What is Email Marketing? Definition, Strategies, & Tools to Get Started

This beginner’s guide will explain what email marketing is, how it works, and how to get started. By the end, you’ll have a solid grasp of the basics along with the know-how to launch an effective email marketing strategy for your business.

Email marketing is the most profitable and cost-effective direct marketing channel, generating an average return on investment of $42 for every $1 spent.

For this reason alone, email should be a key pillar of your digital marketing strategy. Not doing any email marketing is like leaving money laying out on the table.

But if you’re a bit confused about where to start, that’s totally normal. Email is a vast discipline. It’s easy for beginners to get lost in a sea of tools, techniques, and terminology.

To learn more, stick around for everything you need to know about email marketing:

What is email marketing?

Email marketing is a powerful marketing channel, a form of direct marketing as well as digital marketing, that uses email to promote your business’s products or services. It can help make your customers aware of your latest items or offers by integrating it into your marketing automation efforts. It can also play a pivotal role in your marketing strategy with lead generation, brand awareness, building relationships or keeping customers engaged between purchases through different types of marketing emails.

Email Marketing Benefits

There are over 4 billion email users worldwide, so if you’re looking for a way to reach your customers, email is the perfect place to find them.

As of 2020, email generates $36 for every dollar spent.

79% of marketers list email marketing in their top 3 most effective marketing channels.

Email visitors are the most likely to convert on forms.

Perhaps the best reason to use email marketing is that you own the channel. Outside of compliance regulations, there is no external entity that can impact how, when, or why you reach out to your subscribers.

Why Email Marketing Is Important

Email isn’t a new technology. In fact, it was one of the very first means of digital communication to arrive back in 1971. But at 50 years old, email marketing is used today more than ever before.

You may be thinking, “Do people really still use email? Isn’t social media where it’s at for marketing today?” While it’s true that social media is an important channel for any digital marketing strategy, email has several advantages.

First, email marketing campaigns can be personalized to a greater extent than those on social media. Next, costs are considerably lower than for other channels, especially considering the reach and conversion rate associated with email marketing. This is part of what makes email marketing so ideal for small businesses.

Finally, what makes email marketing so powerful and lucrative is that it gives you direct, individual access to your audience’s inboxes.

Still don’t believe us? Let’s take a look at the numbers:

In 2020, there were over 4 billion globa l email users.

80% of Americans check their email at least once per day, with nearly a quarter of them checking their personal email several times a day.

62% of consumers ranked email in their top preferred communication channels with small businesses.

Given the figures, not having an email marketing strategy means missing out on sales opportunities and the chance to build lasting customer relationships.

The Benefits of Email Marketing

From order confirmations to newsletters, emails are an essential part of the growth and management of your business.

Email marketing helps you achieve three key objectives:

1. Conversions (selling your products and services)

Launching a sale or promotion? You can send your subscribers an email marketing campaign to drive sales. In addition, try using these email marketing techniques to further boost conversions:

Personalized coupons or special offers for subscribers’ birthdays/anniversaries, in welcome emails, and as a way to re-engage your audience.
Abandoned cart emails triggered whenever a visitor adds an item in their cart but doesn’t check out.

2. Brand awareness

What’s great about email is that it lets you reach someone directly. It’s one-to-one communication at its best. And people don’t just let anyone into their inbox these days. It’s a curated space reserved for favorite brands and publications.

Showing up in someone’s email inbox will help your brand stay current in the minds of subscribers. A personalized marketing email is more impactful than a social media post where you can’t be sure if someone has actually seen your message.

One of the major benefits of email marketing is its scalability. This means that emails can be sent to a large number of recipients while remaining cost-effective (compared to other marketing channels).

3. Customer loyalty

Email drives customer loyalty at every stage of the buyer journey: lead-nurturing, conversion, onboarding, retention. As well, email marketing is a necessary tool to use alongside sales CRM systems to streamline communication.

It’s truly a powerful way to build a community, as discussed in our guide to building relationships with email

How to Do Email Marketing

Businesses use what’s known as email service providers (ESP) to send marketing emails.

An email service provider is a software that sends and manages email marketing campaigns.

It’s also referred to as an email marketing platform, email marketing tool, email marketing service, or email marketing software.

Now you might be wondering, can’t I just send marketing emails with my regular inbox provider? Do I really need to pay for a product on top of that?

Technically, it’s possible. (We even explain how in our guide to sending mass email with Gmail.) Beware, though. You’re likely to run into problems with limited email bandwidth, design, and more importantly, email deliverability. Here’s why:

Internet Service Providers (ISPs) like Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo, etc. are designed for personal use — not for email blasts. Although they’re free to use, they’re not free bulk email senders. So when a mass email is sent from an ISP, it’s easily flagged by spam filters and your account can be disabled for suspicious activity.

ESPs, on the other hand, have the necessary infrastructure in place to ensure good email deliverability rates — i.e., the ability to land emails in your subscribers’ inboxes. If you want to set yourself up for email marketing success from day one, get yourself a dedicated email marketing service.

How to choose an email service provider

With hundreds of ESPs on the market, it’s hard to know which one is right for your business.

Some of the most popular options include Sendinblue, Mailchimp, Constant Contact, Convertkit, Klaviyo, Mailjet, Mailerlite, GetResponse, and HubSpot.

Here are some questions to help narrow down your options:

What’s your budget? If it’s very limited, then cheap email marketing services should be your starting point.
What kind of emails do you plan to send, and how often? This’ll give you an idea of your required email volume (i.e. number of email sends).
If you’ve already got a list of opt-in contacts, how many are there?
What’s your skill level when it comes to designing emails? If you’re a complete beginner, you’ll want a drag-and-drop email editor. Email templates will also come in handy. On the other hand, if you prefer to code emails from scratch, you’ll be on the lookout for an HTML editor.
Do you plan to set up automated email workflows? See what the ESP offers in terms of email marketing automation. Some solutions only offer basic autoresponders.
If your business communicates with different buyer personas, what contact list segmentation capabilities are offered?
Will your business be sending transactional emails? (Note that these are not considered email marketing.) Some folks like to manage these emails with a separate service, while others prefer all emails under the same roof with a tool like Sendinblue.

It’s also a good idea to consider your future needs. Found an ESP you like? Do some simulations: “If my list grows to x, how much will this ESP cost? If I want to add x to my strategy, does this ESP have the feature-set to support me? What sort of integrations or apps will I be able to add on?”

Optimism for the future is a good thing, but don’t get carried away. Of course, stay focused on the essentials for now.

How much does email marketing cost?

Email marketing costs can vary widely depending on the size of your email list, the quantity of emails you send, the level of support you need, and the technical specifications you’re looking for.

For some, free email marketing plans offer more than enough functionality. For others, email marketing can cost hundreds or thousands of dollars per month.

As you’re exploring different options, you’ll notice most providers base their pricing on the number of contacts on your email list. This pricing model can be attractive to those just starting out, but costs rise considerably once your list grows.

But growing your subscriber base is the whole point of email marketing!

Sendinblue, on the other hand, structures its pricing by email volume rather than the number of subscribers. That way, you can grow your email list infinitely and it won’t impact the pricing.

The Lite Plan starts at $25 for unlimited subscribers and 20,000 emails per month — more than enough for any small business just starting out. Try it out today!

Email marketing FAQs

How can I set my emails apart from spam?

After spending so much time crafting your emails, the last thing you want is your email to end up in the spam or junk mail folder. The best way to avoid this is to have the recipient add the company website to the safe contact list.

Can I combine email marketing with other types of marketing?

Absolutely, as indicated in an earlier section, email marketing can be used for specific promotions, special events, announcements, and a variety of other purposes where information can be disseminated via email.

How important is the email subject line?

The subject line is crucial! A poor subject line can cause your email to end up in the spam folder. If it isn’t captivating, it may not grab the readers' attention and be deleted before it is even opened.

The subject line should make the reader want to open and read the email. Here is an example of some good subject lines:

We’re waiting for your order. Save 50% today.
Check out this new product geared to make cleaning your home easier.

Connecting with your audience

The best way to connect with your audience is to create email campaigns that have value. Cost savings, new products, new services, and product benefits show the reader that the email has value to them, and they should keep on reading.

Marketing by email is a great way to keep your business top-of-mind with customers and prospects so they don’t think of your competitors. When done correctly, your email marketing campaign can show great success and lead customers to act, which is what all businesses want when developing their campaigns.

THE HUSTLERS BUCKS

Wednesday, 12 October 2022