If you thought email marketing was dead, you couldn’t be more wrong. Big data is making email marketing more effective than ever. The name of the game in 2018 is developing an email marketing plan with high-accuracy, automated targeting.
To get people to read your emails, you have to speak to them in a voice they will respond to. The content has to be uniquely crafted to spark curiosity and meet their needs within milliseconds. The delete icon is always there waiting. You have to outlive it and get your message across.
Consumers and decision-makers have a very short attention span. But, for some magical reason, email attention span has increased in 2018 by more than 40%. This is the year to get your email marketing game on point. Here’s how:
Winning the email marketing game requires accurate targeting of decision-makers and consumers towards the end of the buying cycle.
I’m going to assume that you’ve already clearly-defined your target market. So, how do you find them? How do you get their best contact information? And how do you speak to them in a language they will respond to?
Convert Website Traffic
Your website is one of the best tools at your disposal. If you can get people visiting your site to sign-up for your email marketing list, that’s a huge win. These individuals are interested in your product, and they are self-identifying as potential leads.
Hire a Lead Generator Firm
There are companies that will sell you lead sheets. There are also companies that will complete custom market research on your behalf. Your mileage may vary with these companies. Chances are the list they are selling you is a download from a database that is plundered regularly. That means the people on the other end are probably not too excited about hearing from yet another marketer.
You can also delve into the world of automated email marketing services. Email marketing software provides you with the tools you need in order to craft a campaign and automate its execution. I recommend trying a few different programs – most offer free trials. This way your final approach will be more well-rounded, hopefully taking the best from each solution.
DIY Lead Generation
Look around your own network. LinkedIn is a treasure trove of business contacts for B2B marketing. Social media advertising can be fine-tuned to connect you with consumers that are interested in your products or service.
No matter where you look, you should filter your results by asking yourself these three questions:
- Can this person/organization afford my product/service?
- Do they have the authority to make a purchasing decision?
- Have they expressed prior interest?
Targets express interest in a variety of ways. If you know that they visited your site and spent time on a landing page discussing a specific product/service you offer (Use a tool like Google Analytics to find out.), you can follow-up with them. Of course, you’ll need reliable contact information to do so.
Your ideal target has expressed interest and is ready to make a purchasing decision. Your email marketing efforts should serve as the final nudge that pushes them off the fence and into your shopping cart.
Email Marketing Content: What should I send?
Once you have a list of juicy leads in place, it’s time to start drafting your email marketing campaign. In 2018, email marketing is just one part of an omnichannel strategy. You need your email marketing content to match-up with the rest of your branding. This includes social media posts, advertisements, and website content.
Customers that are late in the buying cycle have done their research. They know the basics of what they’re looking for, and they’ve looked at a few alternative solutions. So, you need to highlight why they need to choose your solution right now.
Great email marketing involves getting the reader out of their inbox.
The strategy that I like to use involves providing something helpful – maybe an industry trend that they may be unaware of – along with an invitation to engage with the product or service on a highly-targeted landing page.
I want to get the reader of my emails to read the information I’ve offered. That requires a catchy, clear headline. And you need to provide tangible value within a few sentences of the email. Then, you give them the factoid. And, towards the end of this very short email, there’s a call to action that involves them leaving their inbox and coming to my website.
The landing page that you send them to needs to serve as a continuation of the email. It should expand on the nuggets of information you gave the reader already. This page should speak to them at the level they’ve reached – a fully informed consumer.
Use this page to quickly hit them with the best value propositions you have. Knock ‘em off that fence and into your basket.
