Just about every digital marketing article you will come across outlines the merits of social media and organic traffic from Google. While these are great ways to connect with consumers, we believe that email marketing does not always get the love it deserves.
In fact, quite a few of the experts at Enormous Elephant think that email may be better for your business than social media. We are an email marketing agency that leverages every tool available to help our clients grow.
Read on to find out why email just might be a better option than social media for many marketing tasks.
You Control the List
When you’re marketing on social media, you can encourage people to follow your page. However, the decision to follow through is ultimately up to them. This can make it difficult to expand your influence, especially when your social media page is in its infancy.
Email marketing allows you to control who gets what content. You can add or remove users to various distribution lists. It is easy to collect email addresses with a variety of outreach marketing tactics. You can quickly amass hundreds or even thousands of addresses…just make sure that you’re marketing to the people who want to receive your content.
Great ROI
If you can get users to actually open and read emails, email marketing can have a great return on investment. Sending emails is efficient and inexpensive. When you create solid content that will connect with consumers quickly — especially if your team includes a talented writer — you’ll find that email is an effective solution for marketing.
It’s Easy to Collect User Feedback
Over time, customer perception and expectations can change. It is essential that you stay ahead of the curve so that you can be responsive to these changes. Email marketing allows you to do just that by collecting user feedback.
Every time a consumer makes a purchase, send a brief survey to obtain feedback. Keep the survey brief and to the point. At the end of each survey, include an open-ended question that allows the user to enter a detailed response. This question may read something like, “What can we do to improve your experience in the future?”
Take an honest look at your business when you receive negative feedback. Ask yourself if a customer is being overly critical or if there is a legitimate shortcoming in your business model. Leverage this information to create an optimized customer experience.
Content Can Be Personalized
Short of sending someone a direct message, social media marketing can be somewhat impersonal. Your content appears on someone’s feed, and it usually includes broad material directed at a particular advertising goal.
Even if you use a template for your email marketing campaigns, make sure to include each recipient’s name. This small effort can be automated, but it will add a personal touch to every email.
While it may not seem like it makes an impact, it can actually boost customer engagement. In fact, 94% of advertisers experience better engagement when they use personalized emails.
If you want to take things a step further, incorporate products or services that consumers may like in your marketing emails. You can use data from their purchasing history and recommend products accordingly. This process can also be automated with the right software.
Should I Use an Email Marketing Agency?
Many businesses find themselves debating about whether they should hire an email marketing agency or oversee advertising themselves. There is no one-size-fits-all answer. It depends on several factors, such as:
- Overall marketing experience
- Long-term goals
- Familiarity with email marketing software
- The success of past campaigns
For instance, if you have successfully run email marketing campaigns in the past, then you may not need to partner with a digital advertising firm. However, if your previous attempts have produced underwhelming results or you want to scale up your campaigns, then you should definitely consult with an email marketing agency.
If you are still uncertain, book a free consultation with a firm. Ask plenty of questions and review the agency’s past work. This should tell you whether a given company might be the right fit for your business.