Email marketing 2023

What is email marketing? Definition, strategies and tools to get started

You don't need an email marketing master course this audio book will provide you.

This beginner's guide will explain what email marketing is, how it works, and how to get started. In the end, you'll have a solid understanding of the basics along with the knowledge 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 central pillar of your digital marketing strategy. Not doing any email marketing is like leaving money on the table. 💸

But if you're a little confused about where to start, that's perfectly normal. Email is a vast field. It's easy for beginners to get lost in a sea of ​​tools, techniques and terminology.

For more information, stay tuned for everything you need to know about email marketing:

What is email marketing? Why is email marketing important? The benefits of email marketing. How to do email marketing. Email marketing strategies.

What is email marketing?

Email marketing is a direct marketing channel that allows businesses to share new products, sales and updates with customers on their contact list. Its high ROI makes it crucial to the overall inbound strategy of most businesses.

Modern email marketing has moved away from one-size-fits-all mass mailings, and instead focuses on opt-in, segmentation, and personalization. 🆕 It may sound time-consuming, but marketing automation handles most of the heavy lifting for you. In the long run, a well-designed email marketing strategy not only drives sales, but also helps build a community around your brand.

Types of marketing emails

Marketing emails can be promotional, informational or serve a specific purpose in the buyer journey.

Promotional emails

Email marketing campaigns are used to promote special offers, new product releases, closed content such as e-books and webinars, and your brand in general. An advertising campaign can consist of 3-10 emails sent over several days or weeks.

A promotional email has a clear call to action - a call to action, in short. The CTA represents the specific action you want the reader to take, whether it's visiting a page on your website or using a coupon to make a purchase.

The sales and marketing pace of your business usually determines how often you send this type of marketing email. ⏱️ During critical periods like Black Friday, you may send multiple promotional emails in the same 24-hour period. During slower periods in the marketing calendar, it may take A few weeks between your campaigns.

Informative emails

Newsletter: A newsletter, as the name suggests, shares news related to your business. 📰 Think: new milestones achieved, new product capabilities or valuable content like test cases. Sent at regular intervals - weekly, bi-weekly, monthly - newsletters help maintain consistent touchpoints with your email subscribers.

But did you know that news doesn't have to be just about news? As email expert Ann Handley says, focus on the letter aspect. Imagine writing a one-on-one letter to your subscribers about something that interests them.

Simply put, a newsletter is an opportunity to share insights, thoughts, tips - whatever brings the most value to your audience.

Notifications: Email is the perfect way to inform customers about company announcements, new product releases, service changes, etc. 📢

More often than not, email is the preferred channel for important messages. If there is a glitch with your site, delivery delays or an outage in your system/software, updating your contacts via email is the best way to keep in touch. It's secure, instant and can match the official tone of even the most important announcements.

Re-engagement emails

Another important type of email marketing is the re-engagement email. As the name suggests, re-engagement emails help to reconnect with customers or subscribers who have been inactive recently.

Take a look at this example from Shopify:

Why is email marketing important?

Email is not a new technology. In fact, it was one of the first means of digital communication that arrived back in 1971. But at the age of 50, email marketing is used more today than ever before. 🤩

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

First, email marketing campaigns can be more personalized than those on social media. Next, the costs are considerably lower than in 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 profitable is that it