns.

Successful B2B campaigns thrive on personalized email marketing tactics that cater to businesses, each with unique needs. Unlike B2C campaigns that can require a broader approach to include everyone, B2B strategies demand a more tailored approach.

Not to worry, though. Here are five B2B email marketing tips you can follow to enhance your marketing efforts and generate more leads or convert businesses into paying customers:

‍1. Identify and Profile Your Target Clients

‍B2B campaigns may target multiple individuals with different roles and responsibilities in a company. For this reason, the first email marketing best practice is to create a customer persona, profiling your target clients. Consider their values and what they do in the company.Unlike B2C campaigns, B2B email marketing appeals to a business frame of mind by targeting the needs and interests of business executives purchasing products to impact their company’s bottom line. To identify and profile the right clients, first, create your target market and include the following data in your buyer persona: 

• Firmographics: These are descriptive attributes of your buyers’ organizations, including company size, years of operation, annual revenue, etc. 
• Geographic location: The value prospects place on different aspects of products or services varies by geography, resources, and industry focus. 
• Needs and behaviors of ideal buyers: In a typical B2B buying process, you’ll need to profile the people involved and their roles to influence buying decisions. Are they the influencers, decision-makers, or technical buyers? What key talking points or touch points need to be addressed? 

Remember, business clients are clear on what they need from the start and will make rational buying decisions based on the quality versus price ratio. Therefore, consider the different B2B buyer profiles involved in the buying process and expand your ideal customer profile to include the roles each target client plays.With this in mind and the help of email newsletter platforms, which we’ll discuss in a moment, you can create a more tailored email marketing plan.

2. Write a Compelling Subject Line

According to Invesp, 69% of email recipients report emails as spam based on the subject line. That’s why it’s so important to get your subject line right. Business people skim through emails daily. The only way to get them to notice yours is to make your email subject line catchy, compelling, and straight to the point.Keep your titles short and state the purpose of the email upfront. Depending on the target profile you’re messaging, you can write a non-clickbait, teaser subject line like this example below. 

Personalization is a great way to increase your subject line's relevance. Strong subject lines tap into the prospect’s intent to build curiosity and help improve email open rates and the overall success of your campaign.Generative AI tools are great for writing compelling subject lines. AI can give you a great starting point with tons of subject line ideas based on simple prompts related to your email campaign. 

3. Include a Clear CTA and other vital elements

A strong call-to-action (CTA) helps to eliminate confusion in your emails. CTAs serve as a beacon of clarity within your emails, providing direction to your B2B audience on the next steps to take after engaging with your message.For a CTA to be effective, we recommend keeping it concise and straightforward. Something as simple as “click here,” “sign up,” or even “watch the video,” can be enough to entice action. However, avoid using multiple CTAs within your email. Ideally, one or two should be fine. This ensures that your audience can fully concentrate on your email's content and, most importantly, the specific action aligned with your campaign's objectives.See how Zendesk does it.

In the Zendesk example above, the email copy has two CTAs that call the recipient to action — “click here to verify your email address” and “sign in to your Zendesk.” These CTAs are friendly and accurately reflect what the marketer wants the client to do.

Another vital email marketing tip is to avoid using a sense of urgency in your B2B outreach campaigns. This sounds counterintuitive, but it makes sense. Unlike B2C email marketing, B2B emails should be professional and respectful of your recipient’s time. Use skimmable email content. Go straight to the point. This is so much better than trying to trick your audience with urgency triggers.

Remember, B2B customers tend to be more logical and less emotional.

4. Segment Your Audience

Segmentation is another B2B email marketing tip you shouldn’t overlook. Segmentation allows you to group B2B subscribers, business prospects, and customers into smaller groups based on specific criteria or where they are in the buyer journey. 

Most email service providers have built-in segmentation tools that let you create segmented lists and target each group with tailored content. This ensures you only send out highly customized or personalized emails based on user activity or interest, not generic email content. Here are some ways to segment your audience based on their engagement with your business: Start by gauging your audience's interest level. For example, if they respond well to a particular email campaign, then there’s reason to believe they’re interested in that offering.

• Prospects with fewer engagements could receive free e-books and white papers with zero marketing language.
• The most engaged group could receive full-on marketing emails that address their unique needs.

Of course, you can also use other criteria to segment your audience. The bottom line is you must put your audience into subgroups based on each individual’s interest or activity and tailor email content to suit them. 

5. Tap Into Automation

Email automation takes your B2B email marketing campaign to the next level. For starters, it guarantees that your emails are dispatched at the optimal moments. For instance, you can choose the specific triggers that deploy particular email campaigns. This can be configured based on factors such as firmographics, buyer behaviors, or specific actions taken by your audience.This is an example of how Hubspot uses automated bulk emails to welcome new businesses using their CRM: 

Marketing automation platforms allow you to get even more nuanced with email automation. With platforms like GetResponse, for example, you could set up an automatic email campaign to be deployed when customers hit a particular milestone. This not only fosters stronger customer relationships but also enhances conversion rates, ultimately amplifying the return on investment (ROI) of your email marketing efforts.

Time to put our B2B email marketing tips to the test 

The B2B email marketing tips in this article are only as effective as you make them. It might take some time and effort to get the engines rolling, but it’s worth it. First, understand and segment your target market. That will ensure your ideal customer profile is well aligned with industry standards and satisfies the pain points of big players in the market. Improve your chances of conversion by tailoring each email to suit a specific target profile in an organization. Pair this with a clear CTA and a compelling subject line and use automation tools to optimize your ROI.