Email marketing can seem like a daunting task. Multiple services, different campaigns, testing, and analysis—no wonder many businesses are put off!
But email marketing is one of your business’s most profitable strategies. From building brand awareness to growing your list and increasing sales, it’s one of the easiest strategies to get set up with.
In this article, you will learn that you only need four things to set up an effective email marketing strategy for your business.
Disadvantages and advantages of email marketing
The main advantage of email marketing over other traditional forms of advertising is that your message can be delivered directly into your customer’s inboxes. They can opt-out of receiving future emails if they do not wish to receive them. Email Marketing is also advantageous because it allows you to reach your customer when they are most likely to be interested in the product or service you are providing.
A significant disadvantage of email marketing is that there is no control over what the customer does with the message beyond the fact that all emails must be delivered to their inboxes. Any links within the email will direct the customer away from your site, so it is impossible to track how many customers purchase your product or service as a result of any particular campaign.
An email marketing platform
Email marketing platforms are a great way to send newsletters and other information to your customers. They provide the tools you need to create an email campaign, send it to the right people, and track its effectiveness.
Email marketing platforms allow you to create custom designs, personalize messages, and track success. Many also offer templates for popular services like MailChimp and Constant Contact.
Some email marketing platforms include additional features, such as landing pages or webinars. These can be useful if you want to run contests or educate customers about new products or services they might be interested in learning more about.
An audience
When you’re ready to start sending out emails, there’s one thing you’ll need: an audience. You can’t just send emails to a list of contacts you’ve collected over the years and expect them to open your messages.
You have to build an audience. Here’s how:
- Create an opt-in form.
- Post it on your website, blog, or Facebook page (or all three).
- Include social sharing buttons that make it easy for people to share with their friends and followers on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter.
- Send a link to your opt-in form in every email you send out so people can sign up quickly when they visit your site or blog by clicking on the link in your message, which takes them directly to the opt-in page where they can enter their name and email address in exchange for some incentive—typically an ebook, white paper or report that will help them solve a problem they’re experiencing right now.
Your computer
There are many ways to grow your business without using a computer, but email marketing is not one of them. It’s not just about sending emails; the best email marketing services allow you to track results, run A/B tests, and more.
You can still use a smartphone or tablet, but it will require extra work. For instance, you’ll need to find a place with free Wi-Fi where you can get online. Then, you’ll have to pull out your laptop and use it as a hotspot so that you can send emails from your phone. This can be inconvenient and time-consuming—not to mention expensive if you’re using data roaming charges.
Your brain or idea
Brainstorming ideas for email marketing is a significant step in the email marketing process. Your email marketing strategy relies on your ability to find people interested in what you have to say and then communicate with them through emails. It is a critical part of building your business or website and getting feedback from your customer base.
Brainstorming can be done in some very different ways. Some people write down ideas as they come to them, while others like to create mind maps or doodles to get their creative juices flowing. The trick is ensuring that whatever you use as a stimulus will help you come up with many different options and lead you down the right path. Whatever you decide to do, keep it simple and make sure that it works for you. Use brainstorming to discover new opportunities for your emails, help you stay focused on what’s important, and give you the best chance for success.
If you don’t have an idea for an email campaign, start by determining your objective. Do you want customers to take action? Do you want them to sign up for a newsletter? Do you want them to complete an action like sharing or downloading something on social media? Whatever it is, ensure it’s interesting to your audience and resolve their problems.
Get started with your email marketing today
Email marketing is a powerful tool that’s not to be ignored. If you’re serious about building a community around your brand, email is an essential piece of that puzzle. Planning and preparing the right tools and resources to promote your business is critical.
Hopefully, the list above has given you a rough idea of what you will need to market your business effectively through email. Contact us if you need help with your marketing!
