If you have ever bought something online, you’ve probably seen those follow-up marketing emails trying to sell you something else. Sometimes they’re relevant to what you were looking for, and you actually read them. But other times they pop up when you’re not looking for more ways to spend your money, and you just delete them without even looking at the content. With this in mind, is email marketing still effective today?
The short answer is yes
Believe it or not email marketing is as effective today as it was many years ago. There could be many reasons for this, some being more specific to your business than others, but overall there are a few key reasons it’s still a very important tool. Below we outline some of the key reasons to make email marketing a prominent feature of your digital marketing strategy.
Email is [still] very popular
There are over 4 billion email users across the globe who use their email account on a daily basis for various tasks, from account registration to discussions with colleagues and updates on children’s school events. Armed with this insight, we can optimise our marketing campaign. We know that if our email gets delivered to their inbox, recipients receive notifications on their devices, increasing the likelihood of them seeing our message. This allows us to focus on other aspects, such as overall strategy, messaging and improving deliverability.
In contrast, while social media boasts a vast user base, the ever-increasing number of platforms means customers may be on one but not another. This fragmentation makes it more challenging, and costly, to reach a targeted audience.
The personal touch
One key reason that email is still effective today is that it’s more personal than other forms of digital communication. When you send an email, it lands directly in your recipients email inbox. A single email could therefore have multiple touch points – it could potentially exist on their computer, their tablet and their mobile device.
Additionally, a well-designed marketing email could contain the recipients name, their last interaction from your website (or last purchase they made) and would then draw their attention to a related goal or item based on this last action. The full experience is of a personal nature and provides a connection between the recipient and your brand.
Email marketing is relatively cheap
Compared with other marketing channels, email is relatively cheap to produce and has an impressive return on investment (ROI), making it a valuable resource for businesses of all sizes. Once your business gets the initial setup and the brand-matching design of the email templates out of the way, there are very few additional costs to contend with. In fact, some Email Service Providers (ESP) offer a basic free plan to get going, potentially increasing your ROI from the outset.
Strategy is important
A well-designed email marketing strategy aims to keep your recipients engaged with your brand. Tactics like sending an email on their birthday, a discount code for first-time customers, or notifications about new book releases can help keep your brand top-of-mind without directly selling. This approach builds trust and could lead customers to choose you over competitors in the future.
Conclusion
Choosing which marketing channels to focus your time and budget on requires a lot of consideration and planning. Each channel offers its own benefits, but how they align with your business goals can vary depending on your audience. Email has proven itself to be a reliable and cost-effective tool for increasing brand awareness and customer engagement, making it an essential component of any marketing strategy today.
Ramsay Interactive has worked with businesses of all sizes to improve their email marketing strategies and designs using many of today’s top ESP platforms. Contact us to find out how we can help you too.