Best Practices to Create Great Marketing Campaigns

Email marketing remains one of the most cost-effective and versatile digital marketing tools available today. With its unparalleled reach, potential for personalization, and high return on investment, email marketing can drive engagement, build customer loyalty, and increase conversions. However, with inboxes more crowded than ever, marketers need to be strategic in crafting and delivering their emails. Here’s a comprehensive look at best practices for email marketing to help ensure your campaigns stand out, engage, and deliver results.

The Campaign Subject

You want to reach out to your clientele using our marketing campaign tool but don't know where to start?

Here are several campaign examples to inspire you:

Promotions
New menu additions
Dishes for people with food intolerances, vegetarianism, veganism
Highlighting certain products such as chef's tables, multi-course menus, sharing plates, lunch menu, free meals for children
Events Sporting events shown on television
Temporary closure, power outage, renovation
Terrace opening
Group reservations / Private rooms / VIP Opening of a new branch

The Content

When planning your marketing campaign, think about yourself when you receive an email of this type. What subject line encourages you to open the email? What kind of tone do you prefer when reading? Do you read to the end when the text is long?

A catchy title, an enticing or informative subject, and conciseness will be your best friends when creating your campaign. The fatal mistake is trying to say everything at once. Aim for one subject at a time. One subject = one campaign. If you're inspired, create multiple campaigns but schedule their sending in advance on different dates.

Remember, once again, to step out of your role as a restaurateur and put yourself back into the shoes of the customer. Too frequent and poorly directed campaigns will go straight to the trash for many. Before sending a campaign, think about who it's targeting among your clientele. Using the filters available at the first stage of campaign creation, target clients likely to be interested in your mailing.

The Container

Aesthetics are crucial in sending your campaign, but don't forget to be clear and concise. Our marketing campaign tool allows you to add text and modify its font, color, and format. Feel free to highlight the key words of your message, which will allow your clientele to quickly grasp its essence. Our tool also allows the addition of hyperlinks, enabling you to redirect your clientele to another web page such as your social media, your event page, or your online menu page. Finally, consider brightening up your email with a simple yet catchy visual. A picture is worth a thousand words! Therefore, it's possible to include in the image the most important information that alone, conveys your message. Wrap it all up with a brief complementary text.

Image Size and Format

Our tool allows the addition of images whose size must not exceed 500 KB.

How to check the size of your image?

Hover your cursor, without clicking, over your image in its file

Right-click on the image in its file, then Properties.

Here are examples of images with their pixel format and size. Note that here, the images are in png format.

800x400 px

363 KB

900x300 px

103 KB

Caution

The size of an image is not only due to its dimension but also to the components of the image. For the same dimension, an image can be of a higher size as evidenced by the following image, where the solid background has been replaced by a photo.

900x300 px

648 KB

The above image is therefore too heavy for marketing campaign sending. As solutions: reduce the image dimension or replace the photo.

We recommend reducing the image dimension directly in the visual creator used, either in the creator or during download. If this is not possible, here is a secure and free tool to reduce the dimension: https://new.express.adobe.com/tools/resize-image. Note, however, that a loss of image clarity may occur.

Boosting Engagement and Conversions

Personalize Your Content

Personalize When Possible: Personalization can enhance engagement. Consider using variables like [First Name] to add a personal touch to each message. Also, always include your brand or restaurant name to ensure recipients recognize where the SMS is coming from.
Dynamic Content Blocks: Use dynamic content to personalize sections of the email for different segments. For example, you can display different product recommendations or offers depending on a user’s location, preferences, or past purchases.

Craft Compelling Subject Lines and Preview Text

Keep It Short and Clear: Aim for subject lines between 40-50 characters that convey the main message quickly. Clarity and brevity make it easier for readers to understand the email’s value at a glance.
Create a Sense of Urgency or Curiosity: Use time-sensitive language (e.g., “Today Only” or “Limited Time”) or pique curiosity with subject lines that encourage readers to open the email to learn more.
Utilize Preview Text: Many email platforms display preview text next to or below the subject line. This space offers an additional chance to convey value, summarize the message, or reinforce your CTA.

Optimize Your Design for Mobile and Accessibility

Mobile-Friendly Design: With a large percentage of emails opened on mobile devices, use a responsive design that adapts well to different screen sizes. Single-column layouts, larger fonts, and touch-friendly buttons are mobile-friendly design essentials.
Easy-to-Read Fonts and Simple Layouts: Avoid cluttered designs and use easy-to-read fonts and colors. Clear, simple layouts improve readability and make it easy for users to follow the message flow.
Accessibility Considerations: Use alt text for images, ensure a high color contrast between text and background, and make sure your emails are screen-reader-friendly to improve accessibility for all users.

Focus on Clear and Engaging Content

Include a Clear Call-to-Action (CTA): Add a reservation button to your campaign to guide recipients on where to go to reserve online.
Incorporate Visuals Wisely: Images and graphics can make your email more engaging, but they should support—not distract from—the main message. Keep file sizes small to ensure quick loading times.

Test and Optimize

Test Regularly: Test different elements of your emails, such as subject lines, CTAs, images, or send times, to see what resonates best with your audience. Testing helps optimize for higher open and click-through rates.
Monitor Key Metrics: Track metrics like open rates, click-through rates, and conversion rates. These insights help you understand what’s working and what needs improvement.
Use Results to Refine Strategy: Regularly review performance metrics and apply your learnings to future campaigns. For example, if certain subject lines lead to higher engagement, use similar wording in future emails.

Respect Privacy and Compliance

Provide Easy Opt-Out Options: Every email should include a clear and easy way to unsubscribe. A good unsubscribe experience reflects positively on your brand and helps keep your list engaged. (Note that this is automatically handled by Libro, as an unsubscribe option is available in the emails).
Comply with Regulations: Ensure you’re compliant with email marketing laws like CAN-SPAM (U.S.) and GDPR (EU). These regulations mandate requirements like identifying your business in emails, providing an unsubscribe link, and respecting subscriber privacy.

Integrate Email Marketing with Other Channels

Cross-Channel Consistency: Combine emails with SMS marketing, social media, and other channels. Consistency helps reinforce your brand’s message and enhances the customer experience.
Use Email to Support Other Campaigns: Email can be a powerful channel to remind customers of events, special sales, or social media promotions, supporting and amplifying other marketing efforts.
Leverage Data Across Channels: Utilize data collected from email interactions to inform campaigns on other channels. For example, high engagement with certain types of email content could suggest similar themes for social media posts.