5 Reasons Your Emails are Getting Banished to the Junk Folder Zone

“I’ve crafted the perfect email,” you think to yourself as you sit back, admiring the words on the screen.

After spending the entire morning slaving over your Mac, downing three cups of coffee and two chocolate chip muffins, you know in your heart of hearts this email is a slam dunk winner.

You’re confident it spells out exactly what your subscribers want and in a way that makes them wonder where you’ve been all their life.

Now for a few final checks…

You double-check the spelling.

Run it through Grammarly.

You read it aloud to a friend who declares it “brilliant!” (and you realize it’s why you’re friends).

You practice your Pulitzer prize acceptance speech in the mirror and imagine the look on the faces of all those people who told you it’s time to get a “real job.”

HA! I’ll show them…You hit “send” and go out to lunch, knowing your Stripe account will be pinging like auditory confetti throughout the hour.

Only none of that happens.

Not even close.

You return to your desk after lunch and brace yourself as you open your email.

Only… no sales. Nada. Zip. Zero.

Maybe it’s a glitch in the Stripe system, you think.

Wait…

… is it a holiday?

… full moon?

… Mercury in retrograde?

Nope. None of the above.

In fact, not only did you not make any sales, but you got a boatload of unsubscribes. Even a few “spam” notifications. Whaaa…t??

Something, obviously, is not working.

If this sounds familiar (aside from practicing your acceptance speech in the mirror… although I won’t judge), you may be making some of the following, common, potentially disastrous email mistakes.

Any of these could put a wedge between you and your customer… and dramatically decrease the likelihood they’ll buy from you.

1. Your list isn’t segmented

Regardless of your niche or specialty, chances are not everyone on your list is interested in the same thing.

For instance, if you run a fitness business, not all of them may want to lose weight. Some want to build muscle. They may view weight loss as the opposite result they want.

So when people sign up for your offer it’s important to conduct surveys or polls – or otherwise ask them – what they’d like to know more about.

And give them that. Anything else may result in an unsubscribe or spam notification.

2. Subscribers have not opted in (a.k.a. via a lead magnet)

I once spoke to a fitness friend — a professional athlete — of mine who had a huge following but no list or subscribers.

When I asked him why he didn’t build one, he said, “Oh, I can do that anytime. I’ll just grab everyone on my email list and add them to it.”

Can’t do that.

In fact, there’s a name for adding people to your list without their permission: spamming.

Since May 2018 when GDPR took effect, businesses are required to show proof that customers have opted in to receive emails. Although the regulation doesn’t apply directly to emails sent to U.S. customers, it’s necessary for any online business dealing internationally.

Randomly adding people is a good way to end up in their junk folder at best and deleted and marked as “spam” at worst.

3. You’re sending too many emails… or not enough

The optimal number of emails to send varies with your audience.

In my experience working with clients and of running online businesses over the years, I’ve found it’s best to err on the side of “too many.”

Recommendations for how many emails to send are similar to how long of a blog post is too long.

If you’re sending good information your subscribers want, they likely won’t mind “too many” emails.

Think about a company whose products you love. For me, it’s Nordstrom. I get at least one email a day (Outfit of the Day!) from them and would never think of unsubscribing.

I don’t open them all, but I don’t mind because they’re relevant to my interests.

Sending out one email only every month or several months is most likely to make recipients forget who you are.

Who in blazes is this? *Delete*

4. Your email isn’t mobile-friendly

Ever try to read an email that’s not formatted for your phone? Maybe the header is too large or you need to scroll down 15 pages to find the gist of the message.

It’s a great way to win enemies and lose potential buyers.

Check the formatting for mobile before sending. It’s easy enough to fix.

5. You don’t have a clear call-to-action

You’re sending emails for a reason, not just to add clutter to everyone’s already overstuffed inbox.

What is it?

Sign up for a special offer?
Leave a comment?
Share on social networks?

Whatever it is, be clear about it. And make it easy to do.

Just go easy on the number of CTAs. Too many and your reader is more likely to do none of the above out of confusion.

Speaking of… CTAs…

If you’ve ever wondered:

A. How to increase opt-ins on your site

B. Wished someone could “take a look” at your page or series of emails and optimize them for better conversions

C. Otherwise had an expert to look for ways to increase sales for your online business

I gotcha covered…

I’d love to help you get more bang for your website buck.

I’m launching a new offer called The Quick Copy Fix that addresses all of the above.

For more info, simply answer a few short questions HERE to see if I may be able to help.

I’ll get back to you with details. And you’ll be on your way to a better converting page.

Or simply drop me a line at Linda@LindaMeloneWrites.com.

Let’s do this!