If you're looking for a highly effective, yet low-cost way
to up-sell or cross-sell current customers, consider setting up an
e-mail marketing program. Since it can cost as much as five times
more to win a new customer than to keep an old one, retention
programs using e-mail are a solid small-business marketing tactic.
E-mail programs to in-house lists perform at least as well as
direct mail--and often considerably better--without the postage or
printing costs. And results are easy to track and measure.
Here are three steps that'll help you build a successful
e-mail marketing campaign:
1. Build your list. Today, having a terrific website is
simply not enough. You need a marketing program that drives traffic
there and keeps visitors coming back. And since e-mail to rental
lists is often kicked out as spam, it's essential to build your
own opt-in list of customers and prospects. These are individuals
who have visited your site and given you permission to contact
them.
Content Continues Below
Prominently post a sign-in box or button on your home page
accompanied by brief copy that induces visitors to join your list.
This simple one-click button or single-entry form should click
through to a more in-depth form where you can gather demographic
and other pertinent information. To induce visitors to register,
you can offer entry in a sweepstakes or contest, special
notification of sales or new products, a free newsletter, access to
members-only content, or even the ability to post product reviews
or participate in message boards. Brick-and-mortar retailers can
also capture e-mail information by asking for e-mail addresses from
customers at checkout. And service businesses can contact satisfied
clients and gain permission to add them to an e-mail list.
As you build your list, it's easy to add the e-mail
addresses, names and demographic information to an in-house
database using contact management software. Affordable
off-the-shelf software products, such as ACT! 2005 from Best
Software and GoldMine 6.5 by FrontRange, will help you track all
sales and marketing activities as well as maintain vital
demographic and sales information.
2. Send the right message. For many e-mail marketers,
it's beneficial to alternate promotional messages with
softer-sell communications, such as newsletters. This helps avoid
list burnout and may increase the frequency with which you can
successfully communicate with your customers and prospects. The
most crucial element is to make the content of your e-mails
relevant to the needs of your recipients, because off-target
e-mails and those that come too frequently are generally treated as
spam.
E-newsletters allow you to share information with your
customers, position your company or yourself as an expert in your
field, introduce new products and services, and get vital feedback
from customers. There are two types of editorial styles: short
blurbs with links to longer articles, or one major article
interspersed with ads or promotional links. The key to success is
to make your newsletter content so compelling that customers and
prospects will look forward to receiving it. Choose a name for your
e-newsletter that communicates something important to the
subscriber, and keep your design, tone and format consistent from
one issue to the next.
In addition to e-newsletters, e-mails that include sales
promotions, coupons, customer reward information and invitations to
events are generally well received. Nearly one-third of respondents
to a recent DoubleClick consumer e-mail study said they'd made
an immediate online purchase as a result of receiving an e-mail,
and close to one-third said they'd clicked on messages for
information and later made an online purchase as a result.
3. Design and track like a pro. The two elements that
most dramatically affect your e-mail "open rate" are the
"from" and "subject" lines. So it's
essential to make it clear the e-mail is coming from you, a valued
source of information. And the subject line must contain a benefit,
or at least convey what your e-mail contains--otherwise your open
rate will plummet. Comply with all CAN SPAM regulations by
including your company's name and physical address in the body
of the message as well as an unsubscribe option at the bottom.
When it comes to design and execution of your e-mail campaign,
it's not necessary to go it alone. In fact, it's difficult
for an entrepreneur to send more than 50 e-mails at a time, since
higher numbers are usually blocked as spam by ISPs. Fortunately,
e-mail marketing services that cater to small businesses, such as
Constant Contact or those available through major web hosting
services like Interland, will generally e-mail up to 5000
subscribers for $50 a month or less. The service will also maintain
and clean your list by removing bounces and addresses of people who
choose to unsubscribe.
Choose an e-mail marketing service that provides design
templates for e-newsletters, promotional offers and coupons that
are easy to customize. Since only about 56 percent of internet
users have broadband, it's essential to design full-color, high
impact HTML newsletters or promotions but still give recipients the
option of receiving a text-only version.
Best of all, most e-mail marketing services will provide all
your campaign metrics, which are vital to evaluating the
effectiveness of your mailings. You'll be able to identify who
opened your e-mail and clicked on each link. Then you can fine-tune
your key elements--from your offers to your subject lines--for
maximum ROI, and compare your results from one mailing to the
next.
Kim T. Gordon is the "Marketing" coach at Entrepreneur.com and a multifaceted marketing
expert, speaker, author and media spokesperson. Over the past 26
years, she's helped millions of small-business owners increase
their success through her company, National
Marketing Federation Inc.