Would you believe that email is 40 years old? The first email was sent on Wednesday 8 June 1971, and since then, email has come on leaps and bounds, continuously adapting and changing with the times. It continues to be the most effective marketing tool in every marketer’s box of tricks, and 2017 will prove that it still packs a punch.
Here’s a fighting-fit list of why email marketing kicks butt in 2017:
- “What do we want? More information! When do we want it? Now!”
Before, it was all about building up that email list. All you needed was an email address, any old address; just send out that mass email like a flyer thorough the door. But it’s so much more than that now. It’s quality, not quantity. Nurture your list by collecting more relevant information about the person so you can properly direct them towards the correct information. Don’t be scared about coming across as an interrogator. A simple form on your website asking for a name, email and what the person is interested in hearing about is not pushy – it’s necessary to motivating your contact to open your emails.
- Strategic email automation
This isn’t a new-fangled thing, I know. Email automation helps us marketers send the right message to the right people. Need to send an email about Wills & Probate to people who have just purchased a house through your conveyancing team? Simple. However, it can get a little more complicated when you want to be a bit more specific than that. 2017 brings more advanced segmentation options and some platforms have even introduced pre-packaged client journeys. Data is utilised to create each client’s personal email marketing journey – you just have to configure it then sit back and watch it happen.
- Dynamic data
Data will drive your email marketing this year. Although it sounds a little scientific, it’s all about making your emails more personalised. In 2016, personalised emails improved click-through rates by an average of 14%, causing a 10% increase in conversions. It’s not about entering data and forgetting about it – it’s keeping it updated and continuously personalising. This is where an email preference centre can come in handy. This is where you can ask your subscribers how often they would like to receive emails and what content interests them most, etc. This can help you along to creating a much more stream-lined experience with less hard-bounces and unsubscribes.
- Impactful email designs
As a marketer, you want your content to shine. This is difficult to focus on when the design is a bit drab. That’s why more and more email service providers are working towards creating modular templates, which allow you to slot your content into smaller, more digestible components within the email body. Our favourite tool to use is MailChimp for this reason.
- Go beyond with behavioural data
Your audience are using a number of different devices; desktop, mobile, tablet or Amazon Echo. Marketers are beginning to get a better idea of the websites and apps people are visiting to get a better idea of how best to tailor their email marketing campaign. This means more personalisation and relevant content based on your audience’s interests rather than cold, generic mass emails.
- But always remember General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
Do you have consent to send emails to the individuals on your list? As a marketer in a law firm especially, it’s crucial that you address this. In recent news, the pub chain Wetherspoons completely wiped its email-marketing list after claims that they did not have the rights to the data under the GDPR. Other businesses such as Flybe and Honda were fined heavily for sending a hefty amount of emails, so the theory is that Wetherspoons was trying to avoid that fate by removing their list entirely. The lesson here is; ensure that the people in your list have given you permission to contact them.
The overall message of 2017 is to nurture your list – don’t take it for granted. Work on improving your data so you can seamlessly segment your lists and keep your audience coming back for more.