What is email marketing?
Email marketing is the tactic of sending promotional/informational emails to the target market in order to achieve a business goal. Email marketing is one of the best ways to generate leads.
- It is cost-effective.
- It generates a quick result.
- It is easily trackable.
Email marketing is one of the very important components of digital/internet marketing.
So, before we start the blog on email marketing lets see a few statistics on emails – In, 2019. [Data Source 1 (In footer)]
- There were 3.9 Billion active email users.
- 293.6 billion emails were sent and received on a daily basis.
- Average open rate is between 15% to 25%
- M0re than 40% of the emails are being opened on mobile.
- Gmail has more than 1.5B active email users with 27% open rate.
- Personalised emails have 50% more chances of increasing the open rate.
- A micro-video used in the email increases CTR by more than 300%.
- A company makes $42 for every $1 spent on email marketing campaigns.
Just keep these statistics in mind.
We will use them wherever required.
Do you know,
When was the first email sent?
An email was first sent in 1971, by Ray Tomlinson to himself.
Since then emails have come a long way, and today in the 21st century it’s an eternal part of (Almost) every internet user.
Now, hold on
Here is one more piece of information about email marketing (This piece always motivates me).
It will motivate you as well.
A first-ever email marketing campaign was sent in 1978 to around 400 recipients and it had resulted in sales of $13 million.
=> Sender was: Mr Gary Thuerk
=> Working for: Digital Equipment Corp.
=> Campaign was for Computers
The question that comes here is, if someone can make $13 Million through email marketing in 1978, then why can’t you make money out of it in the 21st century.
And, if by any chance its not working for you.
Then, the possibility is that you are not doing effectively.
Anyways, with this blog
I will try to help you understand email marketing and its practices in the best possible way.
So, let’s go.
Is Email marketing still generating results?
Yes,
Ok, I have a few questions to ask here,
=> How many mail lists have you subscribed (If you remember) for?
=> On an average, how many promotional emails do you receive daily?
=> How many promotional emails do you open?
=> What was the last thing that you purchased after opening a promotional mail?
=> Have you forwarded or referred a promotional mail to your family and friends?
Now, as an email user, you can understand why it’s still generating results for the sellers.
The data that I have stated above says it loud enough that email marketing still generates the result.
If it’s not generating a result for you, then you must be doing it in the wrong way.
Do something about it?
Find that loophole, and fix it.
Benefits of email marketing:
Email marketing has a few very important benefits;
Instant reach: Campaigns did through email marketing, helps you reach to your list instantly.
All that you need to do is to know the best time when your target market will open the mail.
This is one of the best mediums to reach your target market in the shortest period.
Cost-effective: It is one of the very cost-effective marketing (Digital) tools in the current marketing scenario. There are so many tools that allow you to send thousands of emails to your subscribers (Limited up to 2000 email ids) base every month.
You can use such tools and fulfil your email marketing goals, and once you achieve the maximum limit of the tool that you have been using you can buy the paid version of the tool and can continue sending emails. Email marketing is cost-effective as against google AdWords, Facebook ads and other paid media ads.
Helps brand build its credibility: In today’s highly clouded market where there are so many sellers trying to lure its prospects, email marketing allows you to send informative/product related mailers to the prospects. Today’s buyers love to connect with the product/brand which has credibility or which can create its credibility among the end-users.
Higher ROI: Campaignmonitor says that email marketing is the official king of the marketing kingdom as it gives ROI of 4400% and $44 for every $1 spent.
Personalized Emails: Email marketing helps the marketer to personalize the campaigns and connect with the target market more efficiently, we as an individual love the personal connection. A well-planned email marketing campaign creates a personal connection between a product/brand and a customer.
Increases brand recognition: Email marketing helps companies increase brand recognition, a well-planned email marketing strategy can help a brand stay in end-users’ minds for long.
Easily Trackable: Email marketing tools help marketers to analyze the entire campaigns and their activity. As a marketer, you can know how many people opened your mail, which email id opened it, how many of them clicked on CTA links. You can also do A/B testing and can make the changes as required in the campaign to make it work.
Let’s get started with email marketing.
This section is going to be helpful too;
You, if you are a fresher in digital marketing and are looking to learn email marketing.
You, if you are a digital marketer and looking to find out the best practices in email marketing.
You are a digital marketer and are looking to find the best email marketing automation tools.
Why email marketing is important?
We have already shared the data part for it, now let’s see some of the real-life issues of marketeers that it solves.
To conduct a market survey: These days popular brands conduct most of the market surveys using “email marketing”.
Suppose there is a brand in the e-commerce industry, it wants to know about the “10 items that an individual would like to buy in 1 year”.
One of the easiest ways to know this would be to send a questionnaire to all of the subscribers and to people who are registered with it with the help of email marketing. It will be effective because;
=> Sending mass mail is cost-effective.
=> All of the email ids in the list can be reached at the same time.
=> A personalized mail can be sent to individuals.
=> A quick and sorted response can be expected.
=> It is easy to analyze the data collected through email marketing.
To create pre-launch hype about the product: A lot of companies these days are sending pre-launch mailers to its customer base, this is done to create a pre-launch buzz about the product. Companies also send promotional offers to increase customer engagement towards the product that is to be launched.
To generate quick traffic to a website: All most all successful email marketer uses email marketing strategies to generate/increase traffic to the website. Here are a few of the things that can be done here;
=> Subscribe to the competitor’s mailing list and analyze their activity: As a smart digital marketer, you should always see what your competition is doing. Try and understand their marketing or promotional strategy. See, if you would buy their product by going through their email marketing campaigns.
=> Create a killer email marketing campaign in lines with business communication on the website.=> Create a subscriber list, give something extra ( A discount or special benefit) to people who subscribe to your mailing list.
=> Add all social media icons in your mail list, this helps in building customer trust in your brand and they start relying on you.
To generate leads: Due to its mass reach, email marketing helps marketers generate leads in a shorter period. These leads are often reliable as they come through the subscriber list, where these leads had filled the contact form willingly and had become a part of it.
Here are a few of the things that can be done here to generate more leads.
=> Convert web traffic into subscribers.
=> Send timely (Weekly/Monthly) mailers to your subscriber base.
=> Try to personalize the mailers.
=> Keep your mailers short and simple.
=> Research on most preferable time to send mails (For every industry there is a favourable time when most of the subscribers open mailers).
=> Add some offers to the mailer.
=> Either put Call – To – Action button in the mailer or connect mailer with a landing page.
To increase sales: Email marketing can invariably increase your sales to a new level. All that you need to do is to follow the following things to increase sales;
=> Create an effective email marketing strategy.
=> Sync email marketing strategy with your sales strategy.
=> Create a powerful sales funnel.
=> Choose the best email marketing tool.
=> Spend some time over the mailer copy.
A powerful subject line can increase the open rate.
A promotional offer in the description can also help increase the open rate.
Use an impeccable design to write the copy in the mailer body part.
=> Use a sales-driven call – to – action button in the mailer
=> Keep them engaged with a well-defined mailer strategy.
To create and engage a community: Every product/brand connects with a community. This community loves to share the things that it likes. Every product/brand needs a community which can help it in doing mouth to mouth publicity, refer it among its friend circle, and creates a buzz among the like-minded people. As a community manager for a product/brand, you can do the following to create and engage a community.
=> Send mails where individuals can connect with the brand personality.
=> Create an engagement plan where in which your customers start connecting with your product/brand.
=> Give your community some extra benefit for being a part of your product/brand community.
To run the loyalty and referrals plan.
To spread change in business communication, terms and policy, and other important business/sales/services, and other communication.
So, by now you must have got a fair knowledge about email marketing, and why it is done.
Now, what’s important is how you are going to use it;
=> To generate leads.
=> To increase sales.
=> Or, achieve any goal (Possible Ones only)
As an email marketer focuses on the following things before you start the campaign.
Understanding of product and its target market: As an email marketing executive/marketer, one of the most important things that you should focus on is understanding the product for which you are going to do email marketing.
If you fail to understand the product and its target market, trust me you are going to have a very tough time generating the result through email marketing. You should try and understand;
=> Who can be the real user of the product?
=> What is the target market demography?
=> What value that product is adding in the customer’s life?
=> Is there anything about the product (maybe the price, promotional strategy, sales strategy, packaging or anything else,) that can decrease customers’ interest in the product?
Top competitions available for the product, and their email marketing strategy.
Setting a realistic goal: This is one of the biggest problems that email marketers face, they are unable to create/set a realistic goal. This happens majorly because of their urge to over promise, in the beginning, to get/win the project at any cost. If as a digital marketer, you are overpromising than it will be really difficult for you to achieve the target and retain the client. So, while making the sales pitch understand customers and their goals and help them set goals that can be achieved and not something that is unrealistic and will be difficult for you to achieve it.
List creation: Once your goal is set, all you need to do is a plan as to how you can create a relevant email subscriber list. If you could plan this step in a good way, your email marketing is halfway successful. Focus on the following things to have a killer subscriber list.
=> Have a website/landing page.
=> Create an unavoidable promotional plan.
=> Use automated email campaigns.
=> Sign-up with a good email marketing service provider.
=> Create and follow the strategic email marketing plan.
Personalization and customization: A personalized and customized email increases your ROI manifolds. You can personalize your email campaign by;
=> Using the receiver’s name in the subject line.
=> Starting your mail body by saying hi to your receiver in the email body.
=> Connecting with the receiver with his action for the last email you sent, it looks like a continuation.
A few of the benefits of personalization and customization is;
=> It increases connect between user and product.
=> Chances of the user answering to Call to action button increases.
=> It increases conversion.
=> It increases ROI.
=> It helps you build a passionate customer list with better engagement.
=> You can nurture your leads and convert them into sales.
=> Creating appealing mail copy and content
Hmmm, let me tell you one thing;
=> It does not matter how great your promotional plan is?
=> Does not matter how good your landing page is?
=> Does not matter how competitive the price you have kept for your product?
Email marketing fails miserably if your email’s copy is not great, you as an email marketer should be a very good copywriter and visualizer. If you cannot do it on your own than have a copywriter on your team who can do it for you.
Even a small spelling mistake can hit your sales (That you are planning to do through email).
Choosing the best email marketing platform: There are many software/tools/ platforms that you can use to send mails. Many digital marketing portals provide both free and paid services. You can choose any one of them based on your needs. Focus on the following things before choosing the right email marketing tool;
=> Ease of usage.
=> Total Free subscriber list allowed.
=> Total monthly free mail sending allowed.
=> Automation offered.
=> Availability of easy report panel.
Automating the email marketing process: In the present advanced digital marketing world, automating the email marketing campaigns is one of the greatest boons for the digital marketer. An automated email campaign can help you;
=> Increase the subscriber list.
=> Increase engagement.
=> Create a personal connection with the list.
=> Triggers CTA.
=> Make your campaign more relevant.
=> It helps your product make a brand.
Now let’s talk about “SKILLS”, by skills I mean what all the skills you need to have to become a successful digital marketer.
To be continued.
