Email was and still is one of the most effective tools you can use to grow your business. Even now it continues to do better than social media as the marketing tool of choice by many online entrepreneurs. As the Direct Marketing Association reports, email marketing gets a $51 return for every $1 spent on it.
So while newsletters can be invaluable tools in growing your business, you must go about it the right way. Consumers have become very protective of their email inbox and their privacy, and they see unsolicited emails as an invasion of that privacy.
How To Run Your Campaigns Without Becoming A Spammer?
It’s actually very simple: DO NOT SPAM. If you don’t have explicit consent from the individual in question to send them emails, don’t send anything to that person.
Not only will it end up in the trash folder, but you’ll be blocked and possibly reported as a spammer, as well. That’s not something you want tarnishing your reputation. You must have consent to email potential clients (and even existing clients, in reality).
First, Get Their Consent
Instead, send them valuable, relevant content and always use a double opt-in form to get their permission before sending your emails. This gives every single visitor the chance to join your list – you don’t force them to, you give them the opportunity to grab your exclusive content.
Many businesses have chosen to go with a double opt-in system that ensures consumers understand what they’re signing up for before they take the final step. In your opt-in form, make sure you spell out:
– what they will be receiving
– the approximate frequency of your e-newsletter (more on this shortly)
– any other information they’ll need to know
You’ll find that getting people to sign up for your newsletter is easier said than done in many cases. Most consumers suffer from an overload of marketing emails and unsolicited electronic correspondence, and they loathe adding to the glut.
Give them a reason to sign up. Make it worth their while and they’ll be far more likely to hand over their contact information and consent for you to communicate with them.
Second, Use The 80/20 Rule
Pareto’s law states that 80% of effects come from 20% of causes. The 80/20 Rule (also known as the Pareto Principle) means you send out valuable, helpful content 80% of the time, while 20% of the time you promote your product or service.
According to this principle, 80% of your revenue comes from 20% of your customers. So, take care of these 20% and cut out the other 80%. Find out the characteristics of the 20% of your customers and target your marketing towards them. Soon, you will increase the percentage of the customers who are generating more revenue for you.
In Conclusion
There is much to learn and experiment about email marketing, but these two simple tips are a good place to start. Remember, if you don’t want to be known as a spammer then get people’s permission before contacting them and use the 80/20 Rule in every aspect of your business. These are simple but often underestimated ways to use email marketing successfully to grow your business.
