This deck covers 6 "open rate enemies" that are undermining your best email marketing efforts. Some of these are insidiously non-obvious; others are "obvious" but still prevalent -- especially amongst startup marketers who move fast but need to nurture. How to identify the enemy, and clean up your email growth efforts.

1. open rate
enemies
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2. images
enemy #1
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3. {
1 image that
occupies all
above-fold
space
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4. the plain text
difference = the link is so clear
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5. email
size
blah
blah
blah
blah
blah
blah
enemy #2
blah
blah
blah
blah
blah
blah
blah
blah
blah
blah
blah blah
blah
blah
blah
blah
blah
blah
blah
blah
blah
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6. plus 28
more
images
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7. - just text
- no images
- CTA near the top
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8. unverified
sender
identity
enemy #3
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9. uh, who??
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10. verified

11. check your domain key status now:
https://www.mail-tester.com/
spf-dkim-check
and your sender score:
https://www.mail-tester.com/
@susanfsu #ctaconf

12. bad
subject
lines
look at me!
I’m a spam!
Or a promotion!
enemy #4
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14. HOT
subject
lines
subj: re:...
subj: Fwd:...
subj: you / new / now
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16. open rate
66.7%

17. subject line scripts
https://emailforstartups.com

18. stinky
content
boring
hard sell
irrelevant
me, me, me
enemy #4
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19. WTF??

20. - personal
- text only
- immediately after
welcome
- WORKS :)

21. key product &
content
pathways, aka
actionable
segmentation

22. aka, sending good emails
to the right people
makes GREAT content
segmentation
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23. how to segment
1 by acquisition channel
2 by acquisition campaign
3 by demo or geo (check analytics)
4 by offer that brought them in
5 by device
6 by time and other “laterals”
7 ask them
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24. dormant subscribers
open rate < 20%
delivery rate < 99%
unsubscribe rate > 3%
enemy #6
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25. 60% of your subscribers
are dormant.
Wake them up.
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26. activation formula
Day 0 Welcome (and activate now)
Day 1 Fear-based activate now (risks / FOMO)
Day 2 Benefits-based activate now (the promise)
Day 4 Incentivized activate now
Day 7 Get ready for the backburner
Day 8+ BACKBURNER
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27. activation merely
unlocks further
activation
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28. the
important
most
thing

29. open rate is
a vanity metric
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30. get conversions
1 multiple links, same destination
2 no leaks
3 “retarget” un-opens
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“Fwd:...”
“Re:...”

31. all roads
lead to
Rome
sales
page,
aka $$$

32. recap
images are the devil
if you must be verbose, include a CTA immediately
be clean, verify DKIM + SPF
GREAT emails are segmented
fight dormants, activate immediately
open rate is a vanity metric, conversions count.

33. contact & more info
Susan Su
@susanfsu
linkedin.com/in/susansu
http://emailforstartups.com
TONS MORE. Message me.
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