The Radicati Group reports that by 2017, there will be over 200 Billion emails exchanged every day. Your emails do need a way to stand out; but there are other (dare we say…better) ways to do that than a CTA button – no matter how creative it is.
In fact, in a recent study by marketing powerhouse, Hubspot, it was uncovered that though people say that they prefer image-based emails (with CTAs), they actually respond better to text-based emails (without them). Diving into greater detail, Hubspot explains that HTML-based emails decrease open rates, likely because email clients, like Gmail, may filter them out as Promotional. But HTML-based emails also reduce click-thru rates. They hypothesize that the reason is that email is a 1-to-1 communication medium.
We like designers.
We bow down to pretty designs.
But above all else, we love results.
Test a CTA-less approach
And if results are proven to increase by reducing design, we suggest trying it. So, how about trying, in your next campaign a more personal, 1-to-1 approach. Ditch the fancy CTAs. Say goodbye to layout and design. Instead, focus on empowering copy that is as personalized to every segment as possible.
Here are some tips for text emails:
1. Scanability – make your content easy to read and easier to scan. Make your heading stand out by using caps or symbols like this:
** HEADING **
———————
This is the text under the heading
via email
By signing up you are agreeing to our Terms of Service
Your data will be handled in accordance with our Privacy Policy
2. Spacing – use white space to your advantage. Line breaks are your friends in plain text emails, so use them well.
3. Lists – use bullets (you can use signs like – or * or +) or numbers to draw the reader’s attention to the items you want to share.
And finally, when it comes to calling your subscribers to act, you can try different variations of this:
• “Reply to this email to get your free ebook”
• “For your free ebook, visit 123ebook.com”
• “Click this link for your ebook: 123ebook.com”
It is not a fancy button, it doesn’t flash, it isn’t red, but . . . it works!
Try it for yourself and see.
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