From the daily onslaught of email spams and newsletters filling inboxes, you would think that email marketing is losing its punch. Email marketing is not dead, but a thriving medium for business today.
Recently, I developed an email newsletter marketing campaign for a company. The results exceeded the expectations of everyone involved. This campaign employed an email newsletter subscription with an offline "magic box". This box was intended to collect and warm the leads for the sales force. Instead of warming the leads, the campaign closed the sale without contact from the sales rep and increased sales over 30%.
Business today is finding email marketing with newsletters attractive for several reasons:
The cost of sending a direct mail piece by postal service runs over a dollar, email marketing can cost pennies.
A one percent response rate from direct mail is considered terrific. An email marketing campaign can have a five to ten percent response rate.
According to DoubleClick's Email Consumer Study, over 78% of online shoppers have purchased because of permission-based emails and 59% of email recipients have bought in a retail store as a result of a merchant email.
The benefits of email marketing range from increased sales and lead generation to stronger brand awareness and improved customer relationships.
The "Magic Box" Email Marketing Campaign
What is the "magic box"? The "magic box" is a Plexiglas box used for collecting contest ballots. When combined with email marketing, the box can transform ballots into sales. To run an effective campaign do the following:
- Create a contest for your target market located in a high traffic area such as a trade show or retail store.
- Purchase an inexpensive $100.00 prize appealing to your audience. Many people just enjoy the thrill of entering contests.
- Design your ballot entries with a section for email addresses to subscribe to a free newsletter with tips and advice for your target market. Most consumers would prefer an informative email newsletter instead of having a sales person call.
- Develop your own email newsletter program or contact one of the outsourcing companies listed in the elsewhere on the web section.
- Collect all the ballots with email addresses. Send an introductory email explaining the newsletter your customer will be receiving along with a respect of privacy statement. Ensure you maintain trust by not sending promotional emails.
- Distribute the newsletter on a bi-weekly or monthly basis. Have links back to your web site, where leads can explore your company further and buy your product. Watch sales soar as your build brand awareness and a trusting relationship with your market.
For this campaign to work, you must use permission-based marketing. Only send newsletters to customers requesting it. Give people a way to unsubscribe to your newsletter.
Email marketing with newsletters represents an affordable marketing solution to small business. Don't be left behind. Join the email marketing revolution.
