With the the latest changes in SEO algorithms, Google, Bing and Yahoo are FINALLY catching on to ever-evolving black hat “questionable” SEO tactics. With that, “Content Marketing” (some prefer to call blogging) is becoming less effective and harder to measure success. So what is a digital marketer supposed to do? Email Marketing is a tried and true way to reach your target audience, drive traffic to your website and grow brand, authority and market share for your company.
In this still young digital age, email, just a spry 20-something, still has it’s grip on businesses and consumers alike. What do you do for the first :30 minutes to an hour every morning? If you’re anything like me, you check email. What do you do if you have an email with a compelling link in it? CLICK IT!
Blasting a few thousand emails to your Outlook contacts with a mediocre “Call To Action” isn’t the end-all solution, though. Below are 4 tips to improve your reach, improving your click-through rates, as well as increasing your conversions for an effective email marketing campaign.
1. Start with a clean list – Some companies simply dump their Outlook contacts into a database and call it a day, shortly to realize a HUGE percentage of the addresses are flagged as undeliverable. At Spoke, we prefer to acquire lists that have been properly assembled through an opt-in procedure or verified, scrubbed and approved for our clients’ needs. If your list isn’t clean from the start, the actions taken to clean the list can become more time-consuming and costly than if you simply purchased a database form a reputable company from the beginning.
People will be more apt to clicking through to relevant articles about THEM than puff pieces about YOU.
2. Plan the Campaign – Before I may have given “Content Marketing” a low blow, but with an Email Marketing campaign, a good content marketing program will help augment and provide great information and depth. Posts and articles need to have purpose and direction, though. Writing blogs and puking them out to the web is one thing, but building a strategy around WHAT you say and WHEN you say it is part of building your brand and authority in your industry. Have specific categories that your email marketing campaign can pull from. Develop content based on market trends, seasonal changes or CURRENT economic challenges. People will be more apt to clicking through to relevant articles about THEM than puff pieces about YOU.
3. Show them what they want to see BUY – Even if they don’t know it, buy clicking on a Call-to-Action (CTA) in your email, the recipients have already signaled a desire to buy. Why, then, wouldn’t you give them a place to satisfy their desire? Landing pages are imperative in an effective email marketing campaign. Simply linking to a blog post or even your e-commerce page isn’t enough. If your CTA references “discount plumbing supplies” in your email, it better damn well take them to a page where they can buy (or at lease sign up to get more information about) discount plumbing supplies, not a bio of your company.
Click to see larger image of Email Marketing Opt-In reasons (source: Hubspot.com)
4. ALWAYS BE CLOSING – With a landing page, comes the ultimate digital close: EITHER MAKE THE SALE OR GET THEIR INFORMATION. There are a multitude of reasons people purchase and/or opt-into a list for more information. The chart to the right shows that money talks. Offers, discounts, specials and promotions still get buyers in a frenzy. So when you’re trying to convert those emails to a purchase, take into consideration WHAT they’re need is and find a way to fulfill it.
Of course, email marketing isn’t the only solution to a successful digital marketing campaign. But with the constant changes in social media platforms, search engine optimization and the fees associated with Pay-Per-Click campaigns, getting an email directly into the inbox of your target audience is a great place to start. Once there, the 4 tips above will help assure more traffic to your website and grow brand, authority and market share for your company.
If you have additional tips or questions about the information we’ve provided here, please feel free to post a comment.
Spoke communications is a professional marketing communications company with over 2 decades of marketing communication and digital marketing experience. If you would like help getting your marketing communications on the right track, please contact us here or email us at biz@spokecom.com
Until next time…
Keep Cooking!
Andrew B. Clark
The Brand Chef
