Five Common Email-Marketing Mistakes

This article was written by Gail F. Goodman of Entrepreneur.com

Email marketing can be one of the most effective tools for a small business today. However, in their eagerness to reach out to customers and spread the word about their business, many email marketers ignore the basics of good practice. Whether you're just starting out or even a seasoned pro, it's always important to review your email campaigns and make sure these five most-common mistakes aren't standing in the way of your future success.

Mistake No. 1: Permission Violation. The recipient -- not the sender -- gets to decide whether they want to receive a business' email communications. Permission is what separates legitimate email marketers from spammers.

First and foremost, you must ask for and obtain permission before sending any commercial email communications. And you must offer a way for recipients to unsubscribe or "opt out" of your mailings. Failing to do either practically guarantees your mailing will be caught in a spam filter, deleted or ignored. Permission isn't just polite; it's good business practice -- and it's the law. Learn more about compliance with the federal CAN-SPAM Act.

Mistake No. 2: Doomed for Deletion. Make sure your email "From" line displays your company name or brand -- not your office manager's name or whoever actually sends the email. Recipients might not know your office manager, so don't make the mistake of entering that individual's name in the From line.

Likewise, make sure your "Subject" line clearly states what's inside the email: "10% Off Everything Coupon," "Keep Your Pets Flea- 'n' Tick-Free," "Tips for Painless Tax Prep." A generic Subject line (e.g., "News From SmallBiz Consultants") is likely to get overlooked and go unopened. People are busy and bombarded with personal and business email; a catchy Subject line tells them upfront what they'll get for their double-click.

Note of Caution: Test-run your email through a "spam checker" first to make sure your Subject line doesn't contain things like ALL CAPS, exclamation points!!!, and other sales-offer no-nos, which can trigger ISP and email software spam filters.

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Gail is the "E-Mail Marketing" coach at Entrepreneur.com and CEO of Constant Contact. For bios of and stories by Entrepreneur.com columnists, please click here. For more information about Entrepreneur.com click here.