In today’s internet-driven economy, where many consumers shop and do much of their banking and other financial transactions online, it is imperative that small- to medium-sized business owners stake out a presence in the cyber sphere in order to capture their fair share of online transactions. One surefire method to tap into the power of the internet-based consumer market is to have an integrated email marketing campaign that uses an email newsletter.
Many studies have verified the importance and need for email and internet-based marketing activities. McKinsey and Company states that email marketing is nearly 40 times more effective at garnering new customers than the combined marketing force of using Facebook and Twitter. The Direct Marketing Association has also released data showing that email marketing resulted in 66 percent of online consumers making purchases because of an email message, with two age groups being the most influenced — the 18-24, and 45-54 year old age group — with 65 and 71 percent being influenced by an email marketing message, respectively. Additionally, a survey done by Harris Interactive showed that a stunning 81 percent of online shoppers stated they would be somewhat likely to buy products resulting from a targeted email. Small- to medium-sized businesses trying to capture a piece of this online market simply cannot ignore the numbers.
On top of these statistics, there are five other reasons why small- and medium-sized business owners should initiate an email newsletter:
- Uniqueness. Email newsletters can be fashioned and tailored to any type of consumer. They can be short with stunning visuals, long with links to products and services, or a mixture of both. It is a versatile medium and business owners should be as creative as possible to catch the online consumer’s attention.
- Welcome. Another noteworthy attribute about email newsletters is that consumers are more likely to read them. And because of that, make sure you provide them with the resources they need and capitalize on the reasons they signed up for the newsletter in the first place.
- Increase Visits to Website: Any business today should have a website that promotes the business and what it is offering. Effective email newsletters that prompt potential customers to “check-out” other services can drive traffic to a website. It also serves the purpose of continually bringing consumers back.
- Personalization. There are a number of email newsletter programs that can personalize messages and identify what their interests may be for future reference. Making consumers feel important by using their name and knowing what they want to purchase help business owners increase their online sales. An example of this is Williams-Sonoma, a retailer of home-goods. The company reported a tenfold improvement in response rates because it used personalized emails based on a consumer’s shopping behavior.
- Measurable Results. Email newsletter campaigns can provide an SMB business owner with quantitative data about which parts of a website consumers are visiting and which products they’re looking at. Feedback is imperative to maximize a business’s online presence. Email newsletters can effectively help provide an overall picture of what’s going on in terms of consumer experience and preferences while at a website.
Whatever the objective is for using an email newsletter, the important thing to remember is that they are useful tools for making a business stand out from the thousands of companies that have the same service. Email Marketing campaigns are essential components of any effective marketing strategy in today’s competitive marketplace. Such campaigns can build relationships, gather valuable data, improve a company’s return on investment, and motivate consumers to keep coming back for more.
So why don’t you maximize your business’s presence and develop a powerful email marketing campaign using email newsletters?
