When it comes to modern marketing practices and methods, there are a myriad of options to choose from. Social media marketing may be the first one that comes to your mind or you may even place Search Engine Optimization at the top of the list. However, there is a more traditional form of marketing that still holds strong in the marketing paradigm: email marketing.
Although you may think, “Does anyone even read emails anymore?”, the reality is that email marketing continues to dominate the list of marketing methods that companies utilize to generate interest for their products and services, and also drive more leads for their business.
And with the global email market expected to surpass $17.9 billion in overall value by 2025, e-mail marketing is a can’t miss opportunity for businesses of all size.
Importance of Email Marketing
It may seem outdated, but e-mail marketing is still one of the most personal forms of communication brands can have with their customers. There are many reasons why maintaining a strong presence and developing a strategy for this marketing channel is just as important as any other.
Let’s dive into a few reasons why you should continue allocating budget and attention towards e-mail marketing.
Everyone Uses Email
If you think about it, without e-mail there would be no social media registration and you wouldn’t be able to use it for marketing. Even in today’s world, where you have hundreds of methods of communication, email is still relevant and continues to be used, especially for professional and academic purposes.
This is why e-mail is used by over 4 billion people, or roughly half of the global population.
Roughly 75-80% of all your online activity revolves around the use of an email address, be it online shopping, registering an account on any website or platform, accessing your banking app, sending and receiving files, etc.
In the past few years, people have also started getting weary of social media and have stopped using it as frequently. However, email will never go out of use, which is why it makes for an effective medium, and why nearly 80% of marketers said e-mail is vital to overall company success.
Email Marketing Gets the Message Across
A person’s inbox is one of the most direct ways to get your message across. With 91% of consumers saying they open their e-mail on a daily basis, there is more opportunity to be seen than with most other mediums.
Although Facebook has such a large user base, your organic outreach is often limited to 5% of the people who follow you, whereas you can send emails to a hundred thousand people and nearly 90% will receive them in their inbox.
With open rates hovering around 21%, there is massive reach potential within your cultivated audience.
ROI is the Name of the Game
There’s a lot to be said about not only the earning potential of a well executed e-mail marketing campaign, but the return on that investment that you can anticipate.
On average, marketers are seeing an ROI of $42 per $1 spent in e-mail marketing, according to a recent study. Much more lucrative than most advertising channels for sure.
Much of that is due to the fact that shoppers will spend 138% more when marketed to via e–mail.
Current Email Marketing Best Practices
As with any marketing medium, there are trends that come and go with time. Here are some of the current growing trends for e-mail marketers to be aware of.
Email Marketing on Mobile Devices
Smartphones and mobile devices have taken the world by storm, and people have are reading emails on their devices more frequently than laptop or PC. With smartphones account for over 60% of total e-mail opens, optimizing e-mails for mobile is a must.
This further increases the reliability and usefulness of email marketing, and allows marketers to tailor their content and design.
Within the first three seconds of opening a marketing email, users are able to decide whether they want to learn more about your products or services, or do business with you. To ensure that more and more users read your emails, you should apply some of these enhancements:
- Adding alt text
- Adding properly sized images
- Make use of buttons to encourage action
- Use a combination of text and images
- Avoid columns that may get distorted or certain smartphones
Artificial Intelligence/Automation
Artificial Intelligence is one of the best things to happen in the world of computing and information technology, and it is being used extensively to increase the outreach for businesses.
Similarly, AI is also being used in email marketing to gather information and customer data, which keeps rapidly changing day after day.
Considering that there is a myriad of data that marketers have to go through, artificial intelligence is the only tool that they can use to sift through this data and generate valuable insights, trends, patterns, and much more.
Additionally, automation is making it easier than ever to reach your audience quicker. 66% of marketing professionals say they utilize automation as a way to optimize send times.
By automating certain e-mails (like welcome and abandon cart), you can save time, increase sales, and drive more opens.
Personalized Emails
No matter which industry you belong to, personalized marketing content will always help you get your message across your target audience. Personalized emails are being used to ensure that customers can relate to the brand and to help build loyalty, and ultimately decide to conduct business with it.
Experts also suggest that when marketers make use of personalized emails, shoppers are 50% more likely to interact with them.
Furthermore, artificial intelligence is also being used to generate personalized emails based on ideal customer data and buyer intent, so that customers are even more compelled to buy your products or subscribe to your services.
Wrapping Up
E-mail marketing is one of the most effective tools an e-commerce store can utilize. This is the case because you are getting your message directly in front of people who have either already interacted with your site or those who have willingly enrolled for these communications.
ROI should always be the main driver of any marketing decision, and this medium is among the highest you can get.
Properly utilizing it in your plan will do wonders for your overall store success.