Marketing through email has become a popular way of marketing today. With the advent of the Internet, technology has broadened the scope and ways of marketing.
Email is short for electronic mail and is one of the main reasons why people use the Internet. About two decades ago, no one realized that electronic mail would become useful and eventually, be a focal point in relationships, both personal and business.
The whole email system lets people communicate with each other all the time. Early email marketers used the listings of email subscribers to be able to send their proposals and advertisements. However, not many people become amused with this fad. Sending unsolicited email or what we refer to as “spam” is a “don’t” in email marketing.
This article tries to give tips on how to effectively use email for marketing and how to use it properly.
Email marketing can make or break your reputation as a marketer and the reputation of the product you are promoting.
Here are some of the ways on how to do email marketing:
Integrate
Email marketing should be integrated into the whole marketing plan to promote a specific product effectively. Email marketing can be one of the ways and is not the only way to market a product. An array of marketing techniques should be employed by a marketer to get around the market.
Build relationships first
Getting into the email marketing bandwagon has its downsides if not done properly. People will get irritated if one floods a mailing list with advertisements that are not needed. In sending advertisements in e-groups or other such kinds of groups, one should be able to assess the general needs and concerns of the members before he plunges into a barrage of email marketing endeavors.
Information
Email marketing is most effective if it is part of a wider marketing scheme. Email is at its best if used to spread useful information for the target audience. The body of the email should contain pertinent and updated information about the product or the service. Just like in any form of marketing, email marketing should be planned and executed with care.
Don’t send unsolicited email
One of the most irritating and agitating things about email is spam. If one is thinking about using spam mail to market his product, he must give it a second thought. A lot of people hate unsolicited mail and usually won’t even open the message containing such messages. Spam will not only be a waste of time and effort on the part of the marketer but it will affect the image of the product and the reputation of the marketer as well. People avail of email services to be able to receive information and substantive mails from people whom they trust. The approach that email marketing should be built in this line.
Service
There’s an impression that direct email marketing is done by promoters to escape from realities that come along with other forms of marketing. The fear of rejection is one of these harsh realities that are avoided by using email as a marketing medium. To get the attention and be recognized seriously, an email marketer must follow up quickly on the requests of his prospects. Service is the only thing that can improve the first impression of direct email marketing.
Permission
Spamming is not a good thing to do. It is also considered illegal in some states. However, when one asks permission from the receiver to send a marketing proposal through email, direct email marketing takes another step forward. A survey shows that people who are initially asked for permission to receive proposals are more interested to read the emails, as compared to the response towards unsolicited emails.
Email is just one of the tools to promote through the Internet, and by far, one of the most popular and most effective. There are a lot of unwritten rules for doing direct email marketing, but everything leads back to giving quality service to prospects and clients.
