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  • Email Marketing Works!

    09
    Feb

    Ask your customers to buy.  I read this in a business development kit by Brendon Sinclair published by Sitepoint.  Many businesses have great products and/or services but fail to get around to asking their customers to buy.

    It seems a huge over-simplification of what businesses refer to as marketing.  In fact there are organisations who fail to deploy an adequate marketing channel with a succinct call to action.

    “Hey Guys, we make ‘this’ and we think it would be great for you.  It does x,y,z and is available at this discounted price for a short time.  If you’re interested - do this!”

    In fact there are organisations who fail to deploy an adequate marketing channel with a succinct call to action.

    Sounds very straightforward?  It is quite staggering how many people don’t actually utilise such a basic approach to developing their business.

    Some would argue they send out their glossy brochure with a business card.  Or invite people to look on their website.  This is not the same.  This is asking people to look.  It’s not asking them to buy.

    There are now more marketing channels than ever before, and knowing where to place your budget is the product of some research, analysis and clever thinking.  However, one of the cheapest, most manageable, fastest, responsive and measurable forms is email marketing.

    Email marketing is the quintessential embodiment of - asking customers to buy.  Because of the fine grained control over who you target, and what you target them with and when you target them - email marketing can have incredible results; when done properly.

    Email marketing is the quintessential embodiment of - asking customers to buy.

    What do we mean, when done properly?  There is a difference between email marketing and spam.  Spam is the chainsaw to the e-marketing scalpel.  The unbridled proliferation of poorly constructed waffle to the unsuspecting masses is both fruitless, legally questionable and a waste of resources and it what many of us know as spam.  The timely arrival of relevant, pertinent and interesting offers and information in an ethical and responsible way, constructed using the latest techniques for usability and accessibility is what we know as e-marketing.

    When constructing an email marketing campaign you need to focus your attention in 2 main areas - content and usability.  The content element relies on your marketing team harvesting your e-mailing list, and generating offers, promotions, announcement and news that the recipient will find useful and interesting, and not have them reaching for the unsubscribe link.

    The usability element relies on your design/web agency producing something that is visually appealing, concise and most importantly - that works.  Whilst all email ‘addresses’ look the same, not all emails look the same.  There are a plethora of different email platforms and software clients - Hotmail, Gmail, MobileMe, Yahoo, Outlook Express, Mac Mail, Microsoft Mail, to name but a few.  Each have their idiosyncrasies and quirks and as what looks nice is one, plain doesn’t work in another.

    You must also contend with a variety of automated spam detection systems from built in junk mail filters to 3rd party solutions like Norton Internet Security.  In a world somewhat sceptical because of increasing fear of id theft, phishing attacks and online scams you need your campaign to navigate these issues with poise.

    You’re asking them to buy in a subtle, controlled environment in which the customer is empowered to decide now or a bit later.

    Fortunately, there is a right way - and it ‘does’ work.  If you build interesting campaigns and target the right people - your customers will be happy to receive what you send.  More importantly, you’re asking them to buy.  You’re asking them to buy in a subtle, controlled environment in which the customer is empowered to decide now or a bit later. 

    Cold calling is based on a rudimentary ‘ask to buy’ strategy.  It’s premise being that if 99 people hang up in disgust and frustration, 1 person will buy.  Sure, it works for some - but in a world of growing corporate social responsibility and ethical codes of conduct many organisations have turned their back on this somewhat craven approach.  Email marketing offers a much safer, responsible and effective platform and is considerably cheaper than the ubiquitous phone bank.

    Ask you web developer about email marketing for you business, and if they shrug or look nonplussed - it’s time you looked elsewhere.

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    Marketing