Did you know that, on average, email marketing results in Australia are above the global average? When analysing how this digital marketing effort takes form in the country, Campaign Monitor found that email marketing campaigns here outperformed global counterparts in most major indicators, such as open rate, click-to-open rate, and click-through rates.
So email marketing is definitely an effort worth investing in, but as with all marketing endeavours, you want to make sure you’re getting the best results for your budget. But how can you score the best ROI from email marketing?
Let’s find out.
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Email Marketing 101
Email marketing is a type of digital marketing strategy that involves sending emails to existing and potential customers. An effective email marketing strategy is designed to support a business’ sales funnel, and get people to convert, take a particular action.
Even with the boom of social media, email has remained a powerful presence in the marketing channels category, especially as a way to nurture leads effectively. What’s more, it is a relatively cost-effective effort that doesn’t require a big investment to generate good results.
It’s why you can potentially get some of the best return on investment (ROI) from a well-designed email campaign. Here are some tips on how to create your email strategy to maximize your ROI:
Segment the Email List
Your email list is one of your greatest assets if you use it right. Customers who sign up for your email newsletter and other campaigns expect to see messages from you in their inbox, but even so, there is no guarantee they will open and act on every single email you send.
But, you can increase the email open rate if you segment your list, you can help you send out more target messages to smaller groups. This segmentation technique allows marketers to personalise their campaigns further, and craft the messages based on what would work best for a particular segment.
Some ways to segment your list can include:
- Geographical segmentation – where they live;
- Content-specific segmentation – based on your previous interactions with customers, such as the type of product they’ve bought from you;
- Behaviour segmentation – based on what users do, such as if they’ve abandoned the shopping cart;
- Demographic segmentation – based on who they are if you have a big, diverse target audience. Even if they have a common interest (your business), differences in demographics may mean you have to approach segments differently to convert them.
Based on these segments, you can create personalised email campaigns that seem to speak to the individual consumer. All decisions for the email campaign from the subject list to the calls to action should be calibrated to your email segments to maximize ROI.
Automate Your Efforts
Marketing automation is your best friend when it comes to email marketing. Unless your email list consists of about 20 contacts, it’s worth investing in an email marketing tool that can allow you to quickly set up automated messages to send your customers.
Some automated messages can include:
- A welcome email for signing up or downloading a product
- A thank you message for purchasing, coupled with more information about the product
- Re-nurturing automated messages for customers who haven’t interacted with you in a while
Additionally, these tools greatly support your email personalisation efforts, to the point that each email can start with the name of the recipient. This helps the consumer feel as if you’re talking to them directly, and has a huge effect on your ROI!
Don’t Ignore the Quality of the Landing Page
Think of the customer journey. They see the email in their inbox, and then they have to act, right? That usually means clicking on a link to your landing page, where they can complete the funnel.
While setting up the email marketing campaign, it’s worth looking into the quality of the landing page as well. First, the two must be in complete harmony with each other. Inconsistencies between the email newsletter and the landing page can ruin your ROI, as customers understandably feel tricked.
Then, you should make sure the landing page content completes the image or message you’ve previously created in the email, with more information about the product and service, and enough incentives to convince the user to buy, download, or otherwise convert.
If your landing page content doesn’t say much more than the email, the conversion could be lost. The email is a way to spark their interest or give them an incentive to click on your link, but it’s the landing page that can ultimately support your conversion goal.
Test, Scale, Repeat
The golden rule in marketing is to test your efforts with a small target, scale using the elements you’ve learned at work, and then repeat when you find success.
It can take a while to perfect your email marketing approach, as even if you know your target audience pretty well, there may be some details you discover only after the campaign begins:
- What time to send the emails for maximum results
- What kind of subject line styles work well
- What kind of content the audience wants in their inbox, etc.
By testing at a smaller scale, you give yourself more opportunities to fine-tune your campaign and increase ROI when you include your entire email list.
Can We Help?
Let Australian Internet Advertising support your email marketing efforts by creating a personalised strategy that will spend your budget efficiently and get you the results you’re hoping for.
We’re happy to support Australian businesses truly leverage the potential of this marketing channel. Reach out to our team online for more information, or give us a call at 1300 304 640 for a quick chat.
