Remember the film, You’ve Got Mail? It starred Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks in 1998 when the two fell in love after exchanging a couple of emails. Yes, the movie was more than 2 decades ago. But it still shows how important email marketing is in building relationships.
You might not be looking for a lover, but you’re looking for someone. You’re looking for people who will fall in love with your products and services. Same as the film, it doesn’t happen with one email. This is why it’s important to build your customer list and send them email communications now and then.
You may ask, “Why email? There’s already Facebook and Instagram!” Well, social media isn’t the only answer. Remember that you need to add your email before you can get on any social media platforms. According to Pew Research, 92% of adults in the United States use email. 61% of them are checking and sending emails every day.
This presents a great opportunity for you. You can market your business to people interested in your products and services. If a person opts-in once they see your ad on Google or Facebook, it means they’re likely to choose your brand.
It’s even more important for small businesses to use email marketing. It should be part of their digital marketing strategies.
What is Email Marketing?
Email marketing is one of the most powerful marketing channels you can use. It is direct marketing and digital marketing rolled in one.
Email marketing is the strategy of sending commercial emails to a list of contacts. These people have given expressed consent to receive emails from your company. You can use email marketing to inform your contacts of the latest news about your brand. It also helps drive sales. It’s also great for building a community around your business.
Email marketing has been around for a long time. Newsletters were the most common way of using this method. But the mass mailing strategy of yesterday won’t work today. Now you have to focus on market segmentation and personalizing your email. It might appear time-consuming to you. But a lot of good email marketing companies can automate the process for you.
Types of Emails Used in Email Marketing
Email marketing uses email in a variety of ways. They can be promotional or provide new information. Sometimes they’re used for a specific step in the consumer’s journey. Here are the different types of emails you can use:
- Promotional Email. It’s used to promote a new product or a special offer. This email can also offer content like webinars or e-books. You can send anywhere from 3 to 10 emails over several weeks for this type of campaign. A lot of companies even send many promotional emails a day. This is often done during critical periods like Black Friday.
- Informational Email. The aim of this email marketing campaign is to get important details out to customers.
Newsletters and announcements are two examples of this kind of email. The former shares news related to your brand. You send newsletters out at regular intervals. An announcement email is ideal for informing clients of key announcements. Let’s say you’re updating your website or there are shipping delays. An email is a good way to keep communicating with people.
- Re-engagement Email. This email’s used to reach out to inactive clients or subscribers. The goal is to reconnect with them and get them to engage with your brand again. One popular method is to send an email asking for feedback. You can give a discount or a free gift to sweeten the deal.
Reasons to Do Email Marketing
· It Provides High ROI (Return on Investment)
According to data by Campaign Monitor, every $1 spent on email marketing generates an average of $38 in ROI. This indicates how cost-effective this marketing program can become. It’s especially true for small businesses with smaller budgets.
If you think about it, this tactic is quite inexpensive to start. What’s more, you get the most for your money.
· You Can Reach More Mobile Customers
Digital Marketing encompasses different programs that involve using a device or the internet. In one way or another, digital marketing programs supplement and complement each other. Your business can achieve its full potential. Email marketing, for instance, is a good way to increase mobile engagement.
Every time a consumer checks his phone, you get an opportunity to reach out and engage that customer. You need to create content that works well for small devices. This will ensure your messages are effective for mobile consumers. The content itself must also be short and catchy to keep customers engaged.
· Personalize Your Email Marketing Content
Customers love to feel special by getting personalized messages. To succeed in email marketing, you must know what your target market wants.
It’s easier to personalize the content you deliver to your subscribers. This will improve your click-through rates and total conversion rates.
Addressing your customers with their first name can make all the difference in the world. This simple gesture builds relationships with them. A HubSpot report showed emails are more effective if it has the first name of the recipient in the subject line. You can get higher click-through rates than those without it.
· Email Marketing is Interactive
Not only can you personalize email marketing, you can also make it more interactive. For instance, you can embed a video in your content so your customer reads on longer. You can integrate social media share buttons to encourage them to pass the content to others.
Try to integrate more interesting things in your email. You’ll find you’ll encourage more interaction with customers.
· The Results Are Measurable
With the right email marketing platform, you can check and track the results of your campaign. This is another reason why email marketing is important for small businesses.
With email marketing analytics, you can see which users opened your emails. It also shows who clicked on your links and has converted. This information is valuable when it comes to your future digital marketing strategies. It will be easier to make any adjustments or improvements in your campaigns later on.
Are you looking for an agency to help you with your digital marketing strategies? You can partner with Tulumi. Contact us today.
