7 Reasons To Use Email Marketing

There are so many businesses that fear the unknown and are frightened of starting email marketing.  Although many are still hesitant to move away from their tried-and-true snail-mail methods, others are rapidly discovering that email marketing is one of the most effective means of generating sales.
When Shop.org surveyed retailers for its State of Retailing Online 2009 report, it found that email was the most-mentioned successful tactic overall.

The Ad Effectiveness Survey commissioned by Forbes Media in February/March 2009 placed email marketing second only to search engine optimization for generating conversions.

And research conducted in 2009 by the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) found that email outperforms all other forms of direct marketing. The bigger question, of course, is why? Of all the hundreds or even thousands of messages consumers are exposed to each day, why is email marketing so effective?

1.  Email Marketing Reaches Many!

It's hard to find someone that doesn't have at least one email address!  What this means for your business is that you can reach out to your entire customer and prospect base.

2.  Email Marketing Is Proactive!

Email marketing goes directly into your customer's email inbox! They don't have to search through a phone directory or newspaper to find your services!  With one click of a mouse, they can contact you directly to get a quote or more information about your services!

3. Email Marketing is Targeted

Most forms of advertising are based on the idea that if you hit thousands of people with your message, even though it may mean nothing to most of them, a few are likely to respond.

Email marketing is based on the idea of sending the right message directly to the right people based on their preferences, local market conditions, and other factors.

You can build a master list and then segment it by geographic location, marital status, gender, age, income, time of year, etc. Doing so eliminates a lot of the guesswork that makes other forms of marketing so inefficient.

4. Email Marketing Provides Data

We at Digital Street provide you with reports to show which emails or messages went through and which didn't, so you can improve your next campaign.  You are able to run split tests, sending one offer or message to half your list and a different one to the other half, so you can get a better feel for what your customers want and what your prospects buy from you!

5. Email Marketing Allows You to Engage

It's nice to get the immediate reaction from a customer who sees your ad just before going shopping. But your real goal is to build a relationship with a broader base of prospects so they think of you whenever it's time to hit the stores.

Email marketing allows you to do that by bringing them shopping tips, updates on trends, seasonal items, and special loyalty-program deals on a regular basis. It's a great way to engage them—and keep them engaged.

6. Email Marketing is Less Intrusive

Unlike telemarketing calls, email marketing doesn't interrupt a prior activity to deliver a message. Opening email is the activity your customers and prospects are engaged in when they see your message. If you've done a good job of building that relationship, they'll look forward to seeing what you have to say.

7. Email Marketing Works

According to the DMA's (Direct Marketing Association) research, email marketing generated a return on investment (ROI) of $43.62 for every dollar spent on it in 2009. You're unlikely to find that kind of ROI from any other form of marketing or advertising—the best reason of all to launch an email-marketing campaign.

When done correctly, email marketing allows you to become (and remain) visible to your customers and prospects with highly targeted messages at a minimal cost, all while delivering outstanding, measurable results that will ripple far beyond your pond of current customers.

About Michael Herman

Michael Herman, founder and president of Digital Street, has been actively engaged with innovating digital marketing strategies for over 15 years. Since founding Digital Street—a leading email and social media marketing software company—in 2008, Herman has strived to provide clients with email marketing solutions that allow them to create, track, survey and share campaigns on social media with increased efficiency and effectiveness. Providing companies with the tools to take brands further, Digital Street pushes the industry with enterprise-level technology that simplifies executing large-scale campaigns with expansive databases. Prior to founding Digital Street, Herman served over six years as the vice president of business development for IMC of New England. He specialized in developing strategies for database building and management, marketing automation services, inquiry management and other lead generation and brand-building activities that currently influence Digital Street’s leading-edge technology. Herman’s work experience with leading enterprises provides critical insight as Digital Street serves the needs of varying types of companies. He held an influential role working with the enterprise group at Dell and served as part of Apple’s e-commerce division. Additionally, Herman managed the relationship with Microsoft while working for marketing agency Invenio. An Austin native, Herman’s community involvement has always been a priority. He was instrumental in growing the professional education center at St. Edwards University, where he graduated, and currently serves as the internal communications committee chair for the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce. His responsibilities in his role at the chamber include managing internal and external communication plans as part of the development of marketing strategies for divisional projects.