6 Benefits of Email Marketing That’ll Make You Rethink Your Digital Strategy
When launching your digital marketing strategy, which gets you the most return on your investment — social media marketing, PPC, or email?
Research shows that email marketing is one of the most lucrative of all digital channels, earning $38 for every $1 spent. But a high ROI isn’t the only benefit of email marketing. Email allows you to capture a wide audience of potential customers, personalize communications, and drive traffic to your website or e-commerce platform.
Below, we explain why email automation is a must-use marketing channel for small business owners. In addition, we’ll dive into a few affordable, easy-to-use tools to help launch your first email marketing campaign.
6 Benefits of Email Marketing Every Business Owner Should Know
Not sure if launching an email marketing strategy is worth your time? Keep reading. Below, we dive into six benefits of email marketing that could significantly impact your business.
1. It Can Help Reach a Broad Pool of Potential Customers
When launching any marketing strategy, one of the first questions to ask yourself is, “Where does our target market hang out online?” The answer to that question will help determine which channels are most worth your time.
While TikTok is most popular amongst Gen Zers, Boomers are drawn to Facebook, and corporations leverage LinkedIn, email helps target…well, everyone. According to Statistica, there are 4 billion email users worldwide (a figure that’s expected to grow to 4.6 billion by 2025). In addition, 99% of users check their email every single day, and some check it upwards of 20 times per day.
No matter your product, service, or respective industry, the overwhelming research states that those within your target audience have an email account. And chances are, they’ll see your incoming messages the same day you fire off your campaign.
2. You Can Personalize Your Marketing Efforts to the Individual
Let’s do a quick refresher on the difference between marketing and sales: Marketing encompasses one-to-many communications, while sales is strictly a one-to-one relationship. While marketing is praised for capturing a wider audience in a shorter timespan, it misses the personal touch of a direct sale.
Email marketing, on the other hand, brings the best of both worlds.
With email marketing, you can personalize each piece of mass content written to the individual level. You can write an umbrella campaign that targets your entire email list, then personalize the subject line, salutation, or even body copy of each message. That way, your marketing blast reads like it’s a personal letter written from a trusted friend, rather than a sales pitch.
3. You’re Not Dependent on an Algorithm
When it comes to social media, content marketing, and SEO, your efforts can often feel stunted. You put the time, effort, and internal resources into producing high-quality content, only to have it get little-to-no reach.
One of the largest benefits of email marketing is there’s no algorithm changes (actually, there’s no algorithm, period). As long as your contact list boasts a high deliverability rate (i.e., above 88%), then your message will land in your recipients’ inboxes.
Now, whether or not your audience opens that message is entirely up to you. To help boost your open rate and get more eyes on your content, try A/B testing subject lines to see which message best resonates with your readers. You can also tweak your cadence (how often you email your list), time sent, and preview text — i.e., all things you have control over, that’s not dependent on besting an algorithm.
4. It Helps Build Brand Awareness and Nurture New Leads
Picture the last time you had a face-to-face conversation with a potential customer. Did you immediately start selling them on your latest product line? Of course not. You spent time asking questions, getting to know the individual’s wants, needs, and pain points.
Email marketing takes the above scenario and places it into a digital format. When a subscriber joins your list (whether through a form on your website or enticing opt-in) they’re probably not ready to make a purchase. Instead, you can nurture the relationship by sending high-quality email content on a regular basis.
Sales experts state that it can take up to eight touch points to make a sale. Therefore, you’ll want to build a marketing automation drip campaign that helps move leads throughout the sales funnel, from first interaction to buying a new product. Start with a welcome email, introducing your company, then offer a series of valuable content to position yourself as a thought leader in the industry. That way, when they’re ready to make a purchase, your service will stay top of mind.
5. It’s Cost-Effective and (Relatively) Easy to Use
One of the top benefits of email marketing is that it fits well within your small business budget.
While pricing varies heavily depending upon which service provider you use, you’ll find that many email marketing platforms are relatively affordable. There are plenty of email marketing software options built exclusively for small businesses — many of which come with a free trial or free plan to get started.
Plus, as long as you use email on a regular basis, many of these marketing tools are easy to get up and running. Many platforms offer drag-and-drop builders to help launch your first campaign, an easy-to-digest metrics dashboard to track engagement, and plenty of email templates to build branded emails.
6. It Can Drive Website Traffic and Help Land Your Next Sale
Finally, one of the most well-known advantages of email marketing is the high return on investment.
A well-crafted campaign helps drive traffic to your site, helping to push new customers across the finish line. With promotional emails, you can easily send special coupon codes, abandoned cart emails, or suggested products to help increase your conversion rate.
In addition, emails help deepen customer relationships post-sale. Once a buyer makes their first purchase, you can follow up with a quick survey or other message to ensure they’re happy with their new product or service. Or, you can send an automated email with a special promo code for a percentage off their next purchase, to thank them for supporting your business. Finally, you could even send a one-off transactional email on the anniversary of their first purchase, thanking them for being a loyal customer and offering a special discount code or gift.
Launch Your First Email Marketing Campaign With Gumbamail
Research shows that email is one of the most lucrative forms of marketing. However, a high ROI isn’t the only benefit of email marketing. With the right strategy, email can help drive traffic to your site, increase sales, and deepen relationships with your customers.
Before you launch your first campaign, you need the right tools. Gumbamail is the easy-to-use, affordable email marketing plugin built exclusively for small business owners. Gumbamail works in conjunction with your existing Gmail account, so it’s incredibly easy to launch your first campaign.
With Gumbamail, you get advanced reporting metrics, over 800+ pre-designed templates, and a drag-and-drop editor to craft your email newsletter. Plus, Gumbamail offers a free plan, allowing you to send your first campaign without dipping into your marketing budget.
Ready to see how Gumbamail can help transform your digital marketing efforts? Download the plugin to get started.