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August 2021

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Email Marketing Ideas for Self Employed and Freelancers

By Gabrielle Mail Designer 365 Newsletter Academy

Think email marketing is only achievable for larger firms with specialised teams? Think again! At Mail Designer 365, we believe email is for everyone.

As a freelancer or self-employed person, creating an effective email strategy is a fantastic way to connect with your audience and advance even further in your chosen field.

In this guide, we're sharing our top tips and advice for freelancers looking to get started with email marketing; including ideas on what emails to send and how to build up your list of subscribers.

Get expert email best practice tips delivered directly to your inbox!

Benefits of Email Marketing for Freelancers and Self-Employed

Cost-effective & high ROI

Getting started with email marketing is relatively low cost and, when effective, can lead to a high return on investment.

There are many free marketing tools out there and, thanks to drag & drop design apps such as Mail Designer 365 for Mac, you can create email templates yourself with no need for coding knowledge or a graphic designer.

Direct communication with leads

Other than face-to-face marketing, email is one of the most direct ways of communicating with clients or potential leads.

In comparison to other methods such as social media or paid ads, email is much more likely to reach the recipient on a one-to-one level. Furthermore, you have a consistent audience that you can study over time and tailor your content to.

Incorporate your personality and brand

In addition to being direct, email also has the advantage of giving you more space to incorporate your unique personality. As a freelancer or self-employed person, this serves as an important opportunity to help potential leads get to know you.

Cross-promotion opportunities

As well as sharing important news and information with your subscribers, you can also use email to cross-promote other elements of your business. New side hustle? Just written a book? Starting a podcast or YouTube channel? Let your audience know.

woman working on MacBook

Email marketing can open up a new world of opportunity for freelancers and self-employed people

Self employed? Ways to Build Up Your Email List

Utilise social media

Social media can be a great tool for networking and interacting with potential leads on a more informal level. If you're starting up an email newsletter, let your Twitter / Instagram / LinkedIn followers know about it.

If they follow you on social media, they're bound to be interested in what you have to say and would therefore be likely to subscribe to your newsletter, too!

Add a lead capture form to your website

Integrating a signup form on your website is a great way to capture the attention of potential leads who are already showing an interest in your business.

Find an appropriate location where you can add a section advertising your email newsletter and the benefits of signing up. Including optional fields such as name or interests allows you to capture even more information should you wish to segment your email list later on:

Add a lead capture box to your website to increase your email subscriber list

Tip: Mail Designer 365 Delivery Hub provides a convenient sign up form builder so you can connect Delivery Hub to your website or blog. This way, contacts who sign up via your form will be automatically imported into your Delivery Hub audience, ready for you to start sending emails to. Find out more →

Mail Designer 365 Delivery Hub signup form builder

Offer valuable information

Offering an incentive in the form of valuable information is another effective lead capture method utilised by many freelancers.

Producing great content such as eBooks or white-papers gives your new subscribers a taste of the kind of insight you can offer them and should keep them coming back for more! It's also a great way to demonstrate your knowledge and authority in your given field:

Offer potential leads a valuable incentive for signing up to your newsletter

Email Ideas for Freelancers & Self-Employed

Depending on the nature of your field, there are many different options for emails which you can be sending to your subscribers. Here are some ideas we think can be highly effective for a freelancer or self-employed person:

Welcome emails

Sending a welcome email to new customers or clients is a nice way to introduce them to your business and show them what to expect from your email content.

In the welcome email, consider including a friendly introductory message to new subscribers. In this message, be sure to thank them for subscribing, include a brief biography about yourself or your business and summarise your typical email schedule.

Another great idea -  shown in the example below - is to link to previous editions of your newsletter. This gives your audience a taste for any great content they may have missed.

Send welcome emails to introduce new subscribers to your business and email content

News and announcements

Have something important to share? A book launch? New collaboration? As the name suggests, an email newsletter is a great method for sharing all your latest news and announcements with subscribers.

Summarize your exciting news into bitesize sections with strong, descriptive headlines and link out to a relevant blog post or landing page.

Monthly roundups

Many freelancers enjoy sticking to a consistent sending schedule which they can plan into their busy routines. If this is you, a regular monthly roundup email could work well for you.

Not only can you share news and announcements, you can also give your readers an insight into the workings of your business. Including a personalised message is also a nice touch that will help your audience identify with you and your brand.

Sending out a regular roundup newsletter helps subscribers feel connected with you and your business

Cross-promotion

Any good email needs an effective call-to-action (CTA.) This is always the intended outcome of your email. Whether you want to gain more subscribers on social media, sell tickets to an event or promote a new product, your newsletter is a great opportunity to do so.

Create an eye-catching section within your email design and place your CTA centrally so it's clearly visible to readers. You can then use this block to cross-promote a particular product, service or event to your audience:

Create a prominent area in your newsletter to cross-promote another element of your business

Tips and advice

As a freelancer or self-employed individual, you likely have a lot of know-how about your chosen field. For this reason, it can also be beneficial to use your emails as a way to share educational content with your audience.

Blog posts, podcasts, e Books, video tutorials, Photoshop presets, etc, are all great ways for you to demonstrate your knowledge and expertise in your field. Not only are you providing potential leads with valuable content, you're also giving them a taste of what to expect should they choose your business.

Offering valuable educational content helps you demonstrate your expertise to your audience

Transactional emails for Freelancers

As a freelancer, you likely spend a lot of time communicating with clients and sending 1:1 emails containing:

  • Your portfolio
  • Quotes and custom offers
  • Invoices & payment reminders
  • Review requests

An effective set of templates for transactional emails is a must-have for any freelancer. Not only will it save you time, your emails will also look better and more professional. This way, you can leave a lasting impression on your clients.

Email Marketing for Self-Employed & Freelancers - Getting Started

Discover Mail Designer 365

Mail Designer 365 is an advanced email solution which makes building and sending custom email templates for your business super straightforward.

Use the drag & drop WYSIWYG editor on your Mac to build up a stylish email layout and add in all your content. Then, upload your finished template to Mail Designer 365 Delivery Hub to send to your audience.

Get started with Mail Designer 365 today

Start your 7 day free trial and use your Mac to create stylish email newsletters for your business.
No credit card required
Compatible from macOS 10.13 onwards

Enjoyed this post?

Get more inspirational tips, tricks, and best practice examples in the Mail Designer 365 Newsletter Academy -
your one stop hub for all things email marketing strategy and newsletter design.

Email Template Ideas for Women’s Equality Day

By Gabrielle Mail Designer 365 Newsletter Academy

Women's Equality Day is coming up and poses a great opportunity for you to get involved and show your support for an important issue.

For businesses of all shapes and sizes, being vocal around key social topics is a good way to outline your core values and play an important role within your community. In addition, it also shows your customers you care about them and the issues that affect them.

Explore tips for your email campaigns, plus email template ideas for Women's Equality Day in our dedicated marketing guide.

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What is Women's Equality Day?

Women's Equality Day is celebrated in the USA every year to commemorate women being granted the right to vote. The day is a recognition of women's suffrage and is proclaimed publicly each year by the US President.

When is Women's Equality Day?

Women's Equality Day takes place every year on August 26th to mark the anniversary of women receiving the right to vote in 1920, following the introduction of the Nineteenth Amendment. The occasion was first celebrated in 1971 as has been celebrated annually since then.

What to Include in Email Campaigns for Women's Equality Day

Information

Including information about the occasion and any current campaigns is an effective way to use your platform to raise awareness.

If you haven't created much educational content of your own, do some research and link out to other groups sharing news or blog posts. Your readers will appreciate you taking the time to share valuable information with them. Make sure to always fully credit your sources.

international women's day by quizlet

We love how this email by Quizlet goes all out to share useful, educational content with readers

Powerful graphics

Powerful graphics help you get your message across faster. Use bold colors and imagery that depicts strong women as the central focus of your design:

women's day campaign by bershka

This Women's Day campaign by Bershka contains powerful, colorful imagery to elevate the message further.

Inclusivity and diversity

Try and make your campaigns as inclusive and diverse as you can. This includes sharing the stories of women from all different backgrounds so that all your target audience can identify with the messaging.

This email by Really Good Emails has a super inclusive intro and also takes the time to credit other women in the industry and showcase their work:

women's history month email by Really Good Emails

Really Good Emails took the time to write a well thought out and inclusive introduction to their Women's History Month campaign

Find more tips on inclusive emails here.

Motivational call-to-action

Every email needs a strong CTA (call-to-action) - and Women's Equality Day is no exception. Whether you're holding a special event, sharing some key resources or promoting a charitable cause, you should do all you can to make your CTA stand out and motivating your readers.

This email campaign promoting the Women's Conference of Florida does a great job of speaking directly to the recipient and inspiring them to sign up:

email campaign promoting a women's conference

Inspire readers with a powerful CTA block

Email Template Ideas for Women's Equality Day

Mail Designer 365 has all the tools you need to create powerful email campaigns for Women's Equality Day. Check out our Women's Equality HTML email template - exclusively available in the Mail Designer 365 App for Mac.

email template for women's equality day

Mail Designer 365 email template for Women's Equality Day

Don't have a Mail Designer 365 plan yet? Try it today free to start creating email templates for Women's Equality Day and other key occasions in the marketing calendar.

Get started with Mail Designer 365 today

Start your 7 day free trial and use your Mac to create stylish email newsletters for your business.
No credit card required
Compatible from Mac OS X 10.11 onwards

Enjoyed this post?

Get more inspirational tips, tricks, and best practice examples in the Mail Designer 365 Newsletter Academy -
your one stop hub for all things email marketing strategy and newsletter design.

Pre-flight Email Check: 10 Things to be Aware of Before You Hit Send

By Gabrielle Mail Designer 365 Newsletter Academy, Mail Designer 365 Newsletter Academy, Mail Designer 365 Newsletter Academy, Mail Designer 365 Newsletter Academy

When putting together the final touches of an email design, there are many boxes to check to make sure your important message comes across to subscribers. Missing out any important elements could lead to your emails being ignored, undelivered or not working as intended.

With the stakes so high, there is no room for error when it comes to sending or exporting your finished email template. For this reason, in this guide, we've listed ten of the most important control points to check before you hit send on your next big campaign, plus 5 useful tools to help you avoid email fails.

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10 Things to be Aware of Before You Hit Send

1. Mobile optimization

With so many of us checking our emails on the go, it's crucial to make sure your campaign also looks good and makes sense on mobile devices.

Sending emails which aren't mobile optimized can risk you excluding a large proportion of your target audience. You spent so much time working on your campaign so you want to be sure the content can be enjoyed by all your readers.

For the mobile version of the design, it's best practice to check the following:

  • Font size: If the text is too small it can be difficult for mobile users to read
  • Layout: Does the layout make sense for mobile? Generally, a one-column layout is easier to scroll through
  • Image optimization: Many readers using smartphones may be viewing your email using mobile data. Always make sure your images are size-optimized so they can be downloaded faster on the go
  • Target links: Where possible, use mobile-specific target links (e.g. "Open in the app" or "Download on the App Store") for a more personalized feel

This post by Campaign Monitor contains more specific design tips for mobile responsive emails.

2. Links and call-to-actions

Generally, your email is just a stepping stone to take the recipient to another destination. For this reason, it's important to test that your links and call-to-actions are all working properly before you hit send.

As well as checking the functionality of your links, you should also check you have set up all the required tracking elements for the post-campaign analytics. For example, you should check your Google Analytics campaign URLs have been set up correctly so you can track website traffic generated by your email campaigns.

Find out how to set up Google Analytics campaign URLs here.

3. Spelling and grammar

Typos and grammatical errors have no place in your email campaigns! Don't forget to run a quick spell check before you send your email to customers in order to avoid any embarrassing mistakes.

4. Email size

Depending on the type of content you include, HTML emails can end up being bigger than expected. In some email clients, this can lead to problems, such as the email not being delivered or being clipped.

For example, it's a well known fact that Gmail clips emails which exceed the 102 KB size limit. This is less than ideal, as it can lead to important aspects of your email (i.e. the unsubscribe link and disclaimer) being cut off.

For this reason, you should keep an eye on how much content you're adding to your email design and double check the size before you export it.

Here are some practical tips on reducing HTML email size.

5. Unsubscribe link and other placeholders

Email marketing 101: The unsubscribe link is a must-have element in all your promotional emails. Without this, you run the risk of being blacklisted or receiving a fine - so it's important you check that you have included it in the email.

As well as an unsubscribe link, you may also want to include other placeholders for personalization, such as customer name or current date, etc. If you do so, be sure to double check they are correct and working as expected before hitting send. There's nothing more awkward for you and your customers than receiving a "Dear (NAME)" email!

6. Subject line and preview text

Your subject line and preview text are both two really important aspects of your campaign as they create the first impression your recipients will see in their inbox.

In particular the preview text can often go forgotten but this is generally a great opportunity to include a sneak preview of your campaign to tempt more of your target audience to open the email.

When testing your subject line, you should also remember to look out for optimal length. A subject line that is too long could be cut off in the inbox and become less effective.

7. Fallback fonts

While many stylish web fonts are available to use in email designs, you should always ensure that you have one or more fallback fonts set up in case your recipient can view your first choice font.

Fallback fonts are used as a substitute for when your original font choice can't be shown to the recipient - i.e. if they have not installed the font on their device. Here, your best bet is to use an email-safe font, such as Arial or Times New Roman as  a reliable back up.

Find out more about email-safe fonts.

8. Alt text

One hidden gem that often gets forgotten by marketers is alt text for images. If an image can't be rendered for whatever reason (e.g. the recipient is on the go and can't download them or they are being blocked by the email client), the alt text will be shown in its place.

Utilise alt text to describe the purpose of the original image so that your email design still makes sense if images can't be displayed. This is especially useful for describing image elements like buttons or badges that the recipient needs to click.

9. Accessibility

Alt texts also play a huge part in making your emails more accessible. In particular, if you have recipients with visual impairments or reading difficulties, the alt text will be read by the screen reader device to help them understand the email better.

In addition, there are also other measures you can take to make your emails more accessible. For example, choosing an appropriate color scheme, setting up a plain text version of your email, and using a clear font.

Find more tips for sending accessible emails here.

10. Disclaimer

Lastly, you should always remember to check over your email disclaimer before sending any email. Typically, this section of your email contains all the most important legal information, including your company's contact details and any relevant copyright information.

Double check that your contact details are all up to date and any links to your website, imprint or privacy policy are also included.

Get more tips on writing email disclaimers in this guide.

Useful Preflight Checking Tools for Your Email Templates

Mail Designer 365 offers a range of useful tools which you can use to thoroughly test and perfect your email templates before sending or exporting. Here are our top 5 picks...

1. Smartphone editor and preview

When you build your email design in Mail Designer 365, a mobile responsive version is automatically generated. You can edit the mobile version separately and set up mobile-specific text styles and mobile only content which is optimized for smaller screens.

Preview your mobile design on the latest devices using the smartphone preview tool:

mobile optimization tools in mail designer 365

Create mobile optimized content and preview designs on the latest devices.

2. Image optimization

Use the image optimization tool in order to keep the size of your images and your overall email down.

To access this tool, click on an image, then select "Edit link and background" > "Optimize image". Here you can choose to optimize selected images or all images.

Choose Smart Mode and Mail Designer 365 will run a quick check of your design and then automatically suggest the best image format to save space without compromising on quality:

image optimization tools in mail designer 365

Optimize images to keep the size of your newsletter as low as possible

3. Preflight test

Mail Designer 365's built in preflight test checks your email through and flags issues such as broken links, email-safe fonts,  and spelling and grammar problems.

In addition, you will also receive a warning if your email is close to exceeding the 102 KB limit.

preflight check tool in mail designer 365

The preflight check tool looks over your email and flags any major issues

4. Inbox preview tool

To test out different subject line variants and put together an effective snippet text, take advantage of the inbox preview tool:

inbox preview tool in mail designer 365

Use the inbox preview tool in Mail Designer 365 for a live preview of your subject line and snippet

5. Testmail service

Finally, try Mail Designer 365's Testmail service to preview your email in your inbox and test with different email clients. Here's how it works...

Testmail service in Mail Designer 365

Send a test version of your email via the Mail Designer 365 Testmail service

We hope you have found this list of preflight tips useful and will consider them when finishing up your next email campaign.

Mail Designer 365 provides you with all the tools you need to create flawless templates that look great on all devices. Don't have Mail Designer 365 plan yet? Try the app today free!

Get started with Mail Designer 365 today

Start your 7 day free trial and use your Mac to create stylish email newsletters for your business.
No credit card required
Compatible from Mac OS X 10.11 onwards

Enjoyed this post?

Get more inspirational tips, tricks, and best practice examples in the Mail Designer 365 Newsletter Academy -
your one stop hub for all things email marketing strategy and newsletter design.

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