Email Marketing – Dead, dying, done…NOT!
Have you heard rumors around the web that email marketing is dying? Don’t believe them!
Even though there’s a grain of truth hidden deep in this concern, rest assured that email will remain one of the best ways to keep in touch with your marketing contacts.
It’s completely true, though, that clumsy email marketing is going out of style faster than you can say “click here now!” The spray and pray email marketing method, where entire databases are blasted with the same content regardless of their interests, is indeed dead.
But smart email marketing isn’t going anywhere — 60% of marketers believe that email produces positive ROI, and 74% of consumers actually prefer to receive marketing communication via email.
Although email marketing is alive and well, if your campaign is going to compete, there are a few things you should know about crafting email messages that get opens, reads, and click-throughs. Here are three tips that will set your emails apart to drive maximum engagement with your contacts.
Know WHO you’re talking to and WHY
The value of dividing your list into segments based on their interests, preferences, and behavior really can’t be understated. Why even bother spending effort crafting emails if they aren’t relevant to the contacts receiving them?
In your email messages, you need to show your readers that you know who they are and that you understand their pain points. As such, split up your customers into segments based on their pain points, interests, and how you can help them, so you can address their unique problems and interests directly.
Don’t forget to answer the question “What’s in it for me?”
Even if your message is super-relevant to your carefully segmented audience, no one will care unless the benefit promised to them is as clear as day. Keep in mind, features are not the same things as benefits. Features are about you; benefits are about them. Keep the focus on how your offer will make their lives better or solve their pain points, and then tell them exactly what to do next. For instance, leather seats are a feature; the benefit is that they purchase leather seats so they can easily keep the car clean.
Be Human
Nothing will improve your engagement rates more than creating the feeling that your email message was written by a living, breathing human being with a compelling personality. Keep your tone approachable and conversational whenever possible, and always be appropriate for your industry. Asking for feedback (and responding to it!) is a great way to increase engagement because it shows your contacts that someone is behind the emails they’re receiving, listening. Personalizing your emails with merge fields is another great touch to keep your emails feeling human.
The chasm between sloppy and savvy email marketing is growing, but if you keep these three tips in mind, your engagement rates will be living proof that email really is not dying.
For more advanced engagement tactics, take a look at ONTRAPORT’s latest guide, Crafting the Perfect Email. This guide written by ONTRAPORT’s lead postmaster and favorite email delivery expert (we admit we’re biased though) contains strategies that will get your emails opened and read and increase click-throughs and engagement.
Download the guide for free, and you’ll see for yourself that email marketing isn’t dead, it’s booming!
