Feel like emails are a thing of the past when it comes to marketing? Think again! Email marketing is actually still a critical marketing tool, according to research firm Statistica. Their recent reports show that, in 2020 alone, 306 million emails were sent and received worldwide – and that number is expected to increase to more than 376 billion daily emails over the coming years.
If you run a small business, this may not come as a surprise. The latest research from Campaign Monitor, an email marketing platform, found that 64% of small businesses use email marketing to reach and engage with customers. Despite this impressive number, there is actually a big group of small business owners that are confused as to how to best to utilize this marketing tool.
Of course, any marketing tool needs a strategy and plan to go along with it. For example, you don’t want to start sending out hundreds of emails from your company’s mail server. Just like you don’t want your readers to start tossing your email in the trash folder because they don’t get anything out of your content. These tips will help you ensure you’re getting the most out of email marketing for your small business:
Subscribe to a bulk email service:
To avoid a scuffle with your internet service provider, it’s best to subscribe to a bulk email service. This allows you to avoid sending thousands of emails out on your company’s mail server, and provides you with templates and assistance with your email campaigns. Since the primary job of these services is to make sure your email gets delivered, you can devote more time and attention elsewhere.
Focus on the quality of the content
With so much information pouring through inboxes, social media platforms, ads, etc., it is easy to feel like you have to push out as much content as possible just to keep up with everyone else. But that’s just it: with so much content overwhelming consumers, it’s even more important to make sure what you’re sharing is high quality. Keep your content short, engaging, valuable and most importantly non-promotional. Give your subscribers something to look forward to.
Focus on key metrics: clicks and bounces
The most effective email campaigns are the ones that follow good metrics. These metrics are provided by your email marketing service. The top two you should be focusing on are clicks and bounces. If an email is bounced, it means it failed to reach the intended recipient. Clicks refers to when the recipient goes through with clicking on the links you provide to follow up on information or read more of an article. In the words of Kati Hagan, small business marketing consultant, “You always want to engage the most engaged people.”
Pinpoint the right time to send emails
It is also important to test and see when the best time is to send an email. Just like social media marketing, there will be an ideal time to have your email hit your recipients inbox – a time when they are most likely to see it and read it. If 10 a.m. is not working for your audience, adjust and try a different time. If your audience seems to want more information more frequently, try sending emails as often as twice a month (or more) if once doesn’t seem like enough.
In short, the success of your email marketing boils down to content, timing and frequency. You have to test and discover what works best for your business type and audience. This ensures you have an engaged audience and your time, resources and funds are being focused on the right areas.
Author Bio: Michael Hollis is a Detroit native who has helped hundreds of business owners with their business loan solutions. He’s experimented with various occupations: computer programming, dog-training, accounting… But his favorite is the one he’s now doing — providing business funding for hard-working business owners across the country.
