Email marketing is stronger than ever. So the simple answer to the question- Is email marketing dead?, the answer is NO. It is alive and well…. only if you understand the power of email marketing.
There is an assumption that more people are on social media than on emails and while it is a valid perception, the research shows that it is not true. The value of having an email list for your business is that you get to build an audience of your choosing and you have control of the platform, unlike social media.
An email list is a gold mine to the success of your business if harnessed correctly. Let’s talk about its importance and how you start to grow your email list.
AN INVITATION
After you have chosen your email platform, you want to focus on inviting your ideal clients to your email list. Each platform has its benefits or limitations, but if you are clear about your long-term goals for your email list then choosing one should not be so hard. I started with Aweber and now I am a big fan of MailerLite which has been serving my team well over the last 3 years
So, let’s get back to your invitation. YOu are sending an invitation to your audience to join your family. To become part of your community. To stay connected and build a relationship. But by saying YES, your audience is also inviting you into their space. What most people fail to understand is that email marketing is a two-way street. There must be mutual respect and trust on both sides. Whatever you promised to provide your audience when you invited them in should always be delivered. And at the same time, do not be pushy and force them to stay longer or consume what they do not want.
Ways you can invite your audience into your email list include
free training
free pdf file
free video training
a low-cost investment
There is a myriad of ways to get people into your list. Whatever you offer must be enticing enough to make them trust you with their email addresses. Also, always deliver on what you promised them.
After you get them in, now the work begins. You need to focus on providing valuable information that will inspire, motivate and educate your audience. Your emails do not need to be long-winded but can include a mix of content that will continue to keep your audience tuned in and opening every email you send.
You also want to pay attention to your frequency. Do as you promised. My rule of thumb is to send at least 1 email per week to keep your audience engaged. If they did not sign up for daily emails, then do not force it down their throats. This is a quick way to get unsubscribers.
Then segment your audience according to how they entered your email list. Creating segments allows you to fine-tune your message and only send relevant information to the right audience. Everybody on your list may not need ALL the information you want to share. Segmentation allows you to be strategic in targeting your audience with relevant content.
Also, you want to remember it is about value! Every email does not and should not be a sales pitch! That is a huge turnoff. Instead, use your email list as a way to strike a balance as you build a relationship. Some messages are all value and then some are sales. The first set of emails your audience received, including their automated welcome email, should just be valuable information.
AUTOMATION
Besides segmenting your audience, you also want to utilise the automation feature of your email provider. As an entrepreneur, you know how valuable your time is. The automation feature allows you to connect with your audience frequently without being tied to your laptop.
WHAT DO I SHARE
As I said before, it is also about valuable information. But even better, is that you can repurpose your social media posts and share them with your audience so you are not reinventing the wheel. Weekly I share
All these, I also share on my social media platforms.
AND FINALLY
Two main things you want to pay attention to as you build your email list. Your open rate and your unsubscribe rate. Your open rate is calculated by how many people are opening each email you send out. Get familiar with your analytics and insights. An average open rate is 20-25 %. Anything lower than that means you have work to do on your subject, your messaging, or your audience criteria.
Your unsubscribe rate is also important. Even though I tell my clients don’t get distracted by the number of unsubscribers, you have to pay closer attention if your number of unsubscribers is outnumbering the numbers who are subscribing. This is a major red flag. Again this means you have to pay attention to your messaging or your audience criteria.
Are you ready to learn more about email marketing? Then grab a copy of my ebook on Email Marketing for more information.
So, let's talk about digital products. I wanted to talk about digital products because it's one of those things that I get asked a lot about during my coaching sessions. At some point in time during coaching, my clients usually ask me about what type of digital products they can start and the benefits of digital products. Let me tell you a little about my history with digital products. I did my first digital product in 2016 as an E-book. And it didn't sell! I sold a few copies but it didn't sell off the shelf and that was all my fault because I didn't understand that selling an E-book required the same amount of marketing as selling anything else.
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