Happy New Year! And welcome to 2012! Of course you are going to want to keep your business moving forward in the coming year, and part of that process will include staying on the cutting edge of marketing techniques, especially as they relate to your email lists. The last thing you want to do is fall off the crest of the wave and end up in the backwash of outdated or ineffective email marketing techniques.
Sixty five million years ago, the dinosaurs looked up and no doubt wondered about that big rock hurtling their way, and businesses that fail to stay abreast of current email marketing trends are destined for a similar extinction. Technology is advancing at a rapid pace, and the phrase “that’s so 20 minutes ago” while often made in jest, actually carries with it a great deal of truth.
So, equip yourself for the coming year by exploring some of the latest and most effective options for enhancing your marketing efforts.
Text Marketing: Texting is the logical evolution of email, providing an even more instantaneous connection. Some of the newer programs send automated text messages to customers in their database, offering a gift card for a given amount in exchange for answering a question such as “What kind of car wash products do you use?” The answer given allows the company to even more accurately target the customer with specific deals or products.
Mobile Optimization: With the advent of the Smartphone and tablet devices in recent years, fewer people are spending their time retrieving emails by sitting in front of a computer screen. Mobile commerce is expected to increase significantly in the coming year, following a threefold increase in 2011. More and more retailers are optimizing their sites for mobile transactions, and more complex marketing efforts such as up selling, cross selling, and other promotions are being generated across mobile channels
Product Subscriptions: This technique allows customers to subscribe to receive a given product or service at regular intervals for a prearranged price. This allows the merchant to forecast revenues, establish recurring sales, and provide more effective inventory management (since they know approximately how much of a given product will be going out every month).
Triggered Emails: It sounds like we’ve wandered away from the e-mail field, but we haven’t gone very far. Triggered e-mails are messages sent to coincide with an event or announcement or product release, and were a very successful marketing tool during 2011. Triggered e-mails are sent based upon customer behavior or interaction, or lack thereof. Say a customer shops on a given site, fills his shopping cart with say, golf equipment, and then abandons the online cart without checking out. An email offering special discounts or other incentives may be sent to the customer to encourage him to return and complete his transactions. Triggered e-mails may also go out a week or so after a purchase has been made, offering special deals on related products.
Video Content: Online videos have been a part of email marketing campaigns for the last several years, but the medium still has not reached its full potential. The average internet user watches more than 20 hours of video content per month, so any company not utilizing video in their presentations is missing a rather large piece of the marketing puzzle.
Video is one of the best ways to present a product or service, and is generally accepted favorably by the majority of consumers. It offers easily acceptable and understandable product information, and is easily shared across various platforms such as Google+ or Facebook. This of course brings us to….
Social Media: In today’s society, if you don’t have a Facebook page, you’re almost looked at like a leper. With such an across the board acceptance of social media platforms, it is almost equally mind boggling that merchants would fail to take proper advantage of such an effective communication avenue. Emails should be properly marked with Facebook or Twitter icons, along with an invitation for your customers to “like” or “follow” your company. Of course any social media page should provide prominent opt ins for customers to submit their contact information as they wish. Done correctly, exposure through social media can spread your brand name almost exponentially, reaching far more people with a minimum outlay of time and effort.
The Good Old Fashioned Inbox: This may be a misnomer, as the e-mail inbox is a rapidly evolving tool, one that is becoming ever more effective at catching and filtering out spam. You will also find yourself competing with other companies who are utilizing the same approach. This is one area where you cannot ignore the power of quality, relevant content, as that is what will guarantee that your message will actually be read. Engage your clients and you will go much further than flashy slogans or over the top promises.
The New Year always brings with it the promise of a fresh start. Make sure your company takes the next step forward in its e-mail marketing strategies and enjoy a prosperous and successful 2012!
