According to Merkle’s report, permission-based email accounts for about a quarter of the time a person spends on email, second only to emails that are personal communications with family and friends. On the flip side, however, 75 percent of those surveyed said they choose to opt out of opt-in emails because the emails aren’t relevant. According to the report, 73 percent said they opted out because emails were sent too often.
So where is that fine line drawn? How do you build an effective, permission-based email database of key contacts and provide them with timely and relevant information versus acquiring qualified email leads only to lose interest due to negative things your recipients perceive? The key to email marketing success is finding a balance, simply because this medium should be the cornerstone of your marketing mix.
Building an opt-in email list – Initially, building an opt-in email list provides a foundation of qualified leads that you can nurture and build relationships with. Customers and prospects who visit your website and like what they see are more willing to join your email list at that moment because they want more of what you have to offer. These visitors are the same people you want to target, much more qualified than buying a third-party list, especially since email addresses change quite often. Additionally, those who opt-in on your site or double opt-in via confirmation email are genuinely interested in your products and services, so there is a good chance of converting these referrals into sales and repeat customers. Another downside to third-party lists is that you have no idea how many emails these contacts will receive from businesses other than yours. With your own personal participation list, you know exactly what the number and frequency of e-mails are sent.
Do It Yourself vs. Using an Email Marketing Company – While creating your own database and owning it in-house may sound appealing, managing it can be very cumbersome and time-consuming. If you don’t have an internal automated system linked to your website and databases, you’ll end up having to make changes manually, such as deleting an email at the request of subscribers, or trying to figure out and set up your analytics for each email. Permission-based email marketing services for small businesses like Constant Contact and iContact manage everything for you, from consenting to your website to collecting emails directly into a database they maintain, to providing design templates for your communications and email. And because such services strictly follow anti-spam laws, your emails actually end up where they’re supposed to go.
Determining Who You Are – Obviously, having someone “ask you” to be on your email distribution list is much better than randomly submitting information to third party lists. But permission-based email marketing also gives you the opportunity to build your brand awareness with those who actually want to hear from you. Participants can also be enticed to sign up by offering free white papers, case studies, and password-only access to special areas of your website.
Create a positive image of yourself – Recent studies have shown that those who attend or shop at a particular business have an increased positive impression when that business sends them an email. Email marketing allows you to develop and foster a relationship that may have been born simply out of necessity and begin to build towards a long-term customer.
More and more people are tolerant of permission-based email marketing; however, you must not exceed these limits of trust. Relevant and timely information, special offers or incentives further build trust between you and your customers. But emails sent every other day or information that simply doesn’t address your customers’ needs or what they work with on a daily basis will cause your customers to opt out just as quickly as they agreed.
