9 B2B Email Marketing Tips to Boost Engagement
Get advice on email design, copy, and deliverability from industry experts
Think B2B email marketing is a whole different beast? Many marketers and business owners feel this way. But you may be overcomplicating things. Bells and whistles don’t always translate to better results. Here’s what does – according to experts.
As opposed to their B2C peers, B2B email marketers have always struggled to get their messages noticed. If that’s you, this ebook will help you create more effective email campaigns.
From list building and segmentation to content strategy and tone of voice, here’s what you need to know to win at B2B email marketing.
01
Find your content strategy
Whether you’ve been sending emails for a while or are just about to begin, you need the right content approach. So, how do you figure out what people want from you? Here’s a simple way.
Douglas Paton
Content Expert for B2B Tech & SaaS and Owner of Paton Content Marketing
Talk to your customers. They’ll tell you exactly what kind of content they want to see from your business and how often they want you to send it. One-on-one interviews are a great way to capture in-depth information about what your customers are looking for.
However, a short survey will lead to a greater volume of data, which makes identifying the patterns a lot easier. Inboxes are precious spaces these days. When you take the time to ask your customers their preferences, you increase the odds they’re going to make time for your emails when they show up.
02
Build your list the right way
Your email list is the foundation – the very bones of your email marketing. Build it right, and boosting your metrics will be a lot easier. Here’s what you should keep in mind.
Liviu Tanase
Founder and CEO of ZeroBounce
The first step to making your emails work is to help them go to the inbox instead of the spam folder. Some marketers believe they have no way to control this, but you do. One thing you can control is the quality of your email list. Every year, more than 28% of it goes bad.
Letting bounces pile up and getting lots of spam reports is a surefire way to burn bridges with email providers. They can ban you from the inbox quickly if you don’t follow the rules.
- Keep your bounce rate under 2%. Validate your database at least quarterly to make sure you only reach out to real contacts.
- Maintain your spam complaint rate under 0.1%. Don’t add people to your list without permission and stick to what you promise in your content and sending cadence.
- Use a real-time email verifier. It checks every new address before you add it to your list.
I’ve seen great email campaigns fail because they never made it to people’s inboxes. Don’t let that happen to you when keeping a healthy list is fairly easy.
03
Be a mindreader
You know how some marketers email you about the very thing you need? They aren’t mind readers. They segment their audience so that those emails feel written especially for you. Here’s how you can do the same.
Bri Krantz
Senior Marketing Manager at MarketingProfs
Email segmenting starts before you send a single email. But don’t worry — it’s never too late to incorporate it into existing processes.
To start, define the criteria you’ll use to create segments, such as:
- audience demographics (industry, company size, job title)
- psychographics (interests, values)
- past behaviors (previous purchases, website visits)
- or by where they’re at in the buyer journey (awareness, consideration, decision stages).
These criteria inform the data you need to collect to build your email list and will be key to determining the email software that best supports your needs. The more you know your audience, the better you can use segmentation to meaningfully connect with them.
04
Learn to say “goodbye”
Passive subscribers who never open your emails give you a bad reputation with email providers. When people don’t engage, you may lose your spot in the inbox. Here’s how to avoid that.
Vipasha Sinha
Product Marketer at Zoho Campaigns
Email marketers must pay special attention to the regular maintenance of their email list. Study your campaign reports, identify inactive contacts, and segment them. Then, run lead-nurturing automation workflows with value-added content to re-engage them. If they remain unresponsive, remove them from your list, even if it hurts.
The best way to prevent people from losing interest is to keep them engaged with compelling content, such as free resources that provide value.
Additionally, do the basics:
- ensure your opt-in process is clear
- comply with regulations
- and personalize your communications
These steps can help create a responsive and valuable email list that fosters long-term relationships and drives better results.
05
Sound like a real person
What should B2B emails sound like? Should you leverage cutting-edge copywriting formulas to create a robust voice for your best-in-breed company? Maybe not.
Laura Belgray
Copywriter & Founder of Talking Shrimp
B2B is such a misleading term when it comes to copy and communication because businesses can’t talk, they can’t listen, they can’t read.
You’re always a person talking to a person, and it pays to remember that so that you actually sound like one.
Depending on the business, you might not want to be too ‘sassy’ or ‘edgy,’ but I believe in remaining conversational and personable, just as you would if you were having coffee or a drink with this business owner or representative.
Also, they may be busy, but they still want to be entertained and still respond differently if you grab their attention. So maybe your emails aren’t the same long-ish stories you might send in a B2C context, if you do that. But storytelling is still the name of the game for getting a human’s attention, so you’ll want to at least inject it into your messaging, every time.
06
Make it pretty
What should a B2B email look like? You make the rules – but testing different approaches will always steer you in the right direction.
Tracie Pang
Email Marketing Manager at Litmus
While the email design might differ, you should always use a conversational tone and include scannable content with a clear goal for your reader.
Don’t be afraid to use personalization beyond “Hi [first name]!” B2B emails can still include dynamic personalization when done correctly. For example, a countdown timer if there’s an expiring offer, social signals to let your subscribers know how many people are interested in your new report, or even a scratch-off to reveal an exciting feature.
When determining which email design your audience responds to best, you can run A/B tests to identify the ideal design for each communication type. For example, you can test a designed email against a letter-style email and determine the winner based on clickthrough rate or conversion rate.
Once you know which style works best, continue iterating on other elements of the email, such as the content, call-to-action (CTA) button placement, and more. Running these tests will save you and your team time by providing insights on how to effectively craft content for your audience.
07
Welcome everyone
Welcome emails get high open rates – around 68% (Oberlo). Have (at least) one in place to connect with your audience right away. Here’s how to start.
Dave Charest
Director of Small Business Success at Constant Contact
An email welcome series is an essential part of any email marketing strategy. The moment a new contact signs up for your email list is so important because they’re expressing that they want to hear from you. You don’t want to squander that moment — or your relationship with this new contact — by neglecting to reach out to them.
There are a few things you should think about including in this series. First, thank them for joining your email list, then welcome them to your brand or business. Most importantly, tell them what they can expect in future emails — this is your opportunity to explain the value your business provides, and show your customer why they’ve made the right choice in supporting you.
08
Send just the right amount
How do you know if you’re sending too many emails?Your audience will let you know. Here’s how to find your sweet spot.
Sean Tinney
Director of Demand Generation at AWeber
Finding the best email sending schedule in B2B marketing means keeping your audience engaged without overwhelming them.
Start by analyzing how your audience responds to different amounts of emails, and on different days and times. A/B testing helps by comparing how people engage with different sending frequencies. If you’re currently sending a weekly email, test sending it on Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday mornings.
For example, through testing we’ve learned that the ideal day and time to send our weekly newsletter is on Thursdays at 6 am ET.
Once you find the best frequency for engagement, stick to that schedule. The most important thing is to send consistent, valuable content that your audience cares about, not just a lot of emails.
09
Save time and make it fun
Aside from creating emails, you’re probably responsible for other tasks. Here’s how you can save time on email marketing – and make it easier and more fun.
Christin Baumgarten
Operations Manager at Mailbird
Creating a successful email campaign takes time – no matter how much experience you have. But we found a few things that make the creation process more efficient.
1. Be organized
If possible, know well in advance when your next campaign needs to go out to meet your strategic communication goals. Create a solid content calendar, including the subject lines and email body.
2. Republish your content
You’ve probably written a lot of great content for your website or blog. Where possible, reuse or republish posts or just snippets in your email campaigns.
3. Know your data
Do you know what kind of subject line works best? Also, what CTA performs best and what time is best for your open rates? Make sure you track that data and plan your email campaigns accordingly. This will save you a lot of time preparing for your next campaign.
Bonus tip: Did you know this?
Sending thousands of emails when you’ve never sent any isn’t a good idea. Email service providers may not allow them to go through. Here’s how to build your reputation.
Vladyslav Podoliako
Founder and CEO at Belkins
One lesser-known factor influencing B2B email deliverability is the sender’s domain age and history. Many people overlook that newer domains often have lower deliverability rates due to a lack of established reputation. Email service providers (ESPs) tend to be cautious with emails from new domains to prevent spam.
Businesses can improve their deliverability rates by using a domain with a solid, clean history or establishing and warming up a new domain through consistent, high-quality sending practices. This includes gradually increasing email volume and maintaining strong engagement metrics to build a positive reputation with ESPs.
