Email marketing software is a little bit like a gym membership. You buy it with the best of intentions, but when there is so much other stuff going on in your life, it can be difficult to find the motivation to put in the time and effort to see any significant benefits.
This is a real shame because, email marketing isn’t difficult. Once you have your templates created and your lists in place, you can create and send an email in no time at all. In fact, if you have a spare hour or two (the time it would take you to go to the gym), you could send a campaign today. Like working out at the gym, we believe that “little and often” is the best approach to start developing a healthy email marketing regimen. Sometimes you just need to give yourself a kick and get on with it. Here are eight ideas to get you started.
8 Emails You Can Send Today
- The New Thing: So you’ve recently launched a new innovative product or secured some brand stock. Don’t sit on it, because it won’t sell itself – tell your best customers (your email subscribers) all about it and watch it fly off the shelves.
- The Midweek Slump: Is there a day of the week or a month of the year when things get a little bit quiet? Time-limited voucher codes are a great way of evening out those slow sales periods and encouraging new trade.
- The Thought Leader: Have you published a new blog post, white paper or eBook that deserves more traffic? Email will not only drive more eyeballs toward your content, it will help increase social shares and may even get the phone ringing more often.
- The Perception of Scarcity: Nobody likes missing out on a good offer. If you have limited stock of a particular item, tell the world about it via email, and watch it disappear.
- The End-of-the-Line Sale: Every product has a life cycle. Don’t be left holding stock that costs you money in ever-decreasing margin and storage. Sometimes it’s best to sell (even at a loss) and invest in new stock/ideas.
- The Survey: Get to know your customers a little bit better. What do they like about you? What do they hate about you? Online tools like SurveyMonkey enable you to set up quick and easy surveys in no time. Sweeten the deal and encourage participation by offering a small prize or incentive (such as a discount off the next purchase) for customers who fill out the survey.
- The Re-engagement Offer: If you have customers who have not darkened your door for some time, it’s time to send them a re-engagement email. Sometimes, just a great offer (free shipping, insurance or training) will be enough to remind them that they really should pay you a visit.
- The Cleanser: If customers really have become disengaged, give them one more chance to show that they still care about your business or organization. If they fail to respond, cut them from your list. Email marketing might be low cost, but when you send to people who no longer want to receive your emails, this approach is very expensive.
Great email marketing is habit forming – we like to think it’s a good habit (like going to the gym).
This abridged post first appeared on the iContact Email Marketing Blog.
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