Why email marketing?
There is more choice than ever before when it comes to marketing your business. Whether it is digital marketing channels or more traditional routes, you may feel a bit overwhelmed by the sheer amount of ways you could go about it. One very effective technique you should make part of your marketing plan though is email marketing.
But why should you use email marketing?
It is effective in gaining new customers
One of the major reasons to use email marketing is simply that it works. It can be up to 4 times more useful than picking up new customers compared to social media, for example. While this may seem surprising, it should not really be too shocking. Everyone has an email account that they check several times per day, which explains its effectiveness.
Email marketing is low cost
All businesses will want to get the best return possible on any investment they make into marketing. The great news with email marketing is that it is low cost. It is estimated that for every $1 spent on marketing via email in the USA, for example, $44 is made back. This is down in large parts to email marketing not including any physical costs like postage or packing.
Email gives that personal touch
Just like print marketing, emails have that personal touch which consumers love. The key thing here is to personalise the messages you send out so they do not come across as spammy. If you can do this, emails can help you forge a personal connection with consumers which they value. Using an effective call to action is key for successful email marketing too – this will help show the person who gets it what to do next.
Mobile users access email regularly
We all know how popular mobile phones are now with the normal person checking theirs as much as 80 times each day. Much of this activity is reading and responding to emails when not at their desktop or laptop computer. This makes email a great form of marketing as it lets you reach consumers wherever they might be.
You can automate it
Automation is a big trend in business now as it helps your staff get more done and in faster times. Marketing via email is a process that can be automated through packages like Mailchimp. Automated packages are pretty easy to use but you can always work with a professional email marketing agency to get the maximum from them.
Why is email marketing king?
When it comes to digital marketing strategies, why is email marketing king? It all comes down to making that connection with your customers. While pay-per-click and social media marketing is targeting customers that aren’t yet familiar with your business, email marketing is a step up in the conversion process. Email offers stability, it provides an effective way to talk to customers who want to know you, and it provides a direct line with no steps in-between to your target audience.
Why email marketing?
If you’re wondering whether email marketing services are worth investing in for your business, you likely aren’t aware of how powerful a platform email can be. Since GDPR, email marketing has become more powerful than ever. You’re reaching a condensed audience of customers that have directly signed up to be connected to you. This leads to a higher click-through rate, and far greater conversions than other, more indirect digital marketing methods.
It’s often said that direct mail marketing is the best form of marketing for your business. Email provides the digital equivalent of direct mail, putting your information and brand in front of the right people at the right time. For creating targeted content, email provides the highest degree of control – and often the best possible results. You aren’t relying on external demographics and other services to deliver results. Instead, you’re using your existing customer base to your advantage.
How do I start with email marketing?
If email marketing sounds like the ideal investment for your digital marketing plan, then working with the experts is the place to start. Building up that customer base is the first step to successful email marketing, and professional support through an email marketing agency can make the process effortless. Email marketing is king because it offers far more to customers than other forms of marketing, and can even be accurately and effectively targeted to highly specific demographics and audiences.
The benefits of email marketing
There are many ways that UK organisations can market their business now. Digital marketing is a great area to focus on but is also wide-ranging. This makes knowing which specific digital marketing methods work best and which are easiest to implement key. Email marketing has been around for a while and is still one of the best ways to connect with existing customers or generate new leads. But what makes it so effective?
Helps to build your brand
One of the major benefits email marketing delivers is the ability to build up a strong brand. The majority of people have access to email around the UK now and check it many times per day. This allows you to use email to put your brand right in front of them multiple times over the course of 24 hours. This is excellent for showcasing your brand to more people and also making it stick in their minds. Email marketing also has the advantage of appealing to those who already may be interested in what you do or the services you offer. By connecting with these consumers, you will be able to grow your market presence quickly.
Better financial return
It is thought that for every $1 dollar spent on email marketing, you get $38 back in revenue. This is a superb ROI and easily beats many other forms of marketing you can use to attract business with. The secret to the financial benefits of marketing in this way lies in how inexpensive it is compared to other marketing channels. As it incurs no cost in terms of physical materials (like flyers, envelopes or leaflets for example) and low cost in terms of staff time, it really is a financially prudent way to market your business. This is a more pressing concern than ever for many now in the challenging times we currently face.
Using the right tools is key
Of course, to get the full benefits email marketing can bring, you need to use the right tools. Mailchimp is one that many UK businesses trust as it is feature-rich, easy to use and helps to automate the whole process. The net result is that you can use it to run effective email marketing campaigns without tying up large amounts of staff resources.
Email marketing stats
Time and money are two precious commodities that you can’t afford to waste. When marketing, you cannot afford to ignore any tools that can help. There is no tool more valuable than email marketing.
Email marketing isn’t just about sending messages to inboxes. There are a lot of benefits to using email marketing. Some may see it as a method of hassling customers, that emails just end up dumped in the junk box. However, recent stats suggest that email marketing is actually a credible and useful tool.
What is Email Marketing?
In its basic terms, it is using email to promote services or products. However, it isn’t just that. Email marketing is being used to reach out to new customers and to build a relationship with existing customers. It is the perfect method for keeping customers informed. It is the most cost-effective method of digital marketing today.
The list of marketing stats below highlights how important email marketing is.
Email usage
There are 3.7 billion email users worldwide. This figure is going to increase to 4.3 billion users by 2022. By that point, half the world’s population will be using email. This is clear evidence that email marketing is something you don’t want to miss out on.
How many emails do we send?
By 2017, we had sent and received an incredible 269 billion emails each day. This number will go up to over 300 billion emails a day by 2022. This means that email marketing is a growing method of digital marketing.
Grow your business with email marketing
Though there has been a discussion about the strength of social media. For instance, the impact of shares, influencers, and tweets. Email marketing is still a valuable method. A recent research finding shows that email marketing is still the preferred choice when compared to social media. This does not mean social media should be ignored, but email marketing is perfect for directly reaching your customers.
The personal touch works
20.81% is the current email open rate for email marketing. Emails that have a personalised subject line actually increase that figure to 50%. Proof that personalising your emails to customers, either with their name or a personal greeting, works.
The customers like to be contacted
A survey of customers recently asked them whether they like to receive emails from brands. Just under half of customers said they like to get promotional emails every week. You don’t need to worry about emailing customers too often. They like to hear from you and like to open your emails.
What does this mean?
The one thing that these statistics have made clear, it’s that this way of marketing is still the perfect way to reach your audience. If you are using email marketing, then you are on the right path.
Top email marketing tips and tricks
Sending out marketing emails to your customer base can be an effective way of generating leads and boosting sales for your business. However, with the majority of people inundated with emails on a daily basis, it can be very difficult coming up with an email campaign that people are likely to engage with. To ensure that your marketing emails do not go to waste, we’ve put together some helpful tips and tricks to try today:
1. Hone your subscriber list
It may seem an obvious point, but it is absolutely vital that your emails reach the right inboxes. Remember that your subscriber list should not be static and you should keep adding to it on a regular basis. Add a sign-up form on your website for new customers who want to hear more from you and take every opportunity at conferences and other events to encourage people to hand over their email addresses.
2. Add personal touches to your emails
Most tools used to send out marketing emails include features allowing you to address the recipient with their name at the beginning of an email. This will make them feel valued and included and, by extension, will boost the chances that they will read the entire email.
3. Come up with enticing subject lines
Your subject line will be the first thing your recipients will read and, therefore, will need to be seductive and captivating. Try to keep it as short and snappy as possible and highlight the most exciting part of your email. If you’re sending your customers a special offer, for example, make this explicit in the subject line!
4. Try to stay out of spam folders
It is not always possible to stay out of every spam folder, but it is important that your recipients have opted into your emails. This will ensure that you are not breaching any data regulations and will decrease the likelihood that your email will end up in the spam folder. Other things to avoid include excessive use of exclamation marks and capital letters, badly formatted HTML, and hyperbolic sentences, as these issues can all be picked up by certain spam filters.
5. Include a clear call to action
Remember that the aim of most marketing emails is to fulfil a specific purpose such as increasing site traffic or encouraging customers to make the most of special offers. In this way, it is important to include clear calls to action at the end of emails that guide customers appropriately. If you want them to visit a specific web page, for example, include the link in the body of your email.
B2B vs B2C email marketing
Are you a business which serves both a consumer and a business audience? Maybe your business has changed tack, broadening its audience to include both groups. Whatever your circumstances, it’s important to note that the drivers which cause a consumer to purchase aren’t necessarily the same as those which determine a business’s purchasing decisions. Take a look at the main similarities and differences between the two groups, as well as what you can do to market your business appropriately to both.
1. Businesses want facts and are price conscious
A hard-headed purchasing manager is unlikely to be swayed by emotion when it comes to deciding which provider of security fencing or concrete footings is going to be best for their project. To sell to businesses, a company needs to be able to demonstrate a clear, factual argument for why they’re the best people for the job. Factors such as past experience with similar projects, high-grade materials, a cost-effective approach and quantifiable results are key deciders in the business community.
2. Consumer purchasing is often a largely subjective process
In comparison to B2B transactions, B2C purchasing is frequently characterised by subjectivity. Consumers want to feel good about their purchasing. Being valued, an individualised customer experience, plenty of opportunity for add-ons, more incentives and other feel-good factors are all a vital part of consumer culture. Whilst ensuring that customers enjoy the very best possible care at every stage is fundamental in good business, it’s particularly important in dealing with consumers.
3. Consumer loyalty is easier to maintain
Intriguingly, once a consumer has shopped with you, they’re highly likely to do so again, simply out of habit. Even if your products aren’t the cheapest, they will turn to you because of previous positive experiences. In comparison, business customers tend to have a firm grasp of economics and regularly review the market to ensure they continue to receive the best value from their suppliers. This means there is a need to constantly show B2B customers why you’re still the best out there.
By tailoring your emails to take these facts into consideration, it’s possible to generate a more favourable outcome to your marketing measures.
Is email relevant for generation Z?
Generation Z is the cohort born anywhere between 1993 and 2000, depending on who you speak to. Most people will accept that Gen Z is certainly covered by those born in the mid-90s onwards. They tend to be very comfortable with technology, having grown up alongside modern computing and mobile phones.
Does email have a place in modern life?
Email is one of those technologies that might have been assumed to be going the way of the fax machine, entirely supplanted by new technology that has made it obsolete. After all, who needs a fax machine, with its need for paper, a dedicated landline and the space-occupying bulk of a stand-alone machine, when the same result can be achieved with a broadband-connected computer?
Yes, it does!
Fortunately, email has been absorbed into modern technology and most people need to have an email address for one reason or another, from high school onwards. Schools use email addresses to allow and monitor online activity undertaken as part of classes, while universities and colleges issue (often permanent) email addresses to their students as this gives them a certain cachet with prospective employers.
Wide-spread uses
Emails are widely used in everyday life too. Many websites require email addresses before you can register to use their services, so online shopping, job hunting, and even playing games all require an email address to be listed. Gig economy work – which is massively on the increase at the moment – is usually managed, sourced and submitted via email at some point in the process.
The answer
So, is email relevant for Gen Z?
The long answer is yes, but with some caveats. Gen-Zers will most likely have an email address that they are permanently logged into, and that they check at least once a week. However, with their life-long exposure to social media and the internet, they are more likely to be quite fussy about the content they curate and the emails they read in full. Most will very likely only ever be ‘previewed’ rather than properly opened and read in detail.
Emails designed to attract the attention of Generation Z by email marketing services need to highlight their passions and need to be short but impactful, above-the-fold display only. Marketing communications to this generation is probably best funnelled through social media networks that cater to that age group, Snapchat, Instagram and Kik to name just a few, as well as through the other, more established, networks like Facebook and Twitter.
Don’t hire an email marketer
Email marketers are expensive. Super expensive. But research shows that email is still the preferred channel for 60% of people to receive updates and promotional material from companies they are interested in doing business with.
So, what do you do? Email marketing is a space you need to be in to reach today’s online audience. The immediate reaction is to hire an email marketing professional to take care of this important communication channel for your business.
But do you really need to recruit for this role? What if there was an easier, more cost-efficient way to manage your email marketing strategy without the hassle of writing job specifications or interviewing unsuitable candidates?
It’s also worth considering that it’s not just a marketer you need to recruit. Whilst email marketing professionals are masters of their game, you will also need a graphic designer, an HTML coder, a copywriter and experts in deliverability and data analysis to develop a successful email strategy. Many businesses do not have the budget to recruit a whole email marketing team, but this doesn’t mean you have to abandon email marketing as a viable channel for promoting your products or services.
If you’ve never considered working with a full-service email marketing agency, then it’s time to think again. You’ll benefit from having a team of marketing professionals at your fingertips who can assist with all aspects of your email campaign, from writing killer subject lines that get you noticed, through to analysing the open rates, click-through rates and providing recommendations to improve your results.
If you need help to succeed with your email marketing programme, without hiring costly resources, then speak to our team of professionals who will ensure you get the most from your marketing.
MailNinja has been working with companies of all sizes for over fourteen years to tailor their email marketing objectives to define the key factors for success. Our professional team work on your Mailchimp account with your internal teams to design a strategy for increased engagement via your email marketing channel.
Why Do I Need to Outsource My Email Marketing?
Marketing departments are overwhelmed with the different tasks they have to handle from web design, PR, PPC, SEO, lead generation, and social media; the list is endless. However, it may be time-consuming to have your marketing department also handle email marketing.
What’s more, most people lack the expertise to achieve the desired results. You wouldn’t want to deal with a campaign that doesn’t display correctly, or have to go through a campaign that underperforms against the goal you have as a company. Outsourcing email marketing services can help you deal with these issues.
Reasons to outsource email marketing services
Some of the reasons you should consider using managed email marketing services include:
You’re not getting the results you want
Although email marketing may seem like a relaxed fit, the truth is that it may be difficult because it involves a lot of planning and the right execution. Working with an experienced email marketing agency can make your work simpler as they have the knowledge and expertise required to execute a successful campaign.
You need to save money and time
As a business owner, you may not have the budget to train your staff on email marketing. What’s more, you may need to invest in the required software to run a successful campaign. Hiring an email marketing expert will require you to spend more on space, taxes, overtime, and more, outsourcing email marketing can help cut down these costs.
Outsourcing email marketing also allows your employees to focus on what they do best, and not try to relearn what email marketing is all about. A company can enjoy increased revenue and the chance to create an effective marketing campaign that gets results.
An opportunity to enhance deliverability
While sending an email sounds easy; what most people don’t understand is that your recipients need to read it for you to have a successful campaign. Furthermore, you may be flagged as spam if the mail servers do not recognize you as a legitimate sender of bulk email. Outsourcing email marketing improves your deliverability.
Get an external viewpoint
When you’re used to writing the same email copy or coming up with a specific-style campaign strategy, it’s easy to think of this as the right way of doing things even if the results are not what you expect. An outsourced team gives you an external viewpoint.
An agency will give you a different opinion and suggest other ideas that could benefit your marketing campaign.
Conclusion
Working with an email marketing agency allows you to have a competitive advantage over other companies. Apart from expertise and specialisation, you get to reduce costs and enjoy improved response rates.
