Just in case you didn’t already know, email marketing is a big player when it comes to ROI. One of the main reasons for this is the sheer enormity of emails. To put it in perspective, you would have to combine all of the Twitter and Facebook accounts in the world, then multiply that number by 3 to even come close to the amount of email accounts around today. And that number is only increasing, with the total number of worldwide email accounts expecting to rise to over 4.3 billion by the end of 2016.
In this blog we’re going to talk about email marketing’s genius little brother, targeted email marketing. Targeted email marketing is great for improving ROI because it allows you, as a business, to develop a deeper relationship with your clients by creating more personalised emails based on specific traits such as their age, location, and/or place within the buying cycle.
How to grow REACH with targeted email marketing
As the old saying goes, you don’t get something for nothing. Everyone is looking for an incentive, a reason to use your website and sign-up to your email list — so give them one! Encourage people to sign-up to your emails by offering them a little something in return.
Or maybe you already have tons of users signed up to your emails, and some people even read them and visit your site, but they never seem to take that next step up the buying cycle. Well, all you have to do here is target your emails to rectify this. A survey conducted by Harris Interactive found that people actually like emails that have been based on their previous shopping behaviours and preferences. In fact, 81% of US digital shoppers surveyed said they were somewhat likely to make additional purchases as a result of targeted emails. With this statistic in mind, why not look up your users browsing history and see exactly what kind of thing interests them? Even the smallest offer, such as free delivery or buy one get one half price could be the little incentive your users need to stop browsing, and start buying.
Another way to grow reach through targeted email marketing is to encourage users to invite their friends. A quick example could be:
“Hey *Customer*
Hope you loved your *product*!
Know anyone else that likes this?
Invite them to sign up for our emails and we’ll give them one absolutely free! (And we’ll throw in one for you too!)
Regards,
*Company*”
We know that this isn’t exactly a new method, in fact it’s one of the oldest tricks in the book, and used and loved by many. But, most of the time it doesn’t work because either the email isn’t personal enough, or the offer isn’t inviting enough.
How to grow ENGAGEMENT with targeted email marketing
Engaging with your clients is key to keeping them happy and retaining their custom. It may not feel beneficial because it doesn’t create immediate ROI, but a no-strings-attached conversation with a customer should never be underestimated. Sparking up conversations based upon their browsing and purchase history, as well as sending out birthday, Christmas, and other holiday messages will all help to deepen the relationship between your client and your brand. Other forms of engaging content that will help you grow your customer database include fun newsletters, and surveys aimed towards the customers want and needs. When thinking of engagement you should never let the word ‘targeted’ leave your mind, because if an email doesn’t directly mean anything to your client then it isn’t targeted, and it certainly won’t be engaging.
However, creating targeted email marketing for engagement isn’t just about the content you send out. You can further target your email campaigns by studying the optimum times and dates that certain clients check their emails. This way, you will be able to find out at which exact times your customers will be most engaged, and therefore most likely to pay attention to your emails.
How to grow CONVERSIONS with targeted email marketing
Conversions are the real results from all of your hard work. And, just as targeted email marketing can assist with growing reach and engagement, it can also play a large part in growing conversion rates. Personalised email offers are great for retaining custom and increasing conversions as studies have shown that people who buy products marketed through email spend a massive 138% more than people that do not receive email offers. Further personalisation based on customers’ previous buys grow conversions even more, according to 77% of marketers who stated that purchase history had a very high impact on ROI.
By targeting converted clients via email to request testimonials you can further increase your growth as real reviews from real people will further encourage others to use your brand. To encourage customers to give testimonials you could offer them a small incentive in return.
Final Thoughts
Targeted email marketing may sound like a piece of cake, but there are always ways to further target your email campaigns and it really helps to have a dedicated team of email marketers on your side.
Here at Instiller, we know that 70% of brands do not currently personalise their emails, and we’re here to help those that want to get one step ahead of the competition.