Top Ten Email Marketing Tips

Top 10 Tips for Effective Email Marketing in NZ

These are ten important tips for anyone using email marketing to keep in touch with their customers or prospects (or both) in New Zealand.

1. DON’T SPAM: Only send emails to people who have explicitly requested to receive them (permission-based). Be prepared to show proof they requested to join if needed (people sometimes forget). Comply with New Zealand’s Unsolicited Electronic Messages Act 2007.
2. STICK TO THE POINT: The email content should be relevant to why the person signed up in the first place. Don’t bait-and-switch with irrelevant information.
3. BE REGULAR: Pick a schedule (e.g., weekly, fortnightly, monthly) and stick to that schedule as consistently as possible. If your platform allows, schedule your emails weeks in advance for better planning.
4. SEND AT THE BEST TIME: You may need to test this for your specific audience, but generally, good times to send B2B emails are often mid-morning on Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday (e.g., after 9:30 am or just after lunch around 1:30 pm). Generally avoid Fridays, late nights, and weekends for B2B communications. If you have subscribers in different time zones, try to optimise for your primary audience’s time zone.
5. SEND B2C EMAILS DURING NON-BUSINESS HOURS: As an extension of the above, consider sending non-business (i.e., consumer-focused) emails during evenings or weekends (e.g., after 5 pm, but not excessively late) when people might be more receptive.
6. ASK PEOPLE TO WHITELIST YOU: Add a simple message near the top of your emails like: “To ensure you receive our emails, please add [Your Email Address] to your Address Book or Safe Senders list.” This may help reduce the chances of your emails ending up in spam folders. Also, use a professional email address linked to your domain (e.g., info@yourbusiness.co.nz). While Gmail or Outlook.com are fine for personal use, a branded email looks more professional for business marketing.
7. SEND FROM A RECOGNISED IDENTITY: Set the ‘From Name’ for your messages to either your company name or the name of a person recipients might recognise (or both). If people don’t recognise the sender, they’re likely to delete it immediately without opening.
8. USE THE CORRECT FORMAT (MULTIPART): Most people view HTML emails these days, but a small percentage still use text-only email clients. To cater for everyone, most professional email marketing platforms allow you to send a multipart message (containing both HTML and plain text versions). The recipient’s email client will automatically display the appropriate version.
9. AVOID LOOKING LIKE SPAM: Many email marketing platforms have spam-check tools. Simple tips include avoiding ALL CAPS subject lines and overusing potential trigger words (like ‘Free! Buy Now!’). Look at the spam in your own inbox – avoid subject lines similar to theirs! Write genuine subject lines and content, which your legitimate marketing emails should be anyway.
10. ALWAYS BUILD A QUALITY LIST: Build your list at every relevant opportunity (e.g., website sign-up forms, event registrations, in-store sign-ups – always with clear permission). A large, engaged list is a valuable asset. Make your sign-up process appealing to the type of people you want to attract, perhaps using relevant offers or incentives, but ensure the offer attracts people genuinely interested in your products or services. A large list of unengaged ‘freeloaders’ offers little value.

Moving Beyond Outlook: Choosing an Email Marketing Service

While you might manage a very small list from Outlook initially, there comes a point where you need a dedicated email marketing service. This is especially true because many standard web hosting companies restrict bulk emailing (often limiting sends to a few hundred per hour) to protect server reputation. Beyond this, it’s time for a dedicated solution.

There are many reputable online providers available. Platforms like Mailchimp, Campaign Monitor, or Brevo (formerly Sendinblue) are popular options worth researching to find one that fits your needs and budget.

Need Help with Email Marketing?

Setting up and managing email marketing effectively can take time and expertise. If you need assistance with strategy, setup, or management, feel free to contact us to discuss how we can help.