With so many social media marketing options available these days, it’s easy to overlook the importance of traditional email marketing. In fact, some people think that email marketing is on its way to being obsolete, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. Email marketing is very much alive and an excellent opportunity to connect with your audience in ways that you can’t do with a short Tweet or Facebook post. People continue to use email to communicate both professionally and personally, and therefore, you should, too.

If you feel that your email marketing strategy could use a lift, take the following considerations into mind. It’s worth the effort, and the low cost of sending an email as well as the option for personalization can have a huge impact on your bottom line.

People are busy, so make those headlines engaging, compelling and appropriate.

People are busy and inpatient, and they don’t take the time to look through all their emails and read the content in them. They simply scan through their inboxes and click on what grabs them. With this in mind, it’s important to create headlines that are compelling. But, be careful. You want people to click, but you want the headline to be appropriate. No one likes being fooled into something that’s untrue.

Every email should have a purpose for the reader.

Whether it’s a discount for stopping into your store or useful information related to your industry, make sure that every email has meaning for the person who opens it. Emails are a great way to connect your audience to your brand because you have more room for content, testimonials, social media buttons and a link to your blog. Use the space wisely and offer real value for your readers, not just repurposed advertisements of your product.

Emails should be visually attractive, but you don’t need to go overboard.

When people read through your email, they should have a pleasant experience. The email should load quickly, have easy navigation and minimal design. Too much color and too many images or content that doesn’t load is both frustrating and distracting. The good thing is that you can add links that direct your audience to your blog, social media profiles and website. This keeps your emails clean without omitting important information.

Optimize your emails for mobile devices.

Remember that a large chunk of your audience will be checking their email on their mobile devices, so make sure that your emails are mobile friendly. Mobile audiences are particularly in a rush, so you need to have a great headline with a smooth email, otherwise it’s probably getting deleted. With more people making purchases on their smartphones, it pays to have a solid email marketing strategy in place.

Bottom line: Email marketing is a great asset to your overall marketing strategy and should not be forgotten. Focus on delivering a valuable, informative and pleasant experience, and the rest will take care of itself!