Episode 43: List Hygiene

Send us Fan MailToday we will continue our discussion of list hygiene and the things you need to keep a clean list.Step One: Remove all your bounced emails that are no longer valid.Each time you send an email, you get a bounce report. Sometimes it is a temporary bounce, but other times it is permanent. Constant Contact, for example, will give you a report of bounces they recommend for removal, and then you can delete them. It's a great way to keep your list clean of bad email addresses.While they won't receive your emails anymore, removing bounced addresses will show the email service providers you care about your list and are keeping it clean.Step Two: Monitor your engagement group every 120 daysNow, 120 days equals four months for those who don't want to do the math! So three times a year, I want you all to look and identify subscribers who have not interacted with any of your emails. Then, send them an email to let them know that you will remove them unless they interact with this email. It's important!Step Three: Ensure you include a way to engage with your emails. I recently worked with someone who put all their content directly in their email. They didn't include links to a blog post or other content. There was nowhere for people to click, and the imagery is light because people engage more with plainer emails. We do ask questions in the email, but that's the best way for us to try and drive engagement. People can only engage with your emails if you provide an opportunity for them to do so.So, think about how you will have people engage with your emails. Step Four: Change your perspective.We have been pressured to build big, huge email lists for so long—but I want you to track things other than your email list size. I want you to track engagement. I covered this topic in depth in a previous Imperfect Marketing Brief, so check it out if you want to learn more. How many clicks are you getting? How many replies do you receive? That's what is important!So, how can you change your perspective?I was listening to another podcast, and they said we don't change our personality when we go to work. I genuinely believe that! That's why I named my first company H2H Consulting. There was B2B and B2C marketing, but we are all just people, so H2H stands for Human to Human.Again, your personality doesn't change. Think about how you can create experiences for your readers, whether you are B2B or B2C.This is especially important for those of us who are B2B marketers and business owners. If your audience is a business, their decisions are made in the inbox. How do you break through? How can you engage with them?Here is a link to my target audience downloadable. It includes questions about the personal situation of your audience. For example, how many kids do they have, and what do they like to do on weekends? This is all vital information for you to know and understand.Free email marketing tools:A beginner’s guide to email marketingLearn how to craft compelling subject linesReach your first 1,000 subscribersIdentify your list-building strategy Looking to leverage AI? Want better results? Want to think about what you want to leverage?Check and see how I am using it for FREE on YouTube. From "Holy cow, it can do that?" to "Wait, how does this work again?" – I've got all your AI curiosities covered. It's the perfect after-podcast snack for your tech-hungry brain. Watch here