Effective email marketing

Effective email marketing

Effective email marketing 

Agility is a word that always makes us think about Crufts!  But what about marketing agility? The last two years (we can’t face saying the ‘p’ word) have been tumultuous to say the least and never more have marketers been kept on their toes. Agility has been fundamental to success.  

Consumer attitudes and preferences changed, and marketers needed to adapt their messages and tone of voice to reflect the situation we were all in.  So where does that leave email marketing? And what should you be doing to maximise your email communication?  

Changing consumer behaviour 

Consumer behaviour is ever evolving. Consumers are now far more interested in politics and climate change.  Accenture Strategy’s global survey of 25,000 consumers in 22 countries found that 50% of consumers say that the pandemic caused them to rethink their personal purpose and re-evaluate what’s important to them in life.  

In a nutshell, consumers want to ensure they are buying from a business that shares their values and this is reflected in their buying behaviour. Research has shown that since the pandemic, an increasing number of consumers are choosing to buy from a brand’s website as opposed to a marketplace or third-party retailer. 

This is where email marketing plays a integral role. This direct communication tool allows marketers to manage changing customer needs and facilitate the desire more and more consumers have to buy from a brand’s website directly. 

Ideas for inspiration 

Don’t limit your sources for inspiration. Look at different businesses, talk to your team, explore everything and anything you can. One small observation can trigger a brilliant creative idea that will attract customers.  Customer engagement is driven by creativity and differentiation.  

Talking of engagement, the DMA recently revealed that consumers rank brand recognition as the key factor (68%) in their decision to open an email.  This highlights the importance for businesses to ensure their messages are appealing to their customers. Purely selling products isn’t appealing, customers want to know that you understand them and their values.  Therefore regular communications and updates that don’t focus on sales are important to maximise engagement. 

Ironically, the more value you give to your customers through non-sales email marketing, the better chance you have of improving customer engagement and increasing online sales in the long run. 

Email design 

Animation in emails now has a big role to play in encouraging customers to interact. A positive message that appears friendly and offers added value is more likely to lead to a customer clicking through to your site and making a purchase.  

Keeping it personal 

 It started off as data segmentation which then evolved into personalisation. Ultimately, they’re one in the same but marketers have learned how to make it work harder and smarter for them. Each and every subscriber has different buying behaviours and interests so using personalisation is more likely to appeal to them. Take the time to split your customers into smaller groups, as by making their emails more relevant to them will create a far more positive customer journey.  

We recently talked about Christmas advertising and how it elicits emotion. The default reaction for humans is emotion. Basically, they go with how something makes them feel. Emotional responses to adverts or emails are hugely influential on a person’s intent to buy. Therefore, ensuring your emails are personable and elicit genuine emotions and feelings will help improve consumer trust and loyalty for your brand. 

Which leads us to the importance of copywriting... 

Don’t underestimate the power of the written word. Get copy right and you’ll reap the benefits, get it wrong and you’ll turn customers off. A generic, product focussed email won’t drive engagement. The customer needs to feel that you’re talking directly to them –that you understand their needs and wants. It’s not about telling them how wonderful your brand is, it’s about focussing on them.  

Make sure you have a great copywriter in your team or work with a freelancer, it will make a world of difference to the engagement you receive through your email marketing campaigns. 

Customer experience marketing  

This is new kid on the block. As we have said, the way we communicate has changed and marketing has become customer centric. The focus is on ensuring each and every customer has a positive experience when buying a product or service. We have enough data to understand customers’ behaviour so there’s no excuse for getting it wrong. Improving the experience for the customer will get them returning to your site (and your emails) time and time again. After all, how can you expect a customer to engage with your brand if it isn’t enjoyable or beneficial to do so? Providing valuable information in an easy-to-consume way will massively help your email marketing. 

Don’t be afraid to experiment  

We mentioned inspiration earlier–don’t be afraid to use the inspiration you find to try something new. Email offers a cost-effective and endless source of insight into human behaviour and preferences. People are changing, and so should marketing. Take the time to research and understand changing customer behaviour. It will make a positive impact on your business. We’ve talked about how to make the most of your email marketing but most importantly, you need a robust email marketing strategy that is aligned with your business goals. Not only will it support your business with further investment and resource, but it will also ensure you are communicating consistently with your customers, which should never be underestimated!  

Here at Platinum, we’ve been working on creating amazing email campaigns for customers for years. If you want to make your customer’s journey even better, then get in touch. 

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