According to the Email Marketing Industry Census 2016, email marketing has once again delivered highest ROI (Return on investment), ahead of SEO (search engine optimisation).
Not only that, but The Cross Channel Marketing Report (2015) found 48% of businesses rate email as the second most important marketing channel after their website.
If, in an age obsessed with social media, you thought email was a slowing dying dinosaur it might be time to think again.
There are lots of reasons why email should be a priority that your small business does not ignore.
Here’s my top 5…
Be considered. By staying front of mind through regular emails you can be more confident that customers will remember you, and consider you, when they’re next in the market for your product or service.
Low cost to entry. There are many proven, trusted and often free third-party systems to use. These include Mailchimp, DotMailer and Campaign Monitor. With free design templates and an ability to upload and manage your digital database.
Max your existing investment. For those who have already invested in a Google friendly website, you’re likely to have a blog. This means you are already writing blog content and updating your site regulary. With email marketing you can deliver this new content directly into the hands of your target audience, not wait (hope) for them to stumble upon it.
Sales momentum. The reason you send out email marketing is because you want to drive subscribers to your website. Ultimately so that they are impressed by your expertise, make contact, or buy something. With strong CTAs (calls to action) email is proven to be incredibly effective at cultivating leads.
Test the water. Want to test out a promotion, personalised offers or gain insight into what a section of your customer base really thinks? Email marketing is perfect. Simple, jargon free measurement tools mean you can see, real-time, how your subscribers are responding and act accordingly.
I manage email marketing & blogging for lots of Essex based small business owners. Below is a snapshot of some recent features for N.Shelley of Billericay. Their database of 2,500 customers is incredibly loyal and the aim of my work is two fold. Drive traffic to their blog (this is where they demonstrate their expertise & inspire women to dress with confidence) and in store to purchase.
If you’d like to start to make the most of email marketing for your business get in touch. We can start with a friendly chat over a coffee.
jill@jillwillis.co.uk
