Aug 21, 2024 Social Media Breakfast

Recap: You’ve Got Mail! Unlocking the Secrets of Email Marketing

Past Event: Accessibility Update: Tips for Making Your Social Posts More Inclusive

If Facebook and Instagram disappeared tomorrow, would your entire marketing strategy go up in smoke? Raise of hands, who gasped when they saw “the Elon slide?” IYKYK – if you don’t, watch the recording above!

In this session, Bryant Vander Weerd of Full Pour Media and VEBDUB Media shared the “whys” and “hows” of email marketing.

Why is Email Important?

  • You don’t own your social media followers – if social disappeared, you’d lose contact with your followers
  • You DO own your email lists
  • Engagement rate on social media is 1-3%, average open rate for emails is 34%
  • Fun Fact: 60% of consumers say they have made a purchase as the result of an email vs. 12.5% who consider tapping the “Buy” button
  • ROI: When done right, return on investment can be upwards of 40:1

Consumers spend 138% more when marketed thru email compared to those who don’t receive email.

Finding An Email Provider

Bryant offered a few suggestions including ConvertKit, Active Campaign, Constant Contact, Mailer Lite, MailChimp and Klaviyo. Each service offers different pricing strategies and features. Do your homework and choose the one that best suits your business needs and budget.

 

Getting Started: Bryant’s 3-step Action Plan

  • Lead magnets
    • Valuable pieces of content (free or discounted) in exchange for email address.
    • Deliver immediately.
    • Make the content easy to use or consume, drive people to action, make it relevant to your other offerings.

 

  • List Segments
    • Why segment? better open rates, better click-thru rates, lower unsubscribe rates.
    • How? Divide your audience into smaller lists, demographics, geography, spending habits, lead magnets, high/low open rates.

 

  • Nurture Your Community
    • Think “Mobile-first” – always.
    • Amazing content every time.
      • Use [e-merge tags] to personalize. People see their name and appreciate the familiarity.
      • Visuals, tone, etc. Speak directly to these people and treat them like the “exclusive club” that they are.
      • Keep it short & sweet! Goal of fewer than 200 words.
    • Use a personable “From” line. Refrain from using info@yourbusiness.com – spam filters will notice and filter.

 

Sincere thanks to Rebecca DeCabooter who shared her notes and key takeaways!

We also crowdsourced this month’s recap notes via Padlet by asking our audience to answer a few questions. Here’s some takeaways the Padlet Audience shared:

Things I Learned Today:

  • Keep emails “short & sweet” – It is important to optimize for mobile & keep emails under 200 words.
  • Emails are extremely important when building a valuable clientele!
  • Email lists are an “owned” group of followers. Followers on social media accounts are “rented,” meaning that if a social ccount was shut down, we would lose contact with that audience.

This Will Change How I…..

  • Continue to start and craft my own business so that I’m not driving people away while also trying to reach out.
  • A/B test. Use subject lines to test open rates and engagement. Emojis might be ok, but test first and don’t overuse.
  • Use segmentation and tagging. Don’t over-segment the audience. Bryant uses 1 customer tag per person.

The Biggest Takeaway Today Is:

  • You need an action plan that has lead magnets, list segments, and a nurturing community!
  • AI is a great tool for inspiration, but it can’t replicate brand voice.
  • Email open rates & ROI matter – use reports to better understand how recipients interact and engage with your emails.

 

“As someone who tends not to open a lot of emails, I had a bias that emails weren’t as important to my marketing strategy. This has shifted my perspective for sure.”

 

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