Don't underestimate email marketing

Why is email marketing so important?

There are some who would have us believe that email is dying and therefore email marketing has reached a point of demise too, but this simply isn't true. 

Email marketing is not only very much alive and well, but it also continues to yield impressive ROI and has the potential to outperform other types of online advertising. What's more, it's showing no signs of slowing down.

The numbers speak for themselves

The vast majority of people still prefer to receive marketing information by email than by any other form, and the opportunity to reach 4 billion current email users is one that is difficult (and foolish) to ignore.

Social media advertising might be one of the fastest-growing marketing channels, however, email is still up there when it comes to engagement - something which actually increased during the pandemic as we all became a little more used to the electronic sharing of information when face-to-face simply wasn't an option.

The email marketing market is thought to be worth over 7 billion dollars globally but, interestingly, it's still increasing, and estimates suggest that it will double in the next 5 years.

The benefits of email marketing over other digital options

We are a digital marketing agency who believe that you should harness the power of every online channel available. There's plenty of room in your digital strategy for social media advertising, SEO, webinars… What we're saying here is make sure you don't brush aside email marketing to make way for these alone, it will earn its place, we promise you!

Email marketing has a relatively low cost and is super-quick to initiate. There's no need for in-depth technical capability, just good content and a mailing list for your target market. In terms of control, email marketing is totally in your hands, there's a good starting level of engagement (your mailing list have already subscribed) and the reach has no limits since just about everyone has access to an email account.

There's lots of scope to personalise your email marketing campaign, so you can be as creative and imaginative as you dare. With background knowledge of the contacts on your own mailing list you can really tailor your message and can use the email as an easy stepping stone to your website or a landing page you've designed to optimise conversion. And let's not forget, when you impress your audience there are fewer things that are as easy to share as an email!

You don't have to wait long to know if your email marketing strategy has worked. Campaigns can be tracked instantly as you'll see opens, clicks, forwards, bounces, subscriptions etc. You can access data in real-time and use the speed of the results from test campaigns to make fast changes to maximise performance.

How can you capitalise on the power of email marketing?

As with any type of marketing, your success will increase if you learn everything there is to know about your target market. It also pays to stay ahead of future trends and your audience's habits. This will determine the day of the week and time you transmit and will shape the format of the messages. Mobile optimisation, we'd suggest, is essential too, to ensure an entirely positive experience for all, regardless of how they access their email.

There's no rule dictating that emails have to be flat and informative so don't be afraid to incorporate imagery, or perhaps an interactive element – GIFs, buttons, hover-over effects, surveys, polls, even a fun interactive game or two. By all means, use a newsletter format but do it smartly - think engagement, storytelling, the opportunity to prove yourself as an authority and illustrate thought leadership. More than anything, make sure you make the best possible use of the marketing intelligence you've gathered, meet your audience's needs and exceed their expectations. 

Trust must be earned and retained if your email marketing is to work. Your offering may be irresistible, but you are making demands on your audience's time and attention and should do this under terms that suit them best. Always ensure that you give your contacts a choice on email frequency and, of course, allay any fears about spam and malware.

Finally, there's absolutely no reason for your email marketing to be a stand-alone activity. It can complement your social media campaigns perfectly and it's a great way to let customers know about live events and personally follow up with them afterwards.

At Greyhive , we use our digital marketing expertise to help you reach more customers online and grow your business. Email marketing still features highly on our ‘must do' list and we'd love to see you benefit from the opportunities it offers too.