Despite the rise of new communication channels, email is still an effective marketing tool. Each tool in the tool box serves an important need.
Blogs and podcasts are superb for building rapport. Display ads and SEO put your message into the right hands. Of course, there's always social media to tell your brand story. And then there's email.
Sounds so old-fashioned! So yesterday! There's nothing fun and exciting about email!
Unless, that is, you happen to find "making lots of money" exciting, which we do!
Email is Universal
Just about every person in the world uses email. We would be willing to bet that your target demographic falls in that bucket of “just about everyone.”
Everyone knows how it works. They check it every day, often every hour. And they don't forget to look at it for weeks at a time, which can happen with social platforms and blogs.
According to Adobe's 2018 Consumer Email Survey, Consumers spend about 2.5 hours checking personal email on a typical weekday. On top of that, they're spending an average of 3.1 hours checking work email. People check emails while they watch TV, while in bed, while on the phone, while in the bathroom and even while commuting (very very very bad!). This means that people have integrated email into nearly every part of the day.
Email has been woven into the fabric of our lives — and that’s why it’s been the absolute best channel for building an audience and converting more of those people into customers and clients.
Email is Intimate
When we go use social platforms like Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn, we're more or less "in public", and on someone else’s property. These are social spaces, after all -- spots where people congregate.
Email, on the other hand, is where we connect one-on-one — on our own turf. Messages on social channels can often feel like you are trying to shout your message to your prospects from across a crowded street. But a really good email program is like whispering in their ear.
Email Converts
According to the Marketing Insider Group, email still drives the highest ROI out of all B2B marketing strategies. On average, businesses can earn $44 for every dollar spent on email marketing. That’s incredible ROI.
This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t utilize other marketing platforms! Social media, pay per click (PPC), content marketing, SEO and others get your message in front of people not already in your email database. And for those that are already in your database, other marketing platforms can provide further reinforcement of your message.
Business owners and marketers often think that because email isn't the shiniest and newest marketing platform, that it’s not the most effective. On the contrary, email has consistently proven itself as the tool that gets business results.
So, if email marketing is so effective, why aren’t all companies great at it?
Most promotional emails sent from businesses are, frankly, pretty awful. They can be "spammy" and boring. We don't want that for such an important part of your digital marketing program.
Thompson Marketing Partners can help you to setup and/or manage a successful email marketing program that turns your email database into dollars! We will help create the kind of content readers will open (read and share), create an email program that works for mobile (responsive), and strategize to create a program that builds trust, rapport and sales.
Remember, good email marketing deepens your relationship with your audience through effective subject line writing (getting your messages opened), your distinctive voice (getting those messages read), and delivering quality content your customers and prospects need and shares with others (inspiring referrals and word-of-mouth).
Take a glance through your own email inbox. What messages grab your interest? What kinds of subject lines enticed you to open? Pay attention to what makes you feel good about a business ... and what makes you immediately hit the delete button.