I am often approached by customers who have already accumulated a fairly large customer base. At the same time, there were no mailings in the database, and they have no idea where to start. And this is the best option when they turn to a specialist to start working with the database.
But there are also situations when mailings are entrusted to a non-specialist in this field, and after one or two letters, the mails start flying into spam, and the domain ends up on the black lists.
Where to start work if you already have a database, and how not to get into spam at the very start of mailings?
1. Where did the base come from?
It is worth starting with this. Find out how contacts were collected, whether they agreed to receive emails, and whether they received at least one email in their entire lifetime in your contact list.
If the answers to these questions are positive, then there should be no problems with mailing in 90% of cases.
If the database is purchased, parsed from open sources, or obtained in some other dishonest way, then it is better to refrain from mailings on it. Moreover, there are many ways to legally replenish the database.
2. Checking and cleaning the base
If your database is more than 2 years old and all this time it has not been used for mailings, you should definitely check it for spam traps.
Spam traps – these are such email addresses, by sending letters to which you instantly get into the black list of the mailer. Often they are specially created and placed in the public domain to prevent spamming. But they can also be created from abandoned addresses that have not been used for a long time.
You also need to remove invalid addresses. Any mailing service you use can handle this. When filling, the database is automatically checked for correct spelling and validity of the email.
3. Heating
This item must be completed if you have a large enough base – from 2-3 thousand contacts, and you want to immediately launch promotional mailings.
Heating is carried out according to two schemes:
1. Growth of shipments… When the base is divided into parts that grow exponentially, and every day they are sent to the next largest base until they reach full size.
for example: you have 5,000 contacts in your database. So, you need to divide it into the following parts: 500, 1000, 2000, 4000, 5000 contacts. And send letters every day, choosing the next part in terms of the number of contacts.
2. Equal parts… In this case, we take a database of 5000 contacts and divide it into 5-10 equal parts, to which we will send our letter. We also send: one day – one part of the base.
Some services have a great “split group into parts” function, which helps to divide one large group into the necessary parts for heating.
Fig. 1 – Breaking the base into pieces
Above is an example of such functionality in Esputnik. Here you can even set what% of the base will be included in this or that part.
4. Configuring triggers
First, it s a great way to warm up new contacts and the base as a whole.
Warm-up triggers include welcome chains and the subscription / registration letter itself. If you do not have a database, then preparing a promo for 50-100 contacts is very expensive. A welcome-chain of 4-5 letters will perfectly solve this issue and serve as that very warming up mailing list.
Secondly, this is additional communication with the user, which increases his loyalty and your sales. This applies to absolutely all triggers from an ordering letter to congratulating the client on his birthday.
Fig. 2 – Subscription triggers for a dietary supplement site
A similar chain can be thought out and compiled for every business on the Internet for which email newsletters are suitable.
5. Segmentation
A very useful thing at all stages. But you do not always have the necessary data about users at the start of mailings. And the more base you have, the better it will be if you segment it.
Segmentation can be by:
- Semi. This can be done at the registration or subscription stage.
- Geo. Most likely, the contacts will have to be identified by the delivery address. In this case, segmentation can only be carried out by users who bought the product.
- Interests. Here you can segment in completely different ways: from launching a survey questionnaire in the database, to checking the inclusion of goods of a certain group in the order.
- Names. I personally had a project that made personalized T-shirts and the response from letters, where the print on the banner corresponded to the recipient s name, was much higher).
- The number and frequency of purchases. Based on this segmentation, you can stimulate inactive buyers with the help of promotions and sales.
- Average check amount. By segmenting by this criterion, you can separate VIP customers and not send them sales. And those who make purchases for small amounts should be encouraged to increase the check. For example, by offering them free shipping when ordering a certain amount.
- Others. Segmenting can actually be anything you want, as long as it allows you to make your offer more unique and personalized.
Fig. 3 – An example of segmentation groups on our site
We have divided the entire base into:
- those who ordered a service from us;
- those who left a request for consultation;
- those who signed up through the pop-up at a discount;
- those who just subscribed to the newsletter.
What s next?
And then everything is simple: we make mailings and look at the result. After 2-3 months, it will be possible to collect statistics on the base activity and segment it already. And also to clean contacts from those who do not read your letters.
What is it for?
First of all, in order to protect yourself from complaints about spam and the appearance of new spam traps in the database. Well, and also in order not to simply spend extra money on the inactive part of the base.
conclusions
As you can see, working with the current database is not that difficult. However, it must be carried out, otherwise there are considerable risks of being banned or even fined.
By applying all 5 steps, you will successfully warm up the base and get users to communicate. However, it is worth remembering the content, relevance of the offer and other nuances of composing an email.
We are ready to free you from the need to understand all the intricacies and completely take over the mailings: from checking the base and drawing up a content plan to increasing your sales. Contact us!