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Here at LANcom we are in the process of compiling an “Introduction to internet based marketing” free information report and we though you might like a sneak peak. So here is the section on email marketing.

Email marketing is a technique that can be used to both build a relationship with prospects and customers as well as building the traffic to your website.

Warning

If email marketing is to be effective long term it must be permission based. If the person you are emailing has not opted in to receiving the mail then it will most likely be considered as spam and can cause offence.

Remember an inbox is a personal space, invading it annoys people and annoying people is never good for business.

 

The best way to get people to opt in to receiving email marketing from you is to offer them something of value. One example of a company that has successfully done this is the Borders book store. Sign up to receive their newsletter and you will be sent a link to a site detailing their products, but also providing you with coupons. These coupons change with each newsletter to maintain the customer’s interest. So one month they may be 20% off all full priced fiction and the next month 15% of all full priced DVDs.

You do not always need to offer discounts. In fact depending on your situation it may not be appropriate. What we do here at LANcom in our email marketing is offer useful information. We have a weekly Microsoft Office Secrets newsletter as well as a monthly newsletter containing IT information that may be of interest to New Zealand businesses as well as any LANcom news. If you are interested in checking these out please contact us at info@lancom.co.nz or 09 377 8282 ext 112.

If you are specifically trying to build traffic to your site you can make the incentive that you offer available on your website and then just point those you are emailing to it.

As well as email marketing being a way to generate traffic to your website, your website can also be used to get people to opt-in to your email marketing. If you have ever visited out website www.lancom.co.nz you may have seen that here you can sign up to our free reports and email newsletters by registering your contact information.

 

TIPS FOR EMAIL MARKETING CAMPAIGNS
  • Figure out what type of offer your target audience is likely to be interested in. For example are they the type of people to be interested in useful information, discounts, or free gifts. Then use this incentive to gain their permission to send them email marketing messages.
  • Send your email marketing out according to a schedule. Weekly, monthly, or quarterly for example. This way the receiver grows to expect and actually look for the message rather than viewing it as an interruption.
  • Consider when is the best time to for your target audience to receive a message. Generally speaking emails that arrive on Mondays do not get read as fast as emails that arrive later in the week, as most people as still catching up from weekend.
  • Don’t ask for too much information when you first sign them up. This can scare people enough that the reward you are offering no longer seems like enough. Remember you can always ask them for more information over time as they grow to trust you more.
  • Make it easy for them to find out about your email marketing campaign. Include  a sign up option of your website, get your sales team to offer sign up to any customers or prospects they speak to, and if you use traditional advertising ask people to sign up to your email list there too.