Sending Emails Your Customers Want…In Another Language

Creating emails that are brimming with compelling content and engaging visuals is essential to a successful email marketing campaign. But what happens when the person reading your emails can’t understand what you’re trying to say?

When you write emails using unicode characters (a character set that allows you to write foreign characters, symbols and emoticons), it becomes a whole lot easier to create messages that all of your customers and prospects can understand.

Taking the time to send emails in your subscribers’ native language(s) shows that you value your subscribers, which then gives them a reason to trust you more than ever before. And as it becomes possible for you to connect and clearly communicate with new audiences, you can continue growing your email list and developing long-lasting relationships with your customers.

Removing the Language Barrier

Have a target customer base that’s fluent in another language? Or do you have subscribers from all over the world? Not only does unicode allow you to communicate easily with your supporters, it also opens up the opportunity to create personalized experiences with your brand.

Here are three ways you can use unicode to better connect with your subscribers:

1. Send segmented messages.

If you have subscribers from various countries, you can make it easier for them to read your emails by sending targeted emails in their native language(s). When they can read your message with ease, it’ll create a more positive experience for your customers and prospects.

Removing language barriers between you and your subscribers also eliminates the possibility of miscommunication. Instead of leaving your subscribers to translate your message on their own, they’re able to understand your message immediately. And when your audience has a clear understanding of the value your products/services will bring to them, they’ll be in a better position to make a purchase.

Pro Tip: Add international keyboards (if you haven’t already) to your computer so you can easily create new email messages in different languages.

2. Personalize your emails.

It’s frustrating when you want to send a personalized email to your subscribers, only to discover that a character in their name isn’t supported and consequently, doesn’t display correctly. And if you can’t do this for every single subscriber, it becomes difficult to do it at all.

Fortunately, AWeber sign up forms use UTF-8 (the character encoding system that stores and displays unicode characters properly). So when one of your website visitors who has a symbol or accent in her name (or other personal information) signs up to receive your emails, it will be stored accurately in your email list.

With that information, you can send personalized emails with custom fields (such as “First Name”) with confidence.

Pro Tip: Add “First Name” custom fields to your subject lines and/or within your email messages to grab your subscribers’ attention and create a more individualized experience.

3. Attract the right audience.

Already know that your target audience primarily speaks a specific language? Emails that are written in your subscribers’ native language can be a huge selling point for garnering interest in your email list.

In addition to creating broadcasts and follow ups, you can also change the customizable sections of your confirmation message to a language your subscribers will easily understand.

Pro Tip: If you’re not sure what language your subscribers prefer, consider surveying them before making the change. This can reveal whether or not it’s better to send segmented emails with different languages instead.

A Note Before You Send

While most email clients support unicode (e.g., Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook), not all do. As a result, the characters you use might not display properly for subscribers that use certain email services, such as AOL, so keep this in mind before sending emails with foreign characters.

You should consider testing your opens and click rates to determine the impact it has on the performance of your emails.

Finally, keep in mind that you can’t copy and paste foreign characters from an outside service like Microsoft Word. Your content must be created within the email to ensure language support.

Getting Started

Sending emails to subscribers in their native languages is a simple way to improve the communication between you and your customers and create a enjoyable brand experience.

If you have any questions about sending international emails, don’t hesitate to reach out to an AWeber email marketing expert.

Ready to start sending messages in other languages? Log in to your AWeber account or sign up for a free 30-day trial today!

Sending Emails Your Customers Want…In Another Language