Email marketing has been around so long that some may think it’s becoming outdated. And there’s no denying how annoying it is to constantly unsubscribe from unsolicited emails making their way through spam filters.

However, it might surprise you that email marketing is one of the most cost-effective digital marketing strategies in 2021. Email marketing is also effective for lead generation, lead nurturing, and sales, with an impressive ROI of $42 for every dollar spent!

Still, a good email marketing strategy is as rare as hens’ teeth, and most of those emails will inevitably end up in junk folders. Not only because the email itself is bad; some of those might be exemplary, but fail nevertheless because they are unwanted.

What makes a difference between a success story and wasted resources is who receives those emails. This is why you should focus on building an email list with recipients that won’t roll their eyes when your message pops up.

LinkedIn is a perfect place to start. It’s a hub of professionals and companies who wish to expand their network and connect with other high-quality accounts. This is where you’ll find promising contacts, putting quality over quantity.

However, you can’t just scrape the contacts and go for it. I mean, you can, but don’t be shocked when it doesn’t bring you any of the results mentioned above.

There’s a right and wrong way to use LinkedIn for your email marketing efforts. Here, we’ll show you the right way by going through a few steps that make things easier for startups:

• Step One: Use LinkedIn to find the right audience and leads.
• Step Two: Connect with people in a meaningful way.
• Step Three: Craft the message that won’t make them roll their eyes.

Use LinkedIn to Find the Right Audience and Leads

Who wants your emails, anyway?

Let’s say you own a fintech startup.

Does your high school buddy who’s really into making those mind-boggling cakes that look like anything but the desert want your emails? Not really. But, that connection you added last week that works in cybersecurity? He’s a good match!

This doesn’t mean that you should delete the pastry enthusiast from your LinkedIn — just skip him when thinking of your email marketing list.

The “spray and pray” approach doesn’t work anymore; it never actually did.

The best email marketing strategy focuses on carefully picking the targets for high-quality lead lists and only then on crafting a perfect message for them. This will result in a higher open and response rate, as selected recipients see the value of your message.

LinkedIn is the best place to find such people and companies, especially for B2B needs.

It’s also pretty easy. These are just some of the many ideas that come to mind:

• Industry-relevant hashtags — These show you the posts related to your line of work and people who made them, liked, or commented on them.
• Relevant public figures — Profiles of people with a substantial amount of followers and connections act as an agora of some sort; their audience is a vast pool of possible connections for you to pick from.
• Professional groups — Places where people get together to discuss news, trends, issues, ask for help, or product/ service recommendations: an ideal opportunity for you to jump in!
• Competitors — This hack will show you how to “steal” their followers just like the Grinch stole Christmas.

Use this research to learn more about peoples’ and businesses’ needs. This will help later when it’s time to reach out to them.

Now that you’ve gained insight into promising LinkedIn demographics, it’s time to go ahead and connect — the right way.

Connect With People in a Meaningful Way

Being connected means much more than adding someone on LinkedIn.

When people let you in their circle, online and in real life, that is because they’re hoping it will bring them something good in return. That good thing certainly isn’t another sales pitch in their inbox.

It’s very important to warm up your leads first. Whether you send them a personalized email or contact them via LinkedIn’s InMail, let yourself be known in advance. Likes, comments, jokes, directing them towards useful resources — all of those activities represent the steps that help build a relationship.

Additionally, dedicate some time to produce valuable content for LinkedIn. It should be something your connections appreciate, and it should create a positive association with your brand.

Craft a Message That Won’t Make Them Roll Their Eyes

Think about the email you write. If you were to receive it, would you open it, or would you instantly chuck it in the bin?

We recommend using these directions to export LinkedIn contacts in a fast, safe, and practical way. The whole process is automated and allows you to use the list in multiple ways.

However, creating a message that stands out is a bit trickier. Create standout messages, same as creating a new website.

Let’s start with some actionable tips for the subject line since it’s the first thing they’ll see:

• Personalize it — No, using the good old “Hey, (recipient name)!” format won’t do it. Pique their interest by addressing the pain point, competition, mutual contact, or a shared interest.
• One-liners are the way to go — Here, you’ll have to be short and go straight to the point because you don’t have a lot of characters at your disposal. One-liners are even shorter than the elevator pitch, which should be saved for the body of your email.
• Create a seamless transition — Don’t forget to connect the point of your message with the subject line, so you don’t disappoint or annoy them with something completely unrelated.
• Trigger their curiosity — When everything else fails, write something interesting. Nothing offensive or outrageous, but intriguing.

After the subject line comes the email body. These are some tried and true instructions for high-performing emails:

• Just like you did with the subject line, keep it short and sweet. Three hundred words should do the trick.
• The text should be easy on the eyes. Use enough white space between concise sentences.
• Insert simple and attractive visuals and infographics to showcase the data. Check graphic maker online.
• Place a CTA at the end in the shape of an eye-catching button that guides the recipients to a well-made landing page.
• Send a video in your email body but don’t overdo it and make it too lengthy — just a short video to catch their attention.

It’s important to note that when using this approach, you stick to individual outreach and do not automatically enroll these contacts in your automated email nurture campaigns. The latter requires GDPR compliance and for recipients to provide your company with permission to email them and send them ongoing messaging.

End Notes

Each startup should use LinkedIn for their email marketing strategy. With a few good tools and tactics, it’s a cost-effective way to build A-grade lists that are bound to increase conversion rates. To make the most out of these, marketers need to create attractive and personalized messages people won’t transfer to the spam or junk folders.

We hope this article helps you make a difference and mark 2021. as a year of successful email marketing campaigns!

Author Bio

Stefan Smulders is a SaaS entrepreneur and founder of the world’s safest software for LinkedIn automation, Expandi.io. He is also the founder of LeadExpress.nl.