How to Harness the Power of Email for Your Brand

It’s true. When done right, email marketing presents a phenomenal opportunity to build direct links with customers that can generate real ROI. And that makes email an excellent tool for communicating what your brand is all about. 

Why is brand identity important for email marketing? 

Let’s start with why brand identity is so important to build in the first place. 

Customers return to businesses that they like and trust. By establishing a brand image and design system that’s recognizable and publishing valuable content pieces, your company is positioning itself as a source of credibility to the consumer. 

Viewers, readers and purchasers start to see your business as an entity that’s both reputable and trustworthy and something they can instantly recognize. 

There are so many different ways to build brand identity, especially in the digital age. One of the most cost-effective ways of doing this is via email. Sending your customers emails at set intervals allows you to reach out to them regularly with offers and information about your company and brand.  At the same time, you get to convey your brand values and what makes you different, whether that be through copy, images or design elements.

Email can be a powerful digital marketing tool but it's also very easy to get things wrong, especially when it comes to establishing your brand. Here are a few of our best tips for leaving readers with a strong impression of your brand via email.

Our top tips for building brand identity through email marketing 

Give them a big warm welcome 

Did you know that users take roughly 0.05 seconds to decide whether a website is worth scrolling through?

First impressions really do count, and that goes for email too. One of the best ways of making a strong first impression is through your Welcome series. This email or sequence of emails is what you send to new subscribers when they first sign up. And if you want it to be love at first sign up for your customers, then here are a few ways to stand out:

• Tell them how much you’re looking forward to having them as a subscriber
• Write in an engaging and friendly tone
• Touch on everything they need to know to have a pleasant onboarding experience

Channel your personality and unique brand voice

Every brand has its own unique personality and tone, and emails are a great place to channel this. Whether your brand is serious, or irreverent, warm or energetic, you’ll want this to come across at every touchpoint. 

While it’s worth respecting certain universalities, such as ensuring your Welcome series sounds friendly and helpful, you should see every email as an opportunity to inject a bit of personality. This can make all the difference in making your brand more memorable so that customers aren’t likely to forget you.  

Choose a template and stick to it

People love patterns. In fact, as humans, we’re wired to pick up on them, which is why your emails should follow a consistent template. Whether it’s the same colour or design scheme, a similar structure or type of information your customers have gotten used to receiving, this is one of the best ways of building trust with your audience.

Some things to consider include:

• Are you using your logo in the same place?
• Is your colour palette consistent?
• Do the buttons, colours, and designs gel with your website?
• Are you providing information customers have come to expect (e.g. a weekly blog, roundup or tips for troubleshooting)?

While there’s always room for variety and surprise to delight, keeping certain things consistent will help increase brand loyalty. 

Show up in their inbox consistently

Along with using the same templates and design scheme, it’s best to establish a regular sending interval. 

By sending your emails on the same day and at the same time each week or month, you’ll be establishing a pattern and routine for your subscribers. They’ll come to expect and look forward to opening your emails on a regular basis. If you go radio silent for weeks only to send them five emails in one go, they’re likely to get a little confused. 

Make a personal connection

One of the most exciting things about email marketing is that there’s a lot you can do to make things personal. Segmentation is the process of sending out targeted content to individual subscribers depending on their age, location, gender or industry. It makes readers feel special and like you’ve really taken the time to get to know them. 

Don’t oversell 

Email anxiety is a very real thing. This can range from being a mild annoyance to people losing genuine interest (and even trust) in your brand. That makes people much more sensitive to emails that are tirelessly promoting products or services.

By creating emails that are educational and deliver real value, you’ll be building a relationship with your audience based on trust and integrity that will only serve to benefit your brand. Of course, it’s important to send the odd more sales-oriented email now and again, but you should send these at the right time once your audience is primed.  

Create a fluid customer journey

Remember, email marketing is only one piece of the entire customer journey for your brand. For instance, you may want readers to click through to a landing or offer page. They’ll also be taken to different pages when they sign up or decide to unsubscribe. 

Ensuring that your customer experience is consistent across all of these points of contact will only strengthen your brand’s identity in their mind.

Top takeaways

When done right, email marketing can have a direct impact on your company’s bottom line, as well as the reputation of your brand. By employing all the tactics we’ve just described, it can be one of the best investments you could make for your business.