Using Email Marketing Effectively

Q. Why aren't advisors opening the emails we're sending them?

Boy, do I get this question a lot.

For years investment companies have been seeing a dramatic drop in 'open' and 'link click' rates from the email messages they send to brokers and RIAs. And, of course, the first thing they do is blame their creative teams for not coming up with catchy subject lines or flashy designs.  And they offer hire me to advise them on how to improve the quality  of their messaging.  But guess what? The best subject lines and email layouts in the world don't mean anything if your offer fails to resonate with your intended audience.

My recent white paper, Getting the Message: Evaluating Email Effectiveness Among Financial Advisors (which you can download for free from my web site), offers insights into the email preferences and turn-offs among advisors. 

One of the biggest mistakes many marketing departments within investment companies commit is believing that their email messages are unique and that advisors are really interested in product and performance updates.  Well, they're not. According to the survey research:

• Most advisors receive more than fifty email marketing a messages a month from investment companies and service providers, A third receive more than 100, and several claim to receive as many as 30 a day.
• Large numbers of these messages are ignored or deleted. Only 11% open more than 50 messages per month, and 3% never open any email at all.
• Advisors are more likely to open and read messages that provide timely and useful market commentaries and practice management content, and aren't interested in “fun” or non-business-related content (like consumer discounts or March Madness contests).
• Advisors prefer messages that use short, concise copy and offer links to practice-specific content, and are far less interested in messages promoting products, fund performance updates and corporate information
• Most advisors would like to reduce the frequency of email 'touches.' Nearly twenty percent would prefer to receive only one email message per provider per month, while another twenty percent would like to receive one message a week, but only if that content is timely and relevant to their business. Only 4% want to receive more than one email message a week from each provider.

As this chart from the research shows, many advisors have strong opinions about the kinds of content they wish to receive--or never receive. Market commentaries, Regulatory updates, and client education and practice management resources are at the top of their email content "wish lists," while performance updates, unrequested product information and the typical company news and announcements.

 The 'message' from advisors are sending to investment companies should be loud and clear: Stop the endless onslaught of product and performance pitches. Send more advice that can help me gain new clients, strengthen relationships, and make my business more efficient. Stop with the "throw everything and see what sticks."

Only when you've retooled your email marketing strategy to align with what advisors want--rather than what your product managers want--should you start worrying about headlines.

But, while we're here, let me give you a few tips that may help boost your response rates.

1. Avoid generic subject lines at all costs. "Important Updates from Elm Funds" or "Bacon Growth Fund Performance Update" are nearly guaranteed to end up in the trash bin. 
2. Try to start subject lines with actionable responses. "Download an innovative, compliemtnary new tool for generating referrals" is more effective than "Introducing the Bacon Funds Prospect Generator." 
3. Try to avoid using words that might trigger email spam filters. Use "complimentary" instead of "free," "assets" instead of "money," "revenue" instead of "profits." For more words to avoid, check your own spam folder.
4. Avoid using blind CCs. Many spam filters automatically send these messages to the trash box. It also creates the impression that you're bulk mailing. If you can't send individual messages, use a email service that lets you updated an email list and 'personalizes' each message with the advisor's email address and name. 
5. Keep messages short and simple. Don't overload them graphics or heavy text. Instead, use the message to link to longer content on your site. This will help you get a better idea of what kinds of content your audience finds relevant.
6. Never attach files to unsolicited email messages. Many investment companies are tempted to attach PDFs or other files, but remember that this simply fills up the advisor's mailbox. Also, most attached files from unknown senders are automatically suspected of carrying viruses. Instead, include a link to the content in your message.  
7. Always add an 'unsubscribe' line at the end of each email. This is not only courtesy, but it's the law. If the advisor unsubscribes, make absolutely sure you remove him or her from your email list.

While these tips won't necessarily dramatically increase response rates, they may at least prevent your messages from being totally ignore or trashed. Remember the cardinal rule of all outbound communication: If your recipients dosn't like your first message, they'll never read your second.

Agree? Disagree? have other email marketing tips and stories? Share your experiences by commenting below.