If you’re a musician actively promoting music, then chances are you've tried your hand at email marketing. If not, then it's time to start. Email marketing is a great way to connect with fans and keep them up-to-date on your upcoming new music release.
But if you’re not seeing the results you want from your email marketing campaigns, don’t despair. There are several things you can do to turn things around. In this post, we’ll share 8 tips for more successful email marketing campaigns.
With these tips, you'll learn what it takes to engage your fans with email marketing. And you'll start growing your list and getting more conversions. Read on to get valuable tips and insight to improve promoting music with email marketing.
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What are the Benefits of Promoting Music with Email Marketing
What are the Benefits of Promoting Music with Email Marketing?
Forget fleeting trends with social media algorithms and the noise of crowded platforms. Promoting music with email marketing offers a hidden gem. It's a direct line to your fans' hearts (and inboxes).
The return on investment is well worth the effort. Compared to SEO, which has an average ROI of 200-275%, email marketing can produce an average ROI of 3,800%. That means, for every $1 spent yields $38 in revenue. So if you sell merchandise or music, this is a huge win. If you're investing money in promoting music with your email, chances are you will do well.
How to Calculate Return on Investment (ROI)
ROI = (Marketing revenue – spend) / Marketing spend x 100
Think of email marketing as your own virtual backstage. The place where die-hard fans can gather for a glimpse into your creative process. Here you can build a sense of community and belonging with dedicated fans. You can share whatever you like. Unlike social media posts, emails remind fans of their deep connection to your music.
Email marketing allows you to take ownership of your fan list. You own it. When promoting music on social media platforms you can't control your reach. Unless you pay for advertising of course. Tech giants decide who sees your posts and if it's even worthy of an audience. A lot of time and effort goes into promoting music on social media. And the return on investment is usually not worth the time and effort.
But with email marketing, you control the narrative. No algorithms to skirt around. You can send emails to all your fans or to a small segment of fans. You control the message, when it's delivered and who gets to see it. And the ROI is a much better result than social media.
Email marketing can produce an average ROI of 3,800%. (Express Pigeon)
Now you have a good understanding of the benefits of promoting music with email. Next, let's dive into 8 tips you can apply to your email marketing campaigns to get better results. If you apply these tips to your current email efforts, you'll be on your way to delivering better emails.
Keep Your Email List Clean
Email marketing can be a great way to connect with your fans and promote your music. But it only works well if you have a clean email list. A clean email list is one that is up-to-date and accurate and has no dead or inactive addresses.
Here are some tips for maintaining a clean email list.
Use an Email Verification System
An email verification service will help you identify invalid or fake addresses. This can be a valuable tool for keeping your list clean and safe. Most platforms have this feature built into their system. With the enormous amount of spam and fraud these days, these tools create a roadblock to keep it out. It will also help filter out pesky bots.
Also, consider opt in and double opt in tactics to ensure the person is real. With opt in, fans must verify their desire to subscribe to your list. Once they verify to join, your email system will add them to your list.
Remove Bounced Emails
Remove any email addresses that bounce back. Emails that no longer work or are undeliverable can have a negative effect on your account. Get rid of them to help reduce your bounce rate. The negative impact bounced emails can have include:
Wasted resources and budget
Damaged sender reputation
Eroded trust and engagement
Increased scrutiny and potential blacklisting
Missed opportunities for connection
Delete Duplicate Addresses
Duplicate addresses can clutter up your list and make it harder to manage. Most email systems can identify and either remove or merge duplicate email addresses. The negative impact duplicate emails can have include:
Annoyed audience and damaged reputation
Wasted resources and budget
Reduced engagement and click-through rates
Increased spam complaints and deliverability issues
Missed opportunities and lost connections
Data storage issues and unnecessary costs
Personalize to Increase Open Rates
Recipients are more likely to engage with email marketing that feels personal. According to Experian, personalized emails have a 29% more open rate than email that are not personalized. Take the time to segment your list and send targeted messages. Not everyone will have the same interests. For example, you wouldn't send a men's t-shirt offer to woman on your list. Instead, segment woman out and send a separate email with an offer for woman's t-shirts.
personalized emails have a 29% more open rate (Notify Visitors)
One important aspect of email marketing is ensuring your messages are actually read. Some fans buy music only, while some fans prefer music and a t-shirt. Know what your fans like and tailor your emails to match their interest to increase open rates.
Another important element of successful open rates are creating strong subject lines. Focus on creating a strong subject line that uses powerful language. You can also use emojis and positive humor that will entice people to click. Make sure it's clear what the email contains and avoid titles over 60 characters in total.
Here are some key things to avoid when crafting a good email subject line:
Shouting and excessive punctuation
Generic and unclear language
Clickbait tactics and false promises
Spam trigger words like free, limited time offer and all caps
Overly promotional language
Deceptive or misleading content
Personalization without permission
Forgetting preheader text
Remember, a good subject line should be clear, concise, relevant, and informative. It should pique the recipient's interest and encourage them to open your email.
Improve Your Conversion Rate
To improve your conversion rate, you can do the following:
Segment Your Email Lists
Segment your email list into groups of fans by interests. This helps you deliver emails that interest the recipient. For example, you wouldn't send emails to women trying to sell men's t-shirts. Instead, segment your list by gender and create targeted emails based on those criteria. This way, you can send all your female fans offers specifically for women, and offers specifically for men.
Use Attractive Visuals
People are visual creatures. So make sure your emails include attractive visuals like photos, videos, or infographics. Show pictures of your merchandise so they know what you are offering. This will help grab attention and keep people engaged with your content.
Keep Your Emails Short
No one wants to read a long message. When writing your emails, make them short and straight to the point. Don't drag out your message with unnecessary content. Less is better in this aspect. People have short tension spans so keep it short and sweet.
Use A/B Testing
Using A/B testing allows you to pick the winning email that performs the best. Testing subject headings, content and message, and call-to-action usually undergo A/B testing. Create different versions of your email and deliver it to two separate groups.
When testing, only change one element at a time. This makes it easier to test and measure the effectiveness of the change. Too many changes can make it difficult to measure which change worked during the test. For instance, you may want to test the color of the buy button. In one email it could be green, and the other email red. Send out the green button email to some of your list. Then send out the red button email to a different set of fans on your list. Measure the results and go with the winner.
Have a Strong Call-to-Action
Your email should have a clear purpose, and you should include a call-to-action (CTA). When someone opens your email, the next step is to get them to your offer. A CTA tells recipients what you want them to do. Whether you're promoting a new album or inviting people to your next show, make your CTA clear and concise.
The average click-through rate (CTR) of a call-to-action is 3-5%. (Databox)
A good call to action (CTA) is the bridge between your message and desired fan action. It's a compelling invitation that motivates users to take the next step.
Here are some key characteristics that define a winning CTA:
Clarity and Conciseness
State the action clearly. Use active voice and action verbs that leave no room for confusion. Instead of "Learn more," try "Download your free eBook now."
Keep it short and sweet. Aim for 4-7 words to maximize impact and readability. Especially on mobile devices.
Urgency and Scarcity
Create a sense of urgency. Phrases like "Limited time offer" or "Only a few spots left" create urgency.
Highlight scarcity. If applicable, mention quantities, deadlines, or other factors that create scarcity.
Value Proposition
Focus on the benefit. Clearly communicate what users will gain by taking the action. Instead of "Sign up," try "Join our exclusive community and unlock VIP benefits."
Target the user's needs. Tailor your CTA to address specific pain points of your fans.
Design and Placement
Visually distinct. Use contrasting colors and design elements to make your CTA stand out.
Strategic placement. Position your CTA at the end of your message.
Mobile-friendly. Optimize your CTA for smaller screens like mobile and tablets.
Emotional Appeal
Spark curiosity. Use language that piques interest and encourages users to learn more.
Trigger positive emotions. Evoke feelings of excitement, joy, or accomplishment to motivate action.
Personalize. Use language that resonates with your target audience and their specific needs.
Use Automations
As a musician, you should always be looking for new ways of promoting music and growing your fan base. Email marketing is a great way to reach out to your fans and keep them updated. Whether it's about a new releases, tour dates, and other news, staying in front of fans is critical.
Automations is a critical tool you should be using in your email marketing strategy. Automations allow you to send out emails in a sequence to stay connected with new fans on auto pilot. For instance, a new fan subscribes to your list. With email automation, a custom welcome email can be sent immediately to welcome your new fan. The email can also be crafted to contain specific information about a new release, current events, upcoming shows or to direct new fans with a specific call-to-action.
Also, email automations can be set up in sequence to deliver targeted emails to fans on a regular basis. For instance, a new fan subscribes to your list. An email is sent within 1 day to welcome and thank them for signing up. 3 days later, another email is sent to give them information on your latest album release. A week later, another email is sent to provide a list of tour dates and locations of the shows you'll be performing in the upcoming months. Then each week after, fans get a custom tailored email. You get the picture.
We all know what it's like to get email sequences after we initially sign up as a subscriber. Those emails that follow are all pre-made and set to fire off the minute the person becomes a new fan subscriber.
According to omnisend, when it comes to email marketing automations:
35% of consumers who click on an automated email go on to purchase compared to 6.7% of campaign email clickers.
Automated messages generated 29.1% of all email marketing orders.
Automated messages generate four times the number of orders-per-click than promotional campaigns.
Take your new music release to the next level.
Contact OPK Solutions to see how we can help.
Design Clean Effective Emails
As a musician, you have a lot of fans who want to stay up-to-date on your latest releases and shows. Email marketing can be an effective way to stay in touch with your followers and keep them informed.
Yet, designing clean and effective emails can be challenging. It’s important to strike the right balance between too much information and not enough. You don’t want to overwhelm your subscribers or bore them with irrelevant details.
Here are some tips for designing clean and effective email marketing campaigns:
Keep it simple. Use a clean design with plenty of white space. Include only the most important information in your email. Less is better. Fancy bling is usually confusing and difficult to read and focus. If you ever noticed, successful email marketers use text only. These emails have a better delivery rate and often go to the inbox rather than spam box.
Be clear and concise. Write clear subject lines that reflect the content of your email. Be sure to proofread your emails before sending them out. Drop subject lines and body text into a word document to check it for spelling errors and proper grammar.
Use images sparingly. Too many images can make an email look cluttered and can be distracting to readers. Use images to add visual interest without overwhelming the reader. Scratch any idea of loading up your emails with tons of pictures and graphics. If you're selling t-shirts, use a couple examples and leave it at that.
Test and Analyze Results
Email marketing can be a great way to connect with your fans and promote your music. But it's important to make sure you're doing it right.
Some important key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure include:
Open rates. This measures how many people open or do not open your emails. It can give you direct insight into the effectiveness of your subject line title. Use A/B testing to master creating the perfect one line openers.
Click-through rates. This measures the content and if readers are acting. The content could include the titles, the message, the offers, as well as the CTA.
Unsubscribe rates. This measures sudden increases in unsubscribes. This can mean your email marketing messages are of little value or use to the reader.
Conversion rates. This tells us if what we are doing actually produces a desired result. This could be clicking the buy button to send fans to the checkout for a sale.
Email marketing is an ongoing process. You'll need to keep track of your KPIs and adjust your strategy as you go along. Successful email marketing campaigns are the ones that are testing and improving.
Be Consistent
When it comes to email marketing for promoting music, consistency is key. Your fans want to hear from you on a regular basis. If they don’t, they’re likely to unsubscribe from your list or become an inactive subscriber.
To keep your fans engaged, make sure you’re sending out emails on a regular schedule. Whether it be once a week, twice a month or once a month, keep to a schedule that is consistent, but not overwhelming. Once a week is a good frequency to start with.
You can always increase or decrease the frequency. This can all depend on how your fans respond. It can also depend on the circumstances. If you plan on promoting new music, you can increase the frequency. This will help keep you fresh in their minds while building anticipation up to the release date.
Final Thoughts
As a music artist, your email marketing list will be one of your most valuable assets for promoting music. It's a direct line of communication with your fans. And if used right, can be a powerful tool to grow your music brand.
Whether you're starting from scratch or already have a decent list going, following these tips will help you improve the way you do email marketing. It will also improve your open-rate, click-through rate, and conversion rate to boost your bottom line.
Article by Lance Ziegler, CDMP
Lance is a certified digital marketing pro with over 12 years in the music industry. He specializes in auditing, website design and development, press kit development and music marketing release strategies.
Take your new music release to the next level.
Contact OPK Solutions to see how we can help.