1. Build your list. Collect e-mail addresses from customers and prospects in every way you can. This can be by signing up for a newsletter on your Web site, or from collecting contact info from those who have ordered from you. If you attend a trade show, luncheon or networking event, collect business cards. When you get inquiries, add those contacts to your list.
2. Create consistent and insightful communications. Send out e-newsletters weekly, monthly or bimonthly, just make sure your communication stays consistent. Provide valuable information and insight for readers so they’ll take the time to read and click through your e-mail. Keep it short and to the point, providing links to a longer online version when necessary. And don’t forget to send it both in HTML and plain text so Blackberry users can read your e-mail instantly.
3. Provide an opt-out link. Make sure you provide an easy way for e-mail recipients to request to no longer receive your communication. This means including a link at the bottom of your e-mail that allows them to opt-out. Most e-mail providers have this included in their tool. You don’t want to spam your prospects!
4. Do promotions. Send an e-mail inviting customers to use a special discount code to purchase items at a sale price. This way you can track the success of your campaign. Invite them to forward the promotion to friends so your customers can spread the word for you.
5. Get your customers’ opinions. Surveying customers and prospects is a basic form of gathering marketing data. Unfortunately, traditional surveys are time-consuming and expensive. If you use an online tool like Ennect Survey, you’ll have the feedback instantly and can quickly change your business strategy to match customer needs, which will increase sales.
6. Conduct a sweepstakes. Run a time-sensitive sweepstakes. One idea is to invite customers to make a purchase and then be automatically entered to win a larger prize. When an online sweepstakes tool is used, you can simultaneously gather email addresses (to use for future marketing efforts) and move inventory.
7. Use tracking to follow up. Ennect provides tracking so you can see who has opened and clicked through your communications. Use this tool to follow up and evaluate who your hottest prospects are. This way you can make follow up calls to those who are most interested in your business.
8. Share your expertise. If you sell a product, you already know the value of holding an event to gather prospective customers together. But the event concept can work across all industries. If you sell wine glasses, invite people to a wine and cheese party to see your product. Or, if you’re an accountant, invite people to an informal question and answer session before tax session. Ennect Event makes it easy to contact people on your list.
9. Segment your list. By dividing your e-mail list between customers with similar interests, you’ll be able to send more targeted e-mails and increase your conversion rate, turning prospects into customers.
10. Perfect your subject line. Including your company name in the subject line of your e-mail increases open rates and helps prevent your communication from getting blocked by spam filters. Perform tests on which subject line works best by sending an email to a portion of your contact list and monitoring the open and click-through rate.
Choose the one that works best and send your communication to the rest of your list. When it comes to successful online marketing, the key is personalizing your campaign so it fits your business, your brand and your customers’ interests. No two businesses are alike. Take note when you actually read and click through an e-mail that you receive from a business. What made you open it and click through? Did you end up buying? What was their follow up like? These are all questions you should ask when starting online communication with customers.
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