Email Marketing for Business: A No Brainer for Marketers

Let’s start by asking ourselves this question: How many of us check our emails every day? The answer is, every day, well, sometimes 20 times a day.

What better tool than email marketing can there be then, to attract and retain customers. It’s one of the most underrated platforms today but the return on investment garnered for small business owners and new marketers are very significant, especially when you have a limited budget. And the best part is, it beats SEO, affiliate marketing, and social media. According to statistics, the average order value of an email is three times higher than that of social media.

Email marketing and its services for businesses are one of the most effective digital business strategies and marketing tools for small business owners and new marketers. Effective marketing emails convert prospects into loyal customers and fans. The majority of businesses using the platform only send messages to those who have signed up to receive them. So there is a sure possibility of gaining high conversion rates since business is targeting only those customers who have evinced an interest in that brand. Examples of email marketing could be a newsletter, loyalty or rewards programme, e-books, promotions of sales or deals, product or service information.

Here’s an interesting factoid. Whatever data you have on your social media platforms could be deleted for no reason at any point in time, but your email lists stay with you. In other words, you own email lists.

Let’s look at some statistics (Reference: Oberlo):

• The number of active email users is forecasted to reach 4.3 billion in 2023. 
• 293.6 billion emails were sent and received each day.
• Average expected ROI is $42 for every $1 you spend on email marketing.
• Nearly nine out of every ten marketers use email marketing to distribute content organically.

Now let’s get down to why email marketing is beneficial for marketers and small business owners:

• Firstly and most importantly, it is cost effective, fast and efficient and one of the best tools to attract and retain customers.
• Consumers prefer emails- the possible reason could be that it’s permission based
• It can drive sales like no other channel. According to Marketing Week, emails generate around £29bn retail sales annually. How many of us engage in impulse buying? That’s the market for email marketing. Which other platform can you think of where you can view an interesting offer and then proceed to purchase it by just making 2 clicks of a button?

It only gets better!

• Email marketing is simple: Of course, there is scope for adding fancy images, videos and templates but at the end of the day it’s the essence of the content that matters and can clinch the sale
• You can segment your subscriber list based on any criteria. This enables the marketer or business to customize the information for the right target audience. In simple words, you are targeting an already engaged audience and not really wasting a customer’s precious time
• Email marketing is instant: Within minutes of sending your email out , businesses can see results instantly. Typically, any business or small business owner may have to wait weeks before he/she sees results after sending out a print or broadcast campaign.
• Easy to measure ROI: Which other platform can you think of that can go out instantly to thousands of people? Social media, yes, but you can’t track what the target audience has been reading and what made him/her click on your content. An email marketing campaign can allow the business owner or marketer to track the conversion rates to decipher how a campaign can be improved. This is tough to do with advertising campaigns
• It integrates marvellously with other marketing tools, such as social media. In your email you could add ‘Like’ or ‘Share’ buttons. Some positive reviews on social media about your business or product could be included in your email and this will draw customers to your email newsletter or campaign

Here’s an example of a good marketing email, with a catchy title-Ola. With many people using the post-paid service, Ola’s campaign has become a big hit. Doesn’t it solve the problem of daily cash spending?

In conclusion, and on a lighter note, remember the movie ‘You’ve got Mail’? It still resonates today and reminds us that email marketing is still such a powerful and the most preferred way of exchanging emails. Though marketers and small business owners may not be looking for love online (!) they are still looking for cost efficient, speedy and simple ways of generating leads online and connecting with potential customers. And email marketing is the way to go.