Email marketing strategy and tips for successful campaigns

Does email marketing work?
When it comes to communicating with your audience or selling your products, email marketing is one of the most cost-effective methods available.
Indeed, a 2015 DMA study discovered that email has an average return on investment of $38 for every dollar spent (ROI). When shoppers are ready to make a purchase, they frequently check their inbox for emails from their favorite stores.
Nonetheless, people are receiving an increasing amount of email, and it can be difficult to stand out in overflowing inboxes. That is why Mailchimp equips you with the tools necessary to shine (plus, we have a slew of tried-and-true tips for sending exceptional emails) and create effective email marketing campaigns. For additional information on why email marketing works, see our email marketing statistics by industry.

How do I get an email list?
You’ll get the best return on investment if you build and maintain an engaged subscriber list comprised of people who actively seek out your messages (and who opted in on purpose). While building a clean list at the start of your email marketing strategy may require additional effort, Mailchimp lists include built-in tools to assist you.
There are numerous ways to find people who will eagerly await your emails, but we’ve compiled a list of the most effective.

To begin building an email list, follow these steps:
Include a subscription form on your website. When visitors come to your website for the first time and are impressed, they’ll want to learn more about your brand. Create a form for newsletter signups and a pop-up to collect visitor data.

Make use of an ol’-fashioned sign-up sheet. Whether it’s at your brick and mortar location or at an event you’re hosting or attending, whenever you’re surrounded by people who are passionate about what you do, make it easy for them to sign up and learn more.

Increase signups via social media. If you lack a sizable email list (or simply wish to see it grow), but have an engaged social media following, leverage that resource. Distribute your signup form through your social media channels.

To increase the number of subscribers on an existing list:
Organize a contest or provide a discount. We’re big believers in providing incentives for people to join your email list—and we know that contests work. Consider awarding a prize to a lucky new subscriber or providing a discount code for their first purchase.

Make it simple for others to share your emails
When you create visually appealing, compelling emails that contain a wealth of useful information, recipients will want to share them. Mailchimp provides features (such as share buttons and social media post builders) that make it easy to spread the word about your emails.

Utilize Mailchimp to create a landing page. Landing pages are another way to increase the size of your email list. Utilizing your best imagery and content, landing pages provide a clear call to action and significantly increase email signups.

Can I buy an email list?
Not at all. You should not purchase an email list (and, if you use Mailchimp, you cannot use a purchased email list).
Purchased lists are ineffective and have a negative impact on everyone who uses Mailchimp. If you send emails to a list of people whose contact information you purchased, a large percentage of the emails will be flagged as spam, and you will also experience a high rate of unsubscribes. Certain email spam filters will flag an email campaign if someone with the same IP address has previously sent spam. Because your email is delivered via our servers when you use Mailchimp, if one user sends spam, it may prevent other users’ emails from reaching inboxes. However, by prohibiting Mailchimp users from using purchased lists, we increase overall deliverability.
That is why we work diligently to maintain our sending reputation, and it is critical that all users adhere to our Terms of Use, which include anti-spam provisions. There are three primary rules that you must adhere to in order to comply with our Terms of Use.

Avoid utilizing third-party lists. This includes mailing lists that have been purchased or rented, as well as lists scraped from third-party sources, such as public websites.

Obtain authorization. Everyone on your list should have explicitly consented to receiving emails from you, and their consent should be verifiable. We track this permission for you if you use one of our signup form options.

Include a link to unsubscribe. Federal anti-spam laws require that you include an unsubscribe mechanism in each campaign you send. We require that you unsubscribe via our link.