Does your business sell furniture? You’re a special breed, and we should know. We’ve worked with—and continue to work with—hundreds of furniture retailers and are familiar with their unique marketing needs.
Furniture is a serious expense, and making lasting impressions on modern buyers requires casting a wide net. Data from Klaviyo shows that automated emails intended to sell furniture in the retail space average a whopping 53.75% open rate, with a sweet 1.61% conversion rate and $2.89 per recipient.
Join us as we explore the best automation email marketing practices in the home furnishings retail space that will help you sell furniture with a vengeance.
Sell Furniture with Fantastic Imagery
Motivate Customers with Inspiring Images and Staging
There was once a time when the average shopper needed to see at least three images before considering a purchase. Now, consumers want eight times that to make informed purchasing decisions.
Besides the typical angle and detail shots, you can really take it up a notch by incorporating lifestyle imagery. In the past, creating room scenes was costly and time-consuming, requiring furniture to be transported all around the world for a photoshoot. But thanks to 3D technology, it’s now easier and more cost-effective to generate photorealistic visuals that are just as good as traditional photography.
Showcase your furniture in varied, customizable staging options and give your customers the inspiration they need to make a purchase as a result.
Use High-Quality Graphics to Show Your Merchandise
In the furniture industry, high-quality visuals are the bread and butter of successful email marketing. As the saying goes, “a picture is worth a thousand sales.” Statistics show that 60% of the Top 100 U.S. Furniture Retailers and 62% of DTC furniture businesses incorporate high-quality visuals on their product pages.
But it’s not just about looking pretty—it’s about performance. According to GetResponse, image-based emails have a higher open rate (24.25%) and click-through rate (3.28%) than those with just text. So don’t settle for average. Elevate your visuals and sell furniture like never before.
Sell Furniture Better with GIFS
GIFs have skyrocketed in popularity as a mainstay in modern-day online communication, but do they belong in emails? Absolutely. Litmus found that 91% of consumers prefer interactive and visual content versus traditional, text-based, or static media.
Now, forget the mindless and irrelevant GIFs you share with your friends. Rather, picture GIFs that help showcase your product in the most flattering light possible. Perhaps it’s alternative angles, detail shots, 360-degree views, or zoomed-in shots of that luxurious fabric you offer.
Explore Various Email Designs
Designing an email to make it appeal to your target audience involves more than just putting some words and visuals together. Every aspect matters, from the subject line to the call-to-action. It’s like composing music with elements like the melody, beat, and lyrics.
Although there are brand guidelines that you can follow, as seen with almost every furniture retailer or DTC brand, there still remains space for experimentation. The colors, structure, length, and visuals that go into email design can make a big difference in the email’s performance.
Here’s a pro tip: nail the subject line and preview text, and the rest will follow. Elaborate on the value that the email has to offer and avoid baiting the reader with false promises. Give them a clear and concise reason to open the email, then deliver on what to expect inside. Continue making little tweaks to the design to keep observing customer behavior and improve the click rates. Use A/B testing to learn from customer reactions—more on that later—but remember to implement one change at a time to correctly identify the source of impact.
Make Your Customers Feel Involved
Spread the Word About Promotions
Notify your subscribers of your banging promos. With a clever subject line and irresistible offer, you’ll have them clicking and contemplating your brand all day long.
Studies show that practically everyone checks their emails daily (99%, in fact), with some people checking their inbox even up to 20 times a day! That means a well-timed email promotion can really stand out from the crowd.
Next, it’s time to unleash your creativity by designing your offer. Pack it chock-full of behavioral triggers that appeal to your audience. Perhaps you entice them with limited-time-only deals, collections, or ready-made products available for instant delivery. Try an automation sequence of persuasive emails offering discounted furniture and reminding them to snap up their dream products before it’s too late.
Politely Request Feedback
Don’t fret over the prospect of getting feedback, as 68% of customers will furnish you with their thoughts if you ask. And here’s the best part: this doesn’t require extensive effort when done appropriately.
Tailoring your correspondence to suit your customers is the first step to foster interactive communication. Whether you want feedback for shopping or reasons for cart abandonment, specificity is the key to selling furniture.
As for sending the email, keep it snappy and focused. Avoid overloading customers with big blocks of text—make sure the email is exciting and straightforward to increase the odds of receiving feedback.
Additionally, let’s also not forget how people cherish discounts. Apart from improving their shopping experience, what else is in it for the customers? A reward or a coupon can go a long way in doubling the responses you receive.
Keep your feedback text brief. Emphasize why it’s essential to get feedback—please help us to help you—and that the survey only takes three minutes to complete. Providing subscribers with a reasonable timeframe to complete a survey increases the probability of getting more responses and also helps you keep the survey on track. Making your survey concise with minimal questions is recommended, ideally taking no more than three minutes.
Automation Structures Built to Sell Furniture
Welcome New Furniture Customers with an Email
Sending a welcome email to subscribers is a golden opportunity to score big points with your customers. In addition to being proven to work, with almost 7 out of 10 people opening a welcome email, you’ll see a much higher average click-through rate of over 16%.
In fact, businesses risk hurting their brand image and losing potential customers if they don’t seize this chance to build a relationship and set expectations. A whopping 41% of brands don’t even bother sending a welcome email to new subscribers during that pivotal 48-hour window. Yipes.
But it’s not just about pleasing customers. Sending a welcome email is critical to improving email deliverability. By crafting an effective welcome email, you’ll ensure your message lands in your customer’s inbox. To sweeten the deal, offer them something irresistible in your welcome email, such as a personalized message, special offer, or discount code.
Sell Furniture Better With a Cart Abandonment Email
Did you know that, on average, online shoppers abandon shopping carts 70% of the time? Furniture shoppers, in particular, have it worse, with a whopping 78.31% cart abandonment rate in October 2022.
As a furniture retailer, you’re probably wondering what you can do to reduce this rate and capture low-hanging fruit. Well, look no further than automated cart abandonment emails!
By setting up a follow-up email after a one-hour window, you can boost your conversion rate by 16%. But don’t stop there—schedule at least three emails in a sequence, offer a discount, and showcase visuals of configured products. Use catchy subject lines like “Still thinking about this?” and remind customers about any perks you offer to seal the deal, like free shipping.
Carefully Consider How Many Automations You Send
How many emails should you send per week? It’s the hardest question in the email game. Hubspot data shows that 40% of marketers send minimal emails, while more than a third send a handful of them weekly.
Sending too many emails can alienate subscribers, while too few miss out on potential leads. Although it’s a challenging balance to strike, it pays off with higher open rates and soaring conversions.
Successful marketers have switched things up by sending fewer weekly emails—and instead focusing on automation, personalization, and targeted campaigns. Better yet, find out what’s resonating with your audience and tailor your content to their needs.
Test, Optimize, Repeat—Always Repeat
Although you may have read through best practices in blog posts, applying them yourself is the crucial next step. Take control of your marketing strategy by testing, optimizing, and repeating your tactics to maximize success.
With A/B testing, your company can see email marketing returns that are 82% higher compared to those who never experiment. Stay ahead of the game and dominate your email marketing with this strategy.
To Wrap It Up: Use Automation to Sell Furniture
If the goal of your business is to sell furniture, you’re part of a pretty cool club. Let’s roll up our sleeves and dig in for the best automation email marketing practices in the home furnishings circuit that’ll have customers lining up to buy.
