Following last month's Constant Contact Integration Group Training, this roundtable brought association professionals together to explore advanced email marketing strategies in Constant Contact. The discussion focused on analytics, automation, deliverability, and segmentation. Participants shared expert tips and real-world examples from organizations enhancing their email programs.
Watch the Recording
Email Deliverability
Getting your emails into inboxes, not spam folders, is key to successful email marketing. Many associations shared that even the most beautifully designed campaigns can fall flat if members never see them, and improving deliverability often comes down to a few key technical steps.
Authenticate Your Domain: Sending from your own domain instead of a generic Constant Contact address helps your messages appear trustworthy to inbox providers. It’s a simple setup that improves open rates and reduces spam risk.
Monitor Bounces & Suspensions: Check reports regularly to identify contacts with repeated delivery issues. Hard bounces should be removed, while suspended contacts may need re-verification. Keeping this list clean protects your sender reputation and ensures accurate metrics.
Encourage Safelisting: If all else fails, ask members to add your “From” address to their trusted senders. Even a small reminder in a welcome or renewal email can make a difference.
Deliverability is equal parts setup and maintenance. Authenticate, monitor, and tidy your lists consistently to keep engagement strong and your emails front and center.
Favorite Features, Tips & Tricks
Attendees swapped favorite tools and lessons learned from their own Constant Contact experience. Many of these ideas are quick wins that can have a big impact on engagement, list health, and overall campaign performance.
Schedule Smartly - Avoid weekend sends. Open and click rates consistently perform better during weekday business hours. If your audience spans time zones, try A/B testing morning vs. afternoon delivery to find the sweet spot for engagement.
Lean on Heat Maps for Insight - The built-in Heat Map report isn’t just a post-send novelty; it’s an ongoing design guide. Review it regularly to see which buttons, banners, or links get the most traction and use those insights to inform your next campaign layout.
Personalize with Dynamic Content - Dynamic content blocks allow you to tailor messages to different audience segments within a single email. Associations are using this to show unique event promotions, renewal dates, or even member benefits, all from one template.
Segment Often, Not Once - Segmentation shouldn’t be a one-time setup. Review your lists quarterly to ensure tags and segments still reflect current behavior and membership data.
Keep Lists Clean & Healthy - Remove bounced or unengaged contacts regularly. It’s better to have a smaller, more active audience than a large one dragging down your open rates and skewing analytics.
Track, Test, and Tweak - Every campaign is a learning opportunity. Track engagement metrics, test subject lines or calls-to-action, and adjust your next send accordingly. Over time, small refinements add up to significantly better results.
Drip Campaign Use Cases
1. Member Dues
Audience: Members with overdue memberships.
Goal: Personalized accounts receivable automated reminders.
2. Event Registration Reminder
Audience: Members not registered for a specific event.
Goal: Boost event registrations.
3. New Member Welcome Series
Audience: New members.
Goal: Engage new members quickly and highlight benefits.
Constant Contact Resources