One of the crucial steps to building a solid base of clients is to dedicate a portion of your company’s resources to marketing your business. A consistent focus on marketing can offer lucrative returns on your investment. In fact, one study shows that 60% of CEOs surveyed pointed to their companies’ marketing efforts as one of the top three reasons for their success – and email is one of the easiest methods you can use.

When you’re ready to email your customers with a marketing message, follow these rules:

1. Clearly state what’s in it for your client.
Don’t just tell customers you’ve got a new offering – tell them what your new offering can do for them.

2. Make the message compelling.
Saying something like “We’ll help you double your sales” is more compelling than “We can help you improve your sales and marketing efforts.”

3. Make the message consistent with your brand image.
If your image is businesslike and buttoned-up, using slang or too-familiar language won’t ring true.

4. Create a compelling subject line.
Develop two different subject lines for your first email so you can test which one is more effective and use that one for future campaigns. By personalizing the subject line with the recipient’s first name and company name, you can improve your open rates by up to 20%.

5. Include a call to action.
In the body of your email, be sure to give people a call to action, such as an offer or an incentive for filling out a form. Direct them to a website landing page or form for more information – this will be emailed straight to you so that you can track the response. You can also link to your home page and track click-throughs that way. Use a service such as Google Analytics to track open rates.