Email marketing has been used to reach large audiences since 1978, when ARPANET was used to begin sending mass messages.
Almost half a century later, and despite the rise of behemoth social media channels, sending messages over the internet is still relevant, driving a large share of revenue for many brands. Direct communication via email allows organizations to build relationships with audiences by sharing passions and perspectives, providing information about products and services, and positioning themselves as experts and thought leaders. One touch, however, is rarely enough.
In marketing, the oft-quoted rule of seven states that repeated exposure drives purchase decisions — specifically, a potential customer should be exposed to a brand message over at seven omnichannel touchpoints across. People need time to develop familiarity with a brand – who they are, what they do, and why they are better than the competition.
Regularly showing up in someone’s inbox keeps brands top-of-mind, without spending thousands of dollars on paper mailers (so many get tossed immediately), or on social media strategies that require constant attention testing and may not encourage engagement.
At Practical Effects, we understand the power of a strong email marketing strategy. Email is a key component of a well-developed omnichannel marketing plan, and in this article we share a few of the challenges and benefits of investing in email marketing as a part of your brand’s budget.
Email marketing comes with its own unique set of challenges, some of which can plague young brands especially.
First, while sending an email sounds like a simple task, inboxes today receive an increasing number of emails over time. Standing out is challenging, yet crucial. A compelling subject line can be the only opportunity to drive open rates and engagement, along with any credibility a brand has earned over time in terms of interesting content, quality of offers, and sale values.
Building a subscriber base can be time consuming, too. Simply buying email lists is bad practice and typically illegal, and usually means the message will end up in recipients’ spam folders. Individuals must opt-in to receive the emails – this is preferable because open rates are much higher from those who have chosen to engage with a brand compared to those receiving an email they did not ask for. This is where young brands can struggle, as building a list takes time.
Content creation also takes time — it’s not enough to only share the announcement of a sale or special offer. Email strategy must be approached like a blossoming relationship: brand and recipient must get to know each other before anyone makes a move (or a purchase). Providing informative or entertaining content is key to driving more customers down funnel to sale.
For better or for worse, social media has become a cornerstone in the lives of many Americans. It’s where people catch up with out-of-town friends and family, ask for recommendations, and scroll for the welcome distraction of cute puppies and drool-worthy recipes.
While maintaining a presence on social media is important for businesses, only an estimated 2.2% of a brand’s Facebook fan base will find your posts organically. Unless a brand has already developed thousands of followers or is investing in awareness advertising, the time and investment to produce quality content on social media can deliver a poor return on investment. There is a correct approach to social media, but primary audience engagement is not it.
On the other hand, email marketing can easily and consistently place messages directly in front of a specific audience. In 2023, there were more than 4.2 billion active email users across the world, and in the United States, 99% of them check their inbox at least once a day. The likelihood of someone reading an email after they subscribed is, at a minimum, five times more likely than someone engaging with a social media post conveying the same message.
Capturing demographic or preference data from a subscribed audience is a powerful way to continue developing a brand-consumer relationship. Information from polls or checkouts can ensure messages are relevant to the recipient group. Often, brands have a very specific target audience in mind, but other profiles may engage with the brand as well.
Shifting specific key words or phrases between audiences can ensure the reader feels the message is meant just for them, and in turn making clickthrough more likely.
Customization can boost open and click-through rates. Customer names and even tailored product mentions help the reader feel special, and therefore more likely to engage.
Thoughtful email marketing messages are shareable. Engaged readers appreciate valuable opportunities or informative content, and are not only more likely to click through links to the website, but also to share the message with their networks. This drives meaningful user traffic, and makes viewers more likely to spend more time on the website and explore other web pages. This in turn boosts search engine rankings.
Sharable content also helps generate leads. Readers typically share messages to individuals who are likely interested in what a brand has to say, increasing the chance of adding organic subscribers to the brand’s email list. Furthermore, it is possible to capture new subscribers and funnel specific welcome content to build new relationships and keep them engaged.
Email marketing and publishing platforms like Klaviyo, Constant Contact, and even Substack or Beehiiv include key metrics for marketers to determine campaign success. A/B testing allows creators to sample a small group of subscribers to test subject line performance, increasing the open rate possibilities of a larger group. Poor-performing campaigns can be identified quickly, and data-driven shifts can optimize results of subsequent campaigns. For brands with multiple goals, it’s easy to track and prioritize audience growth, email open rates, promotional clickthrough rates, and more — measurement for email is as robust as it is for ad channels.
Email marketing can create an average revenue growth rate of 20 to 25% — especially in ecommerce — with very successful campaigns accounting for 30 to 35% of revenue. During holiday months, this percentage can climb as high as 60%, and brands can experiment with specific strategies to achieve these kinds of results. Once established, a brand-specific email playbook can deliver serious return on investment.
To begin reaping the benefits of email marketing, it’s important to set up marketing campaign flows relevant to the target audience. Much of this can run on autopilot. Various campaigns can drip content that greets new subscribers, reminds shoppers of items left in their virtual cart, encourages testimonials, offers education on new products, and more. When implemented correctly, these emails capture the attention of readers with specific messaging at the moments when they need to hear it.
A challenge with establishing multiple custom marketing flows is the amount of time investment and customer insights expertise required. Writing content, designing templates, and developing the perfect graphics is a full-time job. Operators and founders especially don’t have the time to own a content creation pipeline when managing operations, production, finance, and everything else in a business. Even within a marketing team, the focus may be on developing a strong social media presence or running targeted ad campaigns — adding a new channel means adding fresh headcount. Fortunately, it’s easy to partner with experts on this type of work.
Founders are not in business because they love writing sales emails. Even brand managers can’t spend every day in the details of a single communication channel. Partnering with experts elevates brand marketing efforts, gives leadership teams time to do the work they love, and empowers brands to take advantage of fresh creative and strategic thinking to tackle the nuances and logistics of each messaging channel.
Experts in the email marketing field will develop bespoke strategies for each business. Different products, goals, and budgets inform strategy and allow teams to align tactics with brand needs and brand story. Subject lines, color palettes, images, and offers should all reflect brand pillars and never come across as salesy, instead building sincere relationships with readers.
If you are ready to improve business performance and elevate your email strategy, Practical Effects is here to help. Powerful storytelling unlocks brand growth. Email hello@practical.nyc to learn more about how you can integrate your brand story and develop authentic relationships with your audience.
