Email Advice in Your Inbox Volume 40

What’s happening in email right now?

Here are a few of our favourite links from across the email world, carefully curated just for you (click the bold text below to access each link):

• A great platform to feature your newsletter (via AmazingNewsletters)

• Join an elite email community run by an email legend (via 2X Emails)

• Building and sending accessible emails (via All About Email)

• Some awesome newsletters we found for you (via Refind)

• Sell effective newsletter sponsorships (via GoLetter)

• Cross-promote newsletters with us! (via Sparkloop)

(*PS: Some of these are paid or affiliate links. We may earn from these only if you sign up and join any of the stuff we recommend. Keeping you looped!).

Have a tool, some news or knowledge you want to share with or promote to our community?

Hit us up, and if you’re adding value and helping folks win, let’s get your name up in lights⭐

Let us know what you have to recommend or punt.

When it comes to email, we’d like you to think of links as the critical connectors between your message and your desired action.

But not all links are created equal.

How you approach design and place your links can dramatically impact your click-through rates.

Let’s look at a few quick insights into what you should consider in your link strategy.

Use this as a checklist to ensure that you’re getting folks to take the action you want them to.

Placing your links

Where you position your links can make or break your email's effectiveness. When thinking about where to put links, ask yourself these 3 questions:

• Is my link close enough or related to the information leading someone to click?

• Is my link visible or hidden among the rest of my email’s content?

• Is my link far enough away from other links in my design?

If you don’t focus on placement, you’ll wind up with links being missed or, worse, frustrated subscribers accidentally clicking something they didn’t intend to.

Click here…bleh 🤮

We’re going to say it: Your link text should be more than just "Click here." You want to entice action, not repeat the banal, generic nonsense your audience sees all the time.

Keep it different. Keep it interesting.

Use action-oriented, specific language (Take the plunge, Join the club, You know the drill). There are so many creative ways to entice action.

If you can create a relevant and honest sense of urgency or value and clearly communicate what will happen when action is taken, you’ll be steps ahead of email senders who don't focus on this.

(PS: It’s always good practice to keep to 3-5 words for maximum impact).

Make it seen

Links should stand out while remaining cohesive with your email design.

For accessibility best practices and to make sure you nail this, begin by using contrasting colours that match your brand while remaining clear and easily readable.

More on mobile below, but make links large enough to be easily tapped on mobile devices. More folks read emails on their phones than you may realise.

Leave enough white space around links to prevent accidental clicks. This is something we often forget when cramming in tons of info.

The technical stuff

Don't overlook the technical side of email links:

• Always use descriptive, clean URLs.

• Implement tracking parameters to measure link performance (UTM those babies for better insights about your audience).

• Verify that all links work before sending (NB).

• Use a reputable link shortener for tracking (we highly recommend LinkShortener.io).

• Include alt text for image links to improve accessibility. This is a standard and a legal requirement, guys.

Mobile last (but always first)

With most emails being opened on mobile, link strategy is crucial.

Make buttons at least 44x44 pixels for easy mobile tapping and leave enough white space for fumbling fingers to ensure they tap the right text or button links.

Don’t forget to test links across different devices and email clients, and if you’re feeling confident, begin A/B testing to find what’s working - Your clicks and conversions will thank you 💌

Great email links that get clicked are a blend of good placement, compelling info to support them, and user-first design.

Have a link tip to share? ~ Let us into your brain here ~

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On a lighter note: A terrible nightmare👀

There are some entertaining folks out there. And when you combine quirky content and LinkedIn, you get gold, like this one from Tyler Morin, Operator of The Water Coolest.

He makes a point - Albeit in a funny way. If you’re purely relying on social platforms to reach your audience with no plan in mind to get them into an email list, then I guess you wouldn’t be here, would you, Friend?

PS: Check out The Water Coolest here for some of the quirkiest market and investment content you’ll find.