As you start planning for 2012 and candidates begin their campaigns, take some time to plan out your e-mail marketing strategy.

Here are 4 great tips:

1. Determine a purpose and segment your list
For an effective e-mail plan, list your goals (raise money, differentiation, name id etc.), then identify which type of e-mail can help you reach each goal. Then segment your list by the type and frequency of e-mail each person should receive for maximum effectiveness.

Examine how newsletters, fundraising e-mails and other tactics hold hidden potential. And remember, where possible personalize content and make list subscribers feel like you're speaking only to them.

2. Test for perfect timing
The beauty of e-mail is that you can execute campaigns in real time. The best way for you to figure out how often to send and when to send campaigns is by A/B testing.

Allow subscribers to decide how often they would like to receive messages. Test frequency and study complaint and unsubscribe statistics to determine what the best cadence is for your particular message streams.

3. Avoid the spam box
Deliverability is critical in e-mail marketing. To avoid spam filters, keep a clean list and sign up for feedback loops from the ISPs to learn what works and what doesn't.

If you use older lists, the biggest threats are spam traps that are often triggered by old, inactive e-mail addresses. To guard against these traps, you should pay close attention to the behavior of subscribers, put a lapsed e-mail strategy into place and suppress non-responders.

4. Optimize the list
Keeping clean data improves deliverability, but also can ensure that your mailings are targeted at voters/donors who are actively engaged and interested in hearing from you.

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