E-Mail Marketing Still Has Much to Offer!

A few weeks back I boldly stated in a blog post that “E-Mail can rock!” Let’s go a bit further down that path.  It seems that many folks are quick to give e-mail marketing the brush-off.  We hear things like, “E-mail is old technology.  It’s all about social media marketing.”  Or “We can’t e-mail too often. Don’t want to offend anyone in our database.”  Or – and this one really gets me – “My parents still use e-mail, but everybody texts now.”  Hmmm!  I counter that e-mail is very much alive.  Doing it right is all about smart strategy and tasty content.

Consider these research findings cited in a recent Media Post article.  A Pitney-Bowes Software study of online usage found that, while 57% of marketers reported using Twitter, only 31% of consumer respondents actually use the channel.  Similarly, 51% of marketers said they use Google+ compared to only 21% of consumers.  When it comes to consumer use of social media channels, similar statistics abound.  A real mixed bag!

But the takeaway points here are far more interesting.  According to a 2012 Ipsos/Reuters poll, 85% of people worldwide use e-mail to connect with others while 62% rely on social media.  And on the marketing side of things, a recent Columbus Dispatch article cited research by the Direct Marketing Association which found that, measured by sales per dollar spent, e-mail outperforms social-media advertising 3-to-1!

So I believe it’s time to look at e-mail marketing with some fresh thinking and take advantage of its power.  Let’s find out lots more about what our customers and clients are doing on our websites and social media pages.  Let’s find out what they want to see and hear from us – and create marketing messages that satisfy.  And let’s keep in mind that – much like our websites – e-mail marketing can provide a powerful hub that links many social media channels together.