What is email marketing?
It is the practice of sending sales letters or customer newsletters by email. While some individuals think it can be annoying, many businesses find it a cost effective marketing tool. Email communications are often more effective than printed direct mail, because a reader can click on a link and go straight to the sender's web site.
Why is it important?
When implemented correctly, the return on investment (ROI) from e-Marketing can far exceed that of traditional marketing strategies. Email marketing is critical in generating the maximum profits from your website visitors.
Whether you're a "bricks and mortar" business or a concern operating purely online, the Internet is a force that cannot be ignored. It can be a means to reach literally millions of people every year. It's at the forefront of a redefinition of way businesses interact with their customers.
Generally, the main purpose of email marketing is to reach their target audience as quickly and as direct as possible. They need to reach their target market so as to promote their products and services that would benefit their customers.
If you have the art of writing a killing sales letter then email marketing can mean profits for you. If you are not writing a sales letter then a simple newsletter about new arrivals or new features on your website may also mean returning visitors.
The reason why email marketing has grown in such unprecedented rate is based on the fact that people in the virtual community are always hungry for information. They subscribe to information that they are interested in.
Highly recommend you not to engage in cold selling. This is considered spam. If enough people report your address as spam, you will be banned from ISPs and search engines. By offering something of high perceived value absolutely free to your website visitors, in exchange for their name and email address, you can capture a much larger number of people into your marketing system.
If your email does not carry any valuable information, your whole purpose of email marketing campaign is defeated. Direct email marketing campaign keeps you in touch with your customers. They remember you not by your face but your website. Your website acts as the missing link between product showcase and the sales.
In this manner, you can continue to promote your products and services in which they are interested in because they have opted to subscribe in your mailing list. Hence, whatever it is that you feed them, chances are, they will most likely respond positively.
Responsible email marketing is based on the idea of permission. This is a complex issue and the subject of intense debate in the marketing community. Essentially, you need an email address owner's permission before you can send them a commercial email. If you don't have this permission, then the recipients of your mail may well regard your message as spam; unsolicited commercial (bulk) email.
It's important to stress that anyone considering email marketing must read up on the subject of permission and spam. If you don't understand the importance of permission and the risks of ignoring it, then you could be heading for commercial disaster.
Email marketing is so popular because:
• Sending email is much cheaper than most other forms of communication
• email lets you deliver your message to the people (unlike a website, where the people have to come to your message)
• email marketing has proven very successful for those who do it right |
Added: Tue Jan 30, 2007 4:27 am GMT 