Facebook and Twitter are at their height, but email consistently remains one of the best tools for online marketers to reach consumers. While some marketers may say that email “never worked” for them, it’s likely those marketers overlooked some basic steps before they hit the “send” button. Fabulously successful emails are created in six easy steps:

1. Target you audience. If your emails are precisely targeted, they’re much more likely to be opened and read. Are you trying to reach a particular region, or a specific age group? Know your target audience and keep their likes and needs in mind as you proceed.

2. The most important part of any email is content. After picking your recipients, create relevant, targeted messages. If you don’t feel confident as a writer, hire a freelancer or a social media marketing firm to create content for you. Shape your content to your audience’s interests and needs. Start with an intriguing subject line and finish with a compelling call to action.

3. Now you’re ready to create your template. If you’re using an email marketing service provider like Constant Contact or MailChimp – and you should be – they provide a variety of attractive templates. If possible, include images, links, and a call to action button to break up your text. Most services let you preview as you create, so you can see how your changes will change the overall email.

4. Test for deliverability before sending your email blast. Most email platforms provide deliverability and SPAM tests to show you where emails can be improved and how to increase their deliverability.

5. The best “send time” is really contingent on your audience. Typically, the best send times are early morning and early afternoon, but you’ll want to assess your own analytics and your own audience to see if another time works better for you. Feel free to experiment with different times of the day and week.

6. Successful email marketing means constant analysis of data. Be sure you track open rates, click-through rates, and bounce rates to see what content is working and where you can improve.

That’s it! Follow these steps and create impressive, successful email marketing campaigns.