Email marketing is the culprit why hundreds of emails rush into your Inbox or SPAM folders, but the reason for the headlines is that make you open some on the spot.
How many times did you buy a product after seeing an email offer? How long did it take you to accept an email marketing campaign offer?
This article is a guide on how you should plan your next emailing CRM campaigns.
The definition of Email Marketing
Emailing is a strategic marketing B2B or B2C activity that allows companies to increase revenue by communicating one-on-one with their audience (customers and prospects altoghether).
Emailing campaign typologies
Depending on the type of customer it addresses, emails have different objectives and are written in the form of newsletters, news, remarketing, catalog sales.
Nevertheless, the most common type of content sent via email is the promotional offer of a product or service.
Who and when created the first SPAM?
It was Gary Thuerk in 1978, working as a Marketing Manager at Digital Equipment Corp who sent the first promotional email to a list of email addresses.
Obviously, many of the addresses did not request computer advertising, so later Thuerk was to be proclaimed “the Father of Spam.”
According to his Linkedin profile, he is the “Father of e-Marketing” and fancies a custom URL called “fatherespam”. You can see a timeline of his notorious SPAM campaign and other emailing efforst in this Timetoast article.
How do I plan my email marketing strategy?
To start an email marketing campaign you need to assemble a few pieces that will help you in the results brought to the brand.
The first step and I think one of the most important is designing your database for the FUTURE, not for your current needs.
It must contain not only data fields valid for the people who have interacted with your brand or who were directly interested in it, but also future prospects of products that you haven’t launched yet.
The main goal of an email marketing strategy
Your goal is to capture leads and grow your emailing database through various methods designed to convince people to offer you some of their personal data in exchange for offers or quality content.
My advice is to plan your email marketing strategy you will work with, taking into account three factors:
- the position in the market;
- your team’s understanding of CRM and email marketing.
- the marketing calendar of activities.
Choose your best email marketing platform
Opt for an email service, through which you can segment your audience, to mass distribute email campaigns to certain segments of people. There are various options you can test, including automating these emails.
What are the benefits of email marketing automation?
On average, 51% of companies currently use automation (source: Emailmonday.com). Among them, the most important benefits of automation are:
- Time-saving – 30%
- Higher income – 17%
- Lead generation – 22%
- Customer retention – 11%
- Monitoring marketing campaigns – 8%
- Reduction of sales cycle – 2%
The most successful tactics for email automation
The most successful tactics for automation are the use of personalized messages (51%) and mapping the consumer experience (53%).
How do you build a legally compliant database?
As you may know, in European Union GDPR regulations have given marketers a hard time, but strategies to bring great results for the brand are not that hard to obtain.
Check one or all of these tactics and write in the comments what results you got:
a) Create a subscribe / subscription / subscription form on the website.
When people like what they read, what they see on the website, they will want more and to be as close as possible to the brand, to be the first to know the news. You can even install a pop-up to capture email addresses.
b) Send visitors with the help of social media platforms chosen according to B2B, B2C, niche, and obviously budget address.
Displays the form for subscribing to page debates in paid campaigns. Keep in mind, emails that have personalized the recipient’s name have 50% more openings.
c) Obviously you can capture the database offline, in an event, in a meeting, and offer them added value by accessing online resources.
How to grow your Email Marketing database in 3 steps
If you struggle with building your contacts list, the want to multiply the existing database you can:
- Create a landing page, where you present the sale offer or the options within the brand, in order to determine your email marketing recipients to sign in. Keep in mind the benchmark, the average open rate for a welcome email is 82%.
- Design campaigns that can be shared further by the recipients, aiming to increase your chances of exposure.
- Launch a contest or discount to get people to sign up to your email list.
How can I keep my email marketing compliant?
Here is a list of rules for you to follow in order to keep your emailing activities white-listed:
- Be careful that the emails you send comply with GDPR law (for European Union) and CAN-SPAM regulation (US);
- Set up email campaigns correctly and avoid buying databases;
- Let people know when they subscribe to email, how they can log out and what they will receive;
- Timing is critical. Make sure you send emails at the most receptive moment of the day, on the best day of the week or of the month;
- Design simple emails so that it is easy for people to unsubscribe.
How often should you send emails to your customers?
A GetResponse study showed that marketers get in touch with customers 2-3 times per month (32%), 4-6 times (19%), once per month (17%), 6 + times monthly (16%).
When is the best time to send an emailing campaign?
The best acclaimed time to send emails is 11 AM (the best time to send emails) but also 12AM (you will receive the best CTR).
When is the worst time to send emails?
According to Optinmonster, the lowest open and click-through rates appear on weekends.
Tip for benchmarking: Have in mind that 81% of companies rely on email marketing as a top method for customer acquisition and 80% for retention (2018 Emarsys study).
Should an email marketing campaign be creative?
You will definitely make a difference by being creative, but don’t try to find the pure original concept.
Aim instead to communicate with a fresh message and approach, so do your research prior to launching a new emailing campaign.
and if you give people valuable and useful information, they will surely keep an eye on what you tell them.
It all starts with that eye and heart catchy welcoming message, where you tell them what great thing can happen next.
What should you use in your campaign?
In order to reach the maximum potential (or ROI) of your emailing campaign it is necessary for you to include:
1. Evaluation and tracking
Evaluation is both the first and last stage in your email marketing activities.
You need to measure the success of every emailing campaign, and usually, succesful CRM marketers track continuosly:
- Email openings and clicks;
- Mid-funnel outcomes (leads generated by filled in forms and other eCommerce widgets).
2. Build an extensive segmentation criteria
It’s more efficient and smart to have more criteria from the start than adding them once in a while to an existing database because it will generate a huge effort of enriching existing data.
Moreover, you have to apply a target segmentation for each email based on a minimum of 2 to 5 criteria. The most popular email database segmentation types of variables are:
- Socio-demographics;
- Usage;
- Recency;
- Behavioral traits.
Tip: Don’t be shy with contacting your fans, as 49% of consumers prefer to receive promotional emails from their favorite brands.
3. Communication strategy, sending frequency
What type of messages you use, knowing when to send the message is essential, if you send too few you can lose sales or lead nurturing opportunities.
Find the “goldilock” of your category: you don’t want to bore your audience, or you be reported for spam.
Tip: Email videos increase your clickthrough rate by 300%.
4. Testing and optimization
Take testing to your heart. Benchmark continuously your initial campaign coordinates.
Statistics show that 60% of specialists do not test the email marketing campaign, 20% test the offers, copy, layouts, creative, while 16% only test the subject line (Get Response study).
Read more about A/B testing for eCommerce in my previous article.
Emailing is the most effective marketing sales channel
More research shows that 47% of marketers say that email marketing is the most effective channel (vs. 39% for social media, 33% for SEO, and 33% for content marketing)
Email efficiency for B2B marketers
40% of B2B companies questioned declared that email newsletters are the most important tactic in the content marketing strategy (Content Marketing Institute)
Tip on benchmarking: Email marketing generated in average 4200% ROI ($ 42 for every dollar spent (Source: 2019 study in Campaign Monitor)
Biography:
- Neil Patel – https://neilpatel.com/blog/beginners-guide-email-marketing/
- Optinmonster – https://optinmonster.com/beginners-guide-to-email-marketing/
- MailChimp – https://mailchimp.com/resources/email-marketing-benchmarks/
