How (and why) to create a killer email marketing strategy

Rumor has it that email marketing is not as effective as it once was. There are too many emails, too many businesses vying for space in your inbox, and too few ways to really make emails break through the static. So, is email marketing dead? The short answer? Heck no.

Email marketing strategy is still alive and well. Strike that. It’s alive and thriving! How can you argue with statistics like, 77% of marketers saw an increase in email engagement in 2023¹; or email marketing revenue is estimated to reach just shy of 12.5 billion in 2024²; or 87% of brands say email marketing is critical to their success³?

The answer is: you can’t. So, here’s how your business can benefit from email marketing plus a few more ways your email marketing can be more effective and cut through the clutter.

If you’re in the camp that says email marketing is pointless, you may want to think again. There are many ways email marketing adds value to your business, from increasing customer engagement to generating website traffic.

1. Connect with your audience.

Typically, segmented lists drive more opens and click-throughs because the content—from the subject line to the call-to-action — can be tailored to a specific audience subset. Personalized content is also highly important in 2024, as you may recall from our 2024 market trends article. Content is so important because people are absolutely inundated with information. Hyper-personalizing what you distribute and targeting to a segmented list means you can connect with your audience in a meaningful way.

2. Generate website traffic.

Sure, you can post on social media or use other means to drive traffic. But when it comes to email marketing in 2024, most are reading your communication on their phone. And what’s easier than using your fingertip to click a button or link via your inbox? For an on-the-go audience, email marketing reaches them anywhere — which means they are just one click from your website at any time.

3. Optimize marketing costs.

Traditional print or direct marketing campaigns can often be budget breakers, and digital advertising costs add up quickly when bidding against competitors. With email marketing, you have an engaged audience of potential customers who want to get information from your company. There’s no battling against the masses to get noticed. Plus, email marketing services typically base pricing on email list size, making it much more cost-effective to send multiple campaigns at a fraction of the cost of other mediums (yay frequency!).

4. Seize the moment.

Reaching people at the right time is half the battle. Email marketing platforms offer lots of features so you’re able to explore data, as well as time your emails to reach each segment (by location, open rate and so on) at exactly the right moment, making your business always top-of-mind.

5. Provide value to your customers.

When your business shares worthwhile content like industry news, promotions and deals and educational content, you begin to cultivate a loyal customer base. When they start to expect helpful, thoughtful content that resonates, your audience will be more willing to pay attention to your emails — even the salesy ones that will increase your ROI.

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The future of email marketing is still bright — although there are trends that are reshaping how individuals engage with email content. There is an email marketing transformation happening that prioritizes dynamic content to create a true experience for the recipient. So, how can you create a mini moment? Here are a few takeaway tips:

• Embedding features like polls and surveys to increase interaction
• Utilizing rich media to make content more visually appealing
• Gamifying content like spin-to-win adds fun elements
• Interactive call-to-actions that change or animate to be more eye-catching
  
  

Making email marketing mobile-friendly should be a priority.

As the data shows, most emails are opened from mobile devices. That means designing and programming for mobile users is key. We’ve all received an email where the margins are wonky and the text overflows or the images takeover the content we’re trying to consume. Getting on board with mobile-friendly email marketing is key to engagement. Consider these tips on your next email campaign:

• Responsive design to fit the screen of various devices
• Touch-friendly features so your audience has the ease of finger-clicking
• Content that is brief but resonates — and clicks through to a longer version

We’ve got the trends down—and the experience to know what to leverage and when. Let the Design At Work team plan the right combination so your business sees the benefits of email marketing. Contact us to get started on your refreshed email marketing strategy.