When you’re starting up a business, there are some things everyone will tell you, and some things you’ll be expected to work out yourself.

For the things that you might not get advice on, we’re here to fill in the gaps. Let’s start with common email marketing mistakes – there’s plenty, trust us, so to make things easier we’ve narrowed it down to the most common!

Not sending a test

It might seem like a silly mistake, but it could prove fatal to your brand on just the very first email. Doing a test run is vital – if you don’t you run the risk of sending out your first subscription email without it reaching everyone, or sending twice by accident.

While these types of occurrences can be rare, it’s always best to send a test for peace of mind.

Do the unexpected

Let’s face it, email marketing can be boring. Really boring.

Of course this depends on your industry and your approach to the business, but the chances are that your subscribers will be less likely to unsubscribe if they find a real reason to continue opening those emails.

Try something different to keep your readers interested. A different approach is what will win you customers, as they’ll always have something fresh to come back for.

Packing too much information into one email

Your email should have a very specific point, and it should get to it quickly.

People don’t want companies to send their life stories in an email, they want to deal with information and respond accordingly.

With that in mind, you should keep your emails direct and brief. This is how you’ll really connect with readers.

Bombarding subscribers

Sending too many emails can get very old, very fast. If you’re sending information that subscribers aren’t opening, it’s simply a reminder to unsubscribe before you send another email that will only clog up their inbox.

Send only information that they really need to know. For everything else you can set up a blog and point them towards that in the email. It’ll send more traffic to your site too, which is always a good thing!

Not using a system

Free email marketing systems are easy to find and could make your time and effort worth it. You might think that by being only a freelancer or small business you don’t need to bother with big systems, but the reality is that if you want to grow as a company, whether it’s now or in the future, you’ll need to plan ahead.

Things can quickly get messy when you don’t use an email marketing system. Why not try out Pandle’s favourite; MailChimp.

Have you managed to avoid common email marketing mistakes? Leave your comments and experiences in the section below.