Two campaigns with the same offer can perform very differently. The difference is usually in the details: who received it, when it arrived, what the subject line promised and how it looked on a phone. Here is a checklist adapted to sending from Belize, whether your readers are down the road or three time zones away.
Know who you are writing to
Split your list before you write. Local customers, returning visitors, first-time enquirers and trade partners want different things. A Belize City appliance store and a Caye Caulker hostel need very different emails, but both benefit from sending “this week’s specials” only to people who buy, and “news from the island” only to people who have visited. Mailpro’s segmentation makes this a few clicks.
Write a subject line that earns the open
- Say what is inside: “Lobster season opens: 3 nights for the price of 2”.
- Keep it short enough to show in full on a phone.
- Use the reader’s language. A Spanish subject line for Spanish-preferring contacts is simple and effective.
- Avoid all capitals and piles of exclamation marks, which look like spam to readers and to filters.
More ideas in our guide to email subject lines.
Time it for the reader, not for Belize
Belize is on Central Standard Time (UTC−6) all year. For local lists, early morning or lunchtime on weekdays tends to suit people who read on their phones. For North American lists, remember that from March to November most of the US is on daylight saving time, so 8 a.m. in New York is 6 a.m. in Belize. For European lists, send in the early hours of the Belize morning. Schedule the send in advance and test different hours over several campaigns.
Design for the phone
Most people in Belize go online by mobile. Use a single-column responsive layout, compressed images, real text for prices and dates, and one large, clear button. Mailpro’s button builder creates buttons that display correctly across email clients.
Make one clear offer
One campaign, one main action: book, buy, register or reply. Put it at the top and repeat it at the end. If prices are involved, say whether they are in BZ$ or US$. Belizeans know the two-to-one rate, but many visitors do not.
Personalize beyond the first name
A greeting with the reader’s name is the minimum. Better is content chosen from what you know: the reader’s nearest branch, the tour they clicked last time, or the anniversary of their last stay. See personalization options.
Protect your reputation
- Send only to people who opted in. Belize’s Data Protection Act, 2021 lets anyone stop direct marketing, and many foreign subscribers are protected by opt-in laws.
- Remove hard bounces and long-inactive contacts regularly.
- Show your business name, address and contact details in the footer. Online sellers must do so under the Electronic Transactions Act, 2021.
Learn from every send
After each campaign, check opens, clicks by link, unsubscribes and country of opening in the statistics reports. Change one thing next time and compare. For the wider toolset and a Belizean campaign calendar, see email campaigns in Belize.