Email has been around forever, right? Social media is the new thing. But, did you know that for every $1 you spend on email marketing, the return is $42? (DMA data)
Did you know that, on average, only 5.5% of social media followers see your content because of platform algorithm changes? In fact, brands are reporting engagement as low as 1%, especially on Facebook. You have to pay for promos and ads to reach the audience you’ve worked so hard to build. With Facebook’s increasing reliance on AI, brands are finding their company pages shut down, posts and groups deleted, and ads rejected. It’s a mess.
No algorithm can disrupt your email list; you own it.
You can communicate with your customers whenever you want, and you can export your email list and use it on another platform.
If you see those headlines broadcasting that email marketing is dead, don’t believe it. It’s fake news.
This article will cover some stats about email marketing’s power, how to integrate with your social media strategy, best practices, and a look at some of the most popular email marketing tools.
The Power of Email Marketing
- More than 3.9 billion people use email every day. Ninety percent check their email at least once per day. (Statista) Of course, this is no guarantee that 90% of your email subscribers will open every email you send.
- Almost 42% of email is opened on mobile devices.
- 59% of survey respondents say that emails influence their decision to purchase a product or service.
- 42.3% of American consumers subscribe to email lists to receive discounts and other savings.
- Email volume is increasing, meaning there is more competition for your readers’ attention. 306.4b emails were sent and received in 2020 worldwide. This volume is predicted to grow to 361.6 billion. Chat and mobile messenger apps haven’t put a damper on email marketing. (Statista)
- Email is the most reliable channel for nurturing and converting leads to sales throughout the funnel. And this is your primary objective: to convert followers into consumers who buy your product or service.
What About Social Media?
You still need social media. But think of how you use it in your funnel—you want to create engagement, expand brand visibility and build trust with your followers. Use social media posts to drive leads to your website and email list. Include links to sign up for your email list in your social media posts. If you’re blogging on your website, post an email signup form on your landing and blog pages. All aspects of your digital marketing should work together seamlessly to help you actualize your business goals.
Email Marketing Best Practices
Remember the statistics from above? Email volume is predicted to increase to more than 361 billion! Chances are your customers’ email box is overloaded. Research proves that consumers are more likely to see your email than your social media posts, but only if you deliver engaging and attention-catching emails.
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Grab Them With Your Subject Line
Considering the number of emails that arrive each day, consumers prioritize which ones will receive their attention. Typically, this involves scanning the subject line. Within a few seconds, your consumer will decide to open or skip over your email.
Industry standards suggest you keep the subject line to between 40 to 50 characters.
Using humor, or emojis, creating a sense of urgency, all of these tactics can improve your open rate.
The subject line should grab the reader’s attention right away; however, be sure it reflects the email’s content. Click and bait will cause you to lose the trust of your customers.
2. Make it Personal
Personalizing email based on customer experience, personal interests, and preferences will increase your open rate. According to Statista, 18.8% of personalized emails are opened compared to 13.1% without personalization.
CRM tools can help you segment your email subscriber list and extract the data you need to deliver a personalized message to each consumer. You’ll build trust and long-term relationships with your customers.
Segmenting allows you to engage in email retargeting—sending an email to a portion of your email list to reengage those who are no longer involved with your business. You can entice your segmented list of customers to return by offering a unique discount code. You can also use email retargeting to remind consumers that they didn’t complete their shopping experience. For instance, they placed items in the shopping cart but didn’t check out.
3. Keep it Simple
Apple excels at describing high-tech products without using high-tech jargon. As Einstein said, “if you can’t explain it to a six-year-old, you probably don’t understand it yourself.”
Keep your email brief. If the email is too long or difficult to read, your customer will close it and save it for later. Ultimately, it could be forgotten or deleted. Lead with the most relevant and vital information. Use short, direct sentences that do not overload your consumers with too much information. If you want to share more, create an email with a link to your website or blog. Your customer then has the option to spend time learning more.
4. Create an Emotional Connection
Present your product or service as an experience. Focus on building community. Send the latest news, success stories, consumer-generated content, and product updates. Once you know your audience, you can generate topics that resonate. Try including recipes, travel updates, the latest research studies that relate to your product or service.
5. Put the Needs of Your Consumers First
As we continue to make our way through this COVID-19 pandemic, pay attention to the voice and imagery you use in your email. Send a message that lets your consumers know they can thrive in these challenging times. Demonstrate that you care about them and not just increasing profits. Give away value for free.
Email Marketing Software
With all the tasks you have on your calendar, designing and delivering stunning, engaging emails to your consumer base can be a daunting task. Simultaneously, you might not have the budget to invest in an AI-based, high-tech email marketing tool. The good news is that you don’t have to. There are several high-quality free or low-cost tools available on the market.
When comparing email marketing software, look for these features:
- A customized tool with a maximum number of templates so you can mix it up to create engagement.
- List segmentation capabilities so you can target your email to subscribers based on their buying cycle, market research, and email marketing objectives.
- Automation capabilities to respond quickly to questions, problems, and canceled orders, follow up with customers who purchased and send welcome emails to new subscribers.
- Analytics. Email marketing tools should help you track your open rates, click rates, bounce rates, spam complaints, and unsubscribes.
Popular Email Marketing Tools
Hubspot
Better known for marketing automation, Hubspot launched a free email marketing tool that performs well for most small businesses. The platform is easy to use and comes with templates that help you get your email designed and out quickly.
Moosend
Moosend’s email marketing software is easy to use whether you’re a pro or just getting started. The app comes with easy segmentation tools, drag-and-drop design features, and real-time analytics. The software uses machine learning to filter your subscriber list to personalize email messages based on your consumers’ shopping habits.
Mailchimp
You’ve undoubtedly heard of Mailchimp—it’s been around for a long time. With Mailchimp, you can automate your email to match crucial points in the buyer journey. You can prompt consumers to open their email, remind them to finish their shopping experience, confirm orders and send special greetings.
Constant Contact
If you’re looking for the most user-friendly platform, Constant Contact might be the best you can find in terms of ease of use for beginners. Their drag-and-drop feature enables you to create emails with video, images, texts, polls, contests, and special events. You can track your email campaign’s results in real-time. You’ll be able to see open and click-through rates, individual subscriber data, and other key metrics that help you improve your email marketing strategy. The free plan is available for 60 days, and then you’ll need to sign up for one of two subscription plans.
Sender
Sender gets rave reviews across the market with many features that will help you boost your open rate. It comes loaded with customizable templates, videos, text options, and images. You’ll look like a pro even if you’re not. Sender’s super-charged analytics helps you see
- who has opened the email
- the time it was opened
- who has clicked through,
- and other user data that enables you to refine your personalized email marketing strategy.
Bottom Line
You’re likely to see many predictions about the future of marketing in 2021. One prediction you want to ignore is that email marketing is dead. Emails continue to be one of the most powerful ways to convert your followers and fans into consumers.
- Make your email stand out.
- Build communities.
- Put your consumers’ needs first.
- Take advantage of email marketing tools.
- Segment and personalize.
- Be persistent.
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