How to Use Email Marketing to Increase Sales

The use of Email Marketing is a great tool for businesses to build relationships with potential customers to promote products and/or services. Emailing Marketing is one aspect of digital marketing that has a tremendous upside to your bottom-line if done the right way. Think of email marketing just as you would direct mail except, unlike direct mail that comes through the postal service, messages are sent electronically via email.

In an ever-changing digital landscape that has seen the use of social media explode in terms of both advertising and engagement, email marketing still rules at the top of the mountain according to several recent reports:

Source: www.omnicoreagency.com

The majority of companies focus on their day to day operations without ever considering how to utilize their website in a manner that will bring them additional clients or reengaging with their former ones. This is a mistake that we see often.

If your business is not collecting emails from former clients, start doing it immediately. Not only are you more likely to increase the LTV (lifetime value of your clients) but you are also creating a sales funnel for future sales that you might not even be aware of.

One simple and effective way to personalize your email is to offer individuals special deals on products/services on their birthdays. For instance, if you operate a restaurant or a photography studio, offer 50% off on their next purchase during their birthday month.

These personalized messages feel intimate but can be dispersed to your entire email list without having to tweak much in the form of changing up your content. Be creative and take advantage of email marketing the right way.

Dynamic email content is a unique strategy to have your emails stand out. Consider using vivid colors along with images and even videos. However, be careful not to overuse your links that direct users to your website. Try to limit the amount of links to just 1 or 2 on each respective email.

Of course, we don’t expect you to have this level of detail as the image displayed does, but it’s a good reference point to see how far your email design can go. However, if your industry is catered more towards an older demographic, then creating these types of emails should be thrown out the window. Instead, focus on basic emails that we are all too familiar with but with a personalized touch.

Email marketing software allows companies to reach out to their potential audience and create relationships with current and new customers through one of the most time-tested funnels. The ability to distribute your message in bulk form with save you a lot of time and effort. Most businesses have a limited budget which is why email marketing is such a great place to begin advertising compared to other areas such as PPC (pay-per-click) which has a steep learning curve and involves a larger budget.

Best Free Email Marketing Software Solutions for any Small Business

1. HubSpot Marketing – “HubSpot Marketing is a popular marketing solution that is designed to streamline the organization, tracking, and nurturing of leads for campaigns. As a product of HubSpot, one of the industry’s most trusted platforms, you can ensure that it doesn’t skimp on features.”
2. SendinBlue Email– Sedninblue lets you easily manage and organize your emails and marketing channels. The platform uses a simple drag and drop feature to help you easily build your emails in no time. They also offer attractive templates and focus on mobile-friendly emails without the need to add code.
3. MailChimp – Of course, no list is complete with Mailchimp. They are one of the largest, if not the largest email marketing software platforms  around. It’s easy to use interface, coupled with some of the best features available for the price of free, create a winning combination.

If done correctly, email marketing can have a vast return on your investment. However, most businesses still do email marketing the wrong way. This isn’t to say that you shouldn’t perform a bit of trial and error to see what works and what doesn’t for your respective company.

Most times, just testing out different variants can have amazing results. Still, these are our top 3 email marketing tips that you should avoid when doing your own experimentations.

1. Don’t buy email lists. We have come across clients who have decided for whatever reason that buying email lists are a good practice. Guess what, it’s not; it is just a big waste of time. New clients who have just entered the digital realm never deal with these issues because they have no idea that such a thing even exists and we love them for it. Sending unsolicited emails to strangers is bad practice and runs the risk of being labeled as spam.
2. Always follow the rules of the CAN-SPAM Act.  These rules focus on having non-deceptive subject lines, a way to unsubscribe and always posting the name of your business at the end of every email you send out.
3. Remember, your email list is not just a sales pitch on steroids. Instead, treat your list as it should be; with love and respect. Don’t use your email list to consistently sell to your target audience. Rather, provide them useful tips and share stories of other customers and their level of satisfaction with your product/service.

Final Thoughts: The goal of email marketing should be to engage and inform your potential customers/clients about your establishment and the plethora of benefits your business offers. However, since email marketing is being utilized by many larger companies, your message may be falling short of standing out. To get the attention of the user, personalize your messages and use dynamic content along with providing useful information. Take advantage of automatic tools to build email lists to grow your company moving forward.