How to generate email leads for your business effectively

Email marketing is vital for nurturing leads and increasing revenue. Did you know that, according to studies, every $1 spent on email marketing yields a $45 return?

At the end of this article, you'll have learned what email lead generation is and how to optimize your lead generation funnel through email marketing in the most effective way possible.

So, let's get started!

Key Takeaways

• Effective email lead generation includes capturing, nurturing, and converting leads into paying clients.
• Optimized Email Basics: Ensure subject lines are engaging, emails are concise, and include clear calls to action (CTAs).
• Clean and Segment Your Email List: Regularly update and segment your email list to improve deliverability and target specific audiences.
• Use Automated Campaigns: Implement email automation to send personalized, timely messages based on customer behavior.
• Mobile-Friendly Emails: Optimize emails for mobile devices to ensure a consistent experience for users on all platforms.
• A/B Testing: Continuously test different elements of your emails (e.g., subject lines, layouts, CTAs) to improve performance.
• Conversational Tone: Write emails in an informal, friendly tone to build a positive relationship with potential clients.

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What is email lead generation?

In a nutshell, an opt-in form is used to gather email leads. Capturing information about potential consumers, such as their names and email addresses, is crucial to the process.

Getting email leads isn't the only goal of an email lead-generating plan.

It also entails nurturing the leads and eventually converting them into paying clients.

Lead generation, when done correctly, leads to improved consumer engagement and revenue. Nurtured leads make 47% larger purchases than non-nurtured leads” (Marketo).

Why is it essential to have a lead generation strategy?

You'll need an effective lead generation plan if you want to build your business and increase revenue.

Over half of marketers feel that email marketing is one of the most successful ways to create leads online. Your organization will profit from an effective lead-generating strategy as:

• It enables you to communicate with your target market.
• It helps your brand's recognition.
• More leads translate to more customers, which translates to more sales.

Let's explore some of the most efficient email marketing tips for generating leads.

Best tips for generating email leads

Pay attention to your email basics

A few fundamental best practices are required for any email campaign to be successful. Your email's elements should constantly be optimized to ensure efficient campaigns.

Your subject line should be bold, engaging, and free of anything that may be considered "spammy." It's also vital to track the performance of your subject lines over time with your specific audience.

If you don't know where to start with your subject line,  there are a lot of online subject line testers who can help you with that. Apart from the subject line, your emails should be brief and concise.

Graphics are appealing, but the email should be optimized for image-blocking software to guarantee that the potential customer can understand even if the images don't render.

Last but not least, every email should have a clear call to action (CTA). Your CTA will vary depending on your product or service, brand voice, and relationship with the audience, but it should always be there. Even in transactional emails having a CTA to guide users through the next steps of the funnel is crucial.

Emails with a single call-to-action (CTA) increased clicks 371% and sales 1617%” (WordStream)

Clean and segment your email list

To have a successful lead generation strategy, you need to update the data you have about your clients.

Remove outdated and useless data and replace it with new information about your subscribers.

Another benefit of cleaning your email list regularly is to eliminate unwanted or spam emails. Thus, your emails will not end up in the spam bin, and your email deliverability score won't suffer.

Another great practice with your list is segmentation. Segmenting your list and focusing your message on a portion of your list has been shown to improve email lead-generating rates. To do this effectively you can craft email templates for your different segments to improve user experience and conversions.

Consider how you may adapt the message to your target audience for more significant results. You can use an email campaign tool to customize and distribute your tailored message to several recipients in your email list at once.

Additionally, segmented email campaigns can drive a 760% increase in revenue” (Campaign Monitor).

Use automated campaigns to nurture your leads.

Email automation can help you enhance your lead generation process and get the most out of it. For example, you can schedule emails depending on your customer's behavior and interactions with your brand.

You can create a welcome series for your subscribers as soon as they join your list using automated emails. Similarly, you may send thank-you emails to any consumer who purchases from you.

This contributes to customer loyalty and brand trust.

Another possible type of automation is when your visitors abandon their carts. You can send them cart abandonment emails and recover them using a tempting offer to get them to finalize their transaction.

Mailbutler's Email Tracking feature can help you with this process by providing real-time insights into when your emails are opened and links are clicked. This allows you to follow up promptly and tailor your communication based on recipient engagement.

Email automation is essential for each of these scenarios to make your life easier and nurture your leads.

To build such automation, all you need to do is invest in cheap email marketing software and create your automated campaigns on a budget. Having a wide library of templates to choose from and tools to track your campaigns is essential to providing the best experience for your leads.

Leverage mobile-friendly emails.

Over 60% of emails are opened on mobile devices. According to statistics like these, most individuals now check their emails on their phones.

As a result, your emails should be optimized for all mobile devices to give potential clients a consistent experience.

Here are some pointers for making your emails mobile-friendly:

• Your subject lines should be around 25-30 characters long.
• Create scannable content that's easy to consume (i.e., bulleted lists, short paragraphs).
• Place your CTA above the fold.
• Make CTA buttons at least 44 × 44 pixels in size.

Having all these in mind while trying to deliver your message can be challenging. That's why there are many email templates with responsive designs that are excellent for desktop and mobile users.

Choose the email design that best fulfills your needs and start nurturing your leads down the funnel.

A/B test to improve your metrics

A/B testing your emails is essential for improving your efficiency. There are always parameters that could be done better. With A/B testing, you can enhance your conversion rates by testing several versions of your emails and finding the best-performing ones.

You must first pick what you want to test. You may A/B test a variety of items in your emails, including:

• Subject lines and pre-header text
• Format and layout
• Length
• Personalization elements
• Visuals or copy
• CTA placements and color

Once you've determined which parts to test first, you can use your email marketing software's built-in A/B testing features to start the test.

With A/B testing, you can improve your campaigns and find the optimal approach to move leads inside your marketing funnel.

Real-life examples of how to generate email leads

Write like you are talking to your best friend

Most people are tired of the formal format of their everyday work mail correspondence, not to mention the annoying sales emails always trying to tell you something is “Urgent” or “You will miss out on the deal.”

Potential clients nowadays want to be recognized as individuals that don’t need to be pushed around and rushed to make a decision. In my campaigns, I use informal language, sprinkle some humor and lighten the mood with relevant memes.

You want to create a long-lasting positive feeling that doesn’t pressure clients. Take it slow, build your relationship, gain their trust, and then - make them a proposal.

Iskra Evtimova, Digital Marketing Specialist

Use personalization to attract them

Personalization is one of the most effective email marketing methods for retaining consumer interest. Compile enough information about your customers, such as their name, how they interact with your brand, the number of times they have purchased from you, etc., and send them personalized emails.

This humanizes your brand and makes the communications you send to customers more endearing. On your prospects' anniversaries, you can send them a personalized email with a special offer. There are numerous ways to personalize emails to make them more engaging for consumers.

Tia Campbell, Director of Marketing, Practice Reasoning Tests

Content Upgrades & Gated Content

You can create a lead magnet with your most valuable content, did you know that? You don't even need to write new content each time to acquire email leads with content marketing!

A content upgrade is an added benefit that subscribers receive in exchange for entering their email address, such as a checklist that goes along with a blog post. Visitors must input contact information to access gated content. As an illustration, a portion of an article might be buried until the reader enters their email address.

Dan Charles, CEO,  Codarity

The takeaway

Even when KPIs are on track and sales targets are being met, intelligent companies are looking for fresh tactics to fill their funnel with new leads.

Email is a popular lead-generating channel since it is cost-effective, simple to implement, and perfect for testing and evaluation.

Crafting a lead generation funnel isn't a challenging task if you have the right tools to help you get started.

With the tips above and email marketing software, you can create robust campaigns that convert users into qualified leads and eventually clients.

Pay attention to the small details in this article and test every element in your emails to ensure that it provides value and amplifies the user experience.