Effective websites includes ways to ask customers to offer their email addresses. In the case of some advocacy organizations and even popular consumer lines, all the website owner has to do is ask for the address and customers give it in order to get the information and coupons they want.
In other cases, though, a website owner may collect the email address as part of an offer to send a coupon or report in return for the contact information. Customers should be told, as part of the offer that they may soon be hearing from the website owner again. They must know the physical location and be allowed the opportunity to opt out of the future emailings. Before launching an email newsletter, an business owner should become familiar with the Can Spam Act.
Build Relationships Using Email Newsletters
The primary reason for developing an email newsletter is to build new and develop loyal customers. An e-newsletter is sent to address the top needs of customers, whether it is for updated information or coupons that encourage repeat business. Smart businesses exceed customer expectations by offering consumers the information they know they need, as forecast by business reports and other research. Responsiveness and respect from customer needs builds reliable business relationships.
Email Marketing Software
There are a number of web-based e-newsletter software applications currently available. Constant Contact currently enjoys a large volume of business, but there are many others that may have volume pricing or campaign response tools that better meet the needs of a particular business.
Formula for Email Marketing Success
In developing an email marketing strategy, remember that the e-newsletter will only be read if it meets the customers’ needs. Think about the typical customer's top needs. Keep a file with questions and ideas about the questions and requests received. Since an email campaign is for the long term, don’t try to answer every need in every email. Answer one need or offer one tip a week (or biweekly or monthly, depending upon the volume of email newsletters that is right for the particular business market).
Follow the solution or news tip with an offer. The offer can be a coupon to buy online or in-store at a discount or as an incentive with purchase. Ask for a response to a one-question poll and give respondents a coupon in return. Offer a quote.
Send emails at various times until the optimal time for customer response is noticed. Constant Contact and similar email campaign software allows email senders to see how many emails of each issue were opened. Readership may be high midday, when workers are procrastinating, ready to go to lunch or just back from lunch. In some fields, readership may be high first thing in the morning or during prime time hours of the evening. Most emailers need to experiment with several issues to find the sweet spot.
Track the response to your email campaign by tallying returned coupons or poll results. Be creative and have fun with emails. If the enthusiasm is evident, customers will look forward to opening and reading a cheery email.
Good email marketing drives customers into a store or onto a website to see the latest products, take advantage of sales, and try the latest recommended service … that they might not have thought about if the e-newsletter had not told them.
Ask Email Newsletter Recipients to Forward to a Friend
Ask customers to forward the e-newsletter to someone else who might be interested in the content. This word of mouth will build business. As part of the Can Spam Act, customers may also opt-out of e-newsletters. When opt-outs are high, a business owner might call in a consultant to objectively analyze the situation.
But don’t give up. Continue to tweak and improve, because email marketing is part of the business climate future. It will be more frequently demanded by cost-conscious and green-aware consumers.
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