What Should Be In An Email Marketing Strategy?
Thursday, August 26th, 2010An email marketing strategy is required for an effective marketing program. Everybody uses email every day. Social networking and blogging are also dependent on it. But in order to be an effective part of your total marketing plan, you need the right strategy.
Email marketing is flexible, free and traceable. A good email marketing strategy can be the most beneficial marketing tactic available to you. It can be used to build your brand, to alert customers and prospects of new product or service offerings, to follow up after people buy from you or subscribe to your newsletter and to build a relationship with your customers and prospects. According to a 2009 study by Unilever, email marketing doubles buying intention during a new product launch.
Components of an Email Marketing Strategy
Your marketing strategy should answer all of the questions you and your customers or prospects would ask about why you are sending out emails.
– Why. The first part of your email marketing strategy outlines why you want to send out emails. What is the goal you hope to accomplish by doing so? There might be several reasons for sending several types of emails.
– When. When, and how often you send out emails to your customers and prospects is a critical part of your email marketing strategy. How often does your strategy indicate you should contact your various list segments? Will you send a monthly newsletter of some kind? Will you send occasional new product or service announcements? Will you undertake a major product launch with a carefully crafted series of emails? Will you send reminders of warranty expirations or annual events, etc.
– Personalize as much as possible. Because the intention of the strategy is to make each email sent relevant to the receiver, you will need to be very specific about who receives each email. In fact, you will probably want to send several versions of an email to different parts of your mailing list.
– What. What is your message? A good email marketing strategy will indicate that this should be different in each email. Will you send news of your company? How often? Will you send information and links to new content available on your web site? Will you promote special events, like sales? Will you provide information about additional ways you can serve your clients?
An email marketing strategy often is intended to sell products and services, provide information that moves readers toward a purchasing decision, and follow up after the sale is made. A good email marketing strategy will reflect the recent trends moving email from the mass marketing approach of the past to personalization of the message, the offer, and the interaction. Your email marketing strategy should also include analysis. You will want to measure the rate of response and refine messages for better response. You will also learn more about how your customers want to communicate with you.
Finally, your email marketing strategy must demonstrate respect for each person you email. Keep in mind that, according to John McKean (of the Center for Information Based Competition), 70% of our decision to buy is determined by how we are treated as people.
If you are a small business owner or professional and want to learn more about lead generation, view the free video, “How Article Promotion Can Send 25,000 Visitors to Your Web Site Every Month - For Free.”
Related Blogs
- Related Blogs on lead generation