The golden question: is email marketing still effective? Are droves of prospective
customers (both opt-in and solicited) reading your emails at a high rate and at
high speeds? Well, this depends on what type of email you send. First, take a look
at where email marketing is headed. It is a billion dollar a year industry, with
about 65% companies of all types using 5-10% of their budget on email campaigns.
Marketing with email is expected to yield more than 7 billion dollars this year.
Companies are looking into buying ad space on widely circulated newsletters with
tons of subscribers and email list vendors are earning big business. Lets look at
the response rate of Marketing with email - the ultimate way to judge effectiveness!
Sadly enough, tons of unsolicited spam emails go unread. Through statistics, we've
discovered that 5 to 15 percent of all e-mails are answered. Like the click through
rates of banner advertisements at popular websites, spam emails are discarded like
yesterday's trash. A quick browse at the subject line ¨Free Viagra¨ and people are
quick to press the delete button. Advertising is a very tricky medium - if your
email campaign is not specifically targeted or if it does not employ creative and
original strategies that lure customers, there will be a dead-end.
That said, unsolicited email (generic and commercial in nature) is usually not received
by anyone. The likelihood of a person clicking on unsolicited mail is extremely
low. In addition to the fact customers might not be interested in your offers in
the first place, the margin for success is small!
If you have a relationship with the customer beforehand, email marketing can exceed
boundaries. In order for email campaigns to work effectively, it must be solicited
in the form of opt-in lists and permission. Adding a checkbox to your online store
that says something along the lines of ¨send me periodic updates about your incoming
shipments¨ for a customer to tick off fares better off in the marketing with email
game. If you have customer permission to send them updates and newsletters with
additional information, it will be well received!
Marketing with email is most effective with two-way communication. Unsolicited spam
mail is considered a one-way message because it is chock full of advertisements
that ask customers to visit websites and purchase products. It takes up their time
without receiving any sort of compensation. Email marketing campaigns through opt-in
lists are different - they are tailored towards the customer's interest and garner
higher response rates. Your email list is paramount as well. Back up your campaign
by purchasing a list from a list vendor who offers email addresses that are willing
to receive your advertisement. Each email address usually costs between 20 and 40
cents.
Newsletters and promotions combined together make for explosive campaigns. A well
written, HTML formatted newsletter can boost traffic and generate sales. Promotions
can initiate customers to buy a product that they are interested in. You see, the
secret to an effective promotionb is the interaction between the customer and the
business.
Notice the trend: unsolicited email appearing out of no where flooding your Inbox
will not generate the same response as a newsletter an opt-in list member subscribed
to. By exercising business/customer relations and gauging your customer's needs,
your email marketing will become more fruitful and lead to the dollars.
How do we determine whether an email marketing campaign is effective?
The bread & butter of a campaign is its' ability to be opened and read. Unlike print
material, email provides tracking tools to gauge visitor statistics and click through
rates. A true email campaign will strive to seek as much customer data as possible.
Add a response form to your emails or invite newsletter subscribers to join an online
message board. Droves of customers registering to your online community can highlight
your emails ability to attract. Add links to your newsletter and observe its click
through rate with tracking software.
The savvy email marketer will investigate trends and tricks for time tested email
campaigns. For instance, HTML format emails are more visually pleasing than plain
text emails - run a campaign using both formats and see which gets the most click
rates! Will offering discount couples for opt-in list subscribers do the trick?
If you own an online store, run a promotion where subscribers can receive a code
via email to use for discount purchases on your site! For example, a site selling
pheromones, is currently offering 20% off anything on their product list for newsletter
readers only. Not only does this encourage customers to purchase off your site,
but also you'll know who your loyal customers are.
Another way to determine whether your email campaign is off the charts or not is
to compare what you've received from a special campaign with the amount of money
you've spent. Is your discount sunglasses newsletter generating $100 a month off
click throughs and on-the-spot purchases versus spending $12 on paying a freelance
writer for article writing and $3 on target email addresses? If so, your email campaign
is paying off! Are members of your opt-in list clicking more on Discount Coupons
for All Purchases¨ than the title ¨The History of Sunglasses?¨ Discount coupons
lead to big purchases, so try to launch promotional opportunities more often! A
successful email campaign is measured by its personal interaction with customers.
If customers are not responding well to your emails, try other strategies. Read
and respond to consumer needs using trial & error and use tracking tools after every
mailing to see how well you do.
