We have all seen different forms of digital marketing come and go, but there is one that has stood the test of time: Email.
A myriad of social media platforms have risen and fallen, and for those who have continued to gain traction – AKA power – their algorithms force us to keep up with best practices. Enough so to make anyone go mad. If that wasn’t bad enough already, most of these platforms are now requiring users to pay additional fees just to get your posts in front of those who already choose to follow and engage with you. And yet, because of the popularity and low cost of social media, business owners continue to invest their resources into posting on their social accounts, while vastly overlooking the benefits of email marketing.
As a serial entrepreneur and self-help junkie who has been active on both sides of email marketing, I can confidently say that it is without a doubt, the most effective and reliable way to grow and sustain your business. I believe this so much that I spent time and money to become certified by both Constant Contact and Keap (formerly Infusionsoft) so that I can impart this knowledge to other business owners and help service their needs. I believe wholeheartedly that if you want to succeed in this digital age, having an email list is no longer optional.
But you may be wondering, does email marketing really fit my needs? No matter what industry you are in, my answer will always be yes! Here are my top five reasons why.
You Own Your List
Firstly, and most importantly, we have to give major weight to the fact your contacts are, in fact, yours. This means that the people you are reaching out to have given you permission to engage with them and you are free to do this however you see fit (within legal parameters, of course).
With social media, you have zero control of the contacts that are following you. Guess who owns the right to those… Yep, the platform.
You Are Reaching an Audience You Know Is Interested in What You Have to Say
When someone signs up for your email list, they do so at will. There is a reason they gave you permission to add them to your list and most often it is because you are offering a product, service, or expertise the reader is already interested in. Engaging with an audience who wants what you have to offer is key when converting them to paying customers or clients.
The Return on Investment is Unbeatable
Email Marketing is consistently ranked among the most profitable of marketing strategies with an average ROI being $38 for every dollar invested. Invest a dollar and make $38. Who doesn’t want that? Email marketing has three times the conversion rate of Social Media. There is no denying the numbers.
Source/s: Litmus; Direct Marketing Association; Pew Research Center, 2015; Forrester Research, 2014; Forbes.com; SalesForce.com Constant Contact Small Business Growth Survey
Metrics
When you send an email via an email marketing platform such as Constant Contact, you will collect data that is otherwise unavailable to you via traditional email. Open rates. Click-throughs. Opt-outs. This is information that you can use to improve your messaging and adjust the time of day and day of the week when you send your emails. Using this data will open windows of opportunity for you and if you pay close attention, you can glean a lot of insight into your audience’s interests and activities.
Deliver Targeted Messages and Drive Revenue
Imagine having a list of valuable contacts and categorizing them based on their interests, geography, prior history of activity, and so much more. Well, that is exactly what email marketing allows you to do. You can segment your lists and send relevant messages only to the readers who would be interested. For example, let’s say you are a pet shop owner and you have a sale on cat products. With email marketing, you have the ability to send an email to all your contacts you know who own cats. Doing so prevents you from spamming your readers with information they would find irrelevant.
Whenever someone comes to me and asks where they should focus their digital marketing efforts, I always start with email marketing. The benefits are vast and impossible to ignore.
Regardless of the imminent advances in digital marketing, the benefits and advantages of email will persist. If you want to level-up your marketing efforts, or increase your sales, you need to make email marketing a priority in your business. Start now!
About the Author
Camille Campins-Adams is a writer, online marketer and serial-entrepreneur. She is the co-founder of The Storytellers Alliance and Simply Sofia. Camille holds a Master of Arts in Creative Writing from St. Leo University and a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Miami. She and her husband, David, met in middle-school and live in Odessa, FL with their two rambunctious boys and three fur babies. During her spare time, Camille can be found diving into a good book, writing her memoir, and practicing yoga.
