by Claudia Bruemmer

Email is a great way for wholesalers and general merchandise vendors to reach out to loyal customers with opt-in communications. However, you need a strategy to avoid inbox fatigue because readers are inundated with messages and can easily delete unless they see “something in it for me.” Below are some tips that can help you create valuable messaging for your customers that result in more email opens.

Create Engaging Content. A successful email campaign begins with content that offers value. One way to do that is to create fresh, original content that gives your audience relevant information leading to a relationship. Knowing your customers and offering them meaningful insights over time will nurture that relationship.
By delivering useful information to your subscribers, you are creating trust. Weekly deals and special offers will not engage your customers when you pitch a special of the week for no good reason, especially in today’s economy. Content must provide added value relevant to your subscribers’ needs and should not be solely focused on selling product.

For instance, a wholesaler of sunglasses could engage customers with an email providing information about the recent RDA rules governing sunscreen labels. If you have a product that ties in with your message, you can let your customers know; but, be subtle and use pull rather than push marketing techniques.

Time Your Email Messages to Avoid Overload and Hit the Sweet Spot. The frequency of your email messages is important because you don’t want to overwhelm their inboxes. Email is a very personal channel, and you want to be judicious in both the timing and the content of your messages. The right number of emails per month depends on your business, but usually one or two per month is a good rule of thumb. Monitor open and clickthrough rates to verify that your frequency and timing is right.

The day of the week and time of day your messages are delivered are also important factors. One of the cardinal rules of email marketing is to test. You’ll want to test and check your campaign stats for patterns on what days/times get the best results. Studies show that Monday is the worst day to send out an email campaign. Weekends aren’t too good, either. Most studies show that sending email campaigns on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday will get the best results. When it comes to timing, early morning delivery gets the lowest open rates. If your list is segmented by geographic location, you can focus on time zones. The best open rates are for messages sent around 12 noon or 1:00 p.m. EST. So the sweet spot is midweek in the afternoon.

Social Media Sharing Buttons. Connecting your email messages with your social media platforms (Facebook/Twitter) is a must. The average Facebook user has 130 friends. If just one subscriber clicks on a “Share” button from your email newsletter, 130 of their friends will now see your content. That’s why you must create thought-provoking, original content. Social media sharing can result in far reaching exposure for wholesalers and their products due to its viral nature. You can track results with a number of reporting tools that provide information on which subscribers shared your content and which social media sites were used.

Call to Action. When you provide a call to action in your email message, it encourages your customers to visit your website or make a purchase. Make your call to action specific. Instead of saying, “Click Here,” you might say, “Review Size and Color,” to indicate an action you want them to take. You can use several calls to action in your message, like beginning, middle and end. Use good anchor text on your links to encourage the click. Offer an incentive that might lead to the sale. Be sure to give your customers a clear path to take action, whether it is for more information or to transact online.

Conclusion. While email is a very powerful tool, its effectiveness is directly related to the quality of your content. Wholesalers and general merchandise vendors need to know how to engage users, how to offer incentives and how to ask for the click. Monitor the results of your campaigns with an analytics program to determine open rates, customer interest in various types of content, the optimum frequency of communications, the effectiveness of social media sharing and the success of your call to actions. By continually testing and measuring these elements, you can tailor your email messaging to your customers’ needs and interests.