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The Effective Use of Email
By John Joyce, President
Red, Incorporated
Strategic Marketing and Design
In my
last Marketing Tips article I gave a quick overview of some benefits that businesses can get out of the proper use of the internet in their marketing efforts. This time around I would like to focus in a little bit more and talk about Email.
Email marketing is a touchy subject for many people. What comes to mind when you hear the phrase 'Email Marketing'? - Spam! But email marketing doesn't have to be spam. It is one of the most effective, and least costly tools in the marketer's toolbox, so you should be taking advantage of it. So, how do you use email marketing without 'spamming' people with unwanted emails? There are a few simple things that you need to do:
- Be Careful Who You Send To
I get asked all the time about buying email lists and other 'sneaky' ways of getting people's email addresses. That's the first mistake! It is impolite and bad form to send emails to people who don't want them. Don't try to build your email list with any information from third parties. It is OK to send emails to customers, vendors, associates, and others with whom you have a business relationship, or to people who sign up to receive emails from you (your newsletter for instance). Other than that, just don't do it! It will only create bad feelings between you and the recipient, and what kind of marketing strategy is that?
- Make it Valuable
Don't send out email blasts for every little thing. Gather your information and wade through it carefully, trying to put together something of value. If you send out frequent and mostly pointless emails, they will end up getting ignored entirely. If you send out emails less frequently but with more information, then people are more likely to find something they consider valuable - supply enough value and they may even thank you for it!
- Provide a Way Out
Every single email should contain a way for the recipient to easily unsubscribe from your email list. You should also include your contact information so they know exactly who the email is coming from and how to get a hold of you. I also like to explain somewhere at the top or bottom of the email, why they are receiving it - something like this: "You are receiving this email either because we have an existing business relationship, or because you subscribed on our website".
If you follow these simple rules, email can be a very powerful marketing tool. Email typically gets a much higher response rate than regular mail. Our own email marketing efforts have an average open rate of over 70% and an average 'click-through' rate of over 30%, compare that to direct mail which is much more expensive and has a response rate of less than 2% and you can see the value. Your business can't afford to miss out on this one.
