Four billion people are daily email users. Four BILLION. Email marketing—and specifically the email newsletter format—has the highest Return on Investment among all digital marketing platforms. The reason for its success is pretty straightforward: personalized connection (x four billion.) Think about talking with someone-one-on-one versus listening to them in a lecture hall. When you reach right into your (potential) customer’s mailbox, you’re making direct contact. You’re looking them in the eye. They’re looking back at you. And they’re falling in love.
This is not just our opinion, either. Recent studies show that businesses make $36 for every $1 they spend on email marketing.
Some stats that might interest you from 2023:
- 33% of marketers send weekly emails and 26% send them a few times a month
- 77% have seen an increase in email engagement
- 37% of brands are increasing their email budget
- 64% of small businesses use email to reach their consumers
- Most effective strategies for email marketing campaigns:
- 78% subscriber segmentation
- 72% message personalization
- 71% email automation campaigns
- 77% of businesses have seen increase in email engagement over the last year
And some more stats that explore how critical email contact is to businesses:
- 95% of businesses say email marketing is important to their company’s success
- 41% go so far as to say it’s vital
- 79% of marketers put email marketing in their top three ways to reach audiences
What are some of the nitty gritty details?
- 21% of emails are opened within the first hour of receiving them (anything above 20% is a huge success)
- 67% of those are more likely to lead to a purchase if the email includes a coupon or discount
- 33% if there’s a check-in
- 28% business update
- Email marketing market was worth 7.5 billion in 2020
- By 2027, it’s projected to be worth 17.9 billion
- Email marketing is where it’s at!
Email marketing, especially in the newsletter format, builds loyalty and rapport with your customer. You’re able to personalize your contact with them—by segmenting your subscriber list and tailoring content—which creates direct communication. This, in turn, increases brand awareness and more than that, it gives your customer an easy way to identify themselves with your brand identity. Traffic to your website, blog, and other social media channels rises and purchases increase.
How do you become one of the 88% of emails that are opened within the first 24 hours of being received?
- Send your email newsletters at the start of the work day (between 7AM and 9AM) or at the end of the workday (between 4PM and 6PM) when people have time to read
- Send them early to mid week before they’re tired
- Create a subject line that is short and engages curiosity
- Mention promotions in the subject line
- Design content so links and buttons are easy to see
- Make your paragraphs short and simple
- Send a follow up within 48 hours so that a possibility becomes a purchase
You can build your subscriber list by offering incentives such as exclusive content, discounts, or promotions, and then segment it by demographics, interests, and behaviors. Be consistent with your newsletter schedule, whether it’s weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly. Finally, use analytics to track your newsletter’s performance (open rates, click-through rates, and conversions).
How do you keep your subscribers? By offering them consistent, high quality newsletter content. What does that look like?
- Tell people what they’re signing up for
- Offer value and knowledge (not just promoting products)
- Again, make your newsletters concise and easy to read
- Use images
- Be consistent with your brand in terms of content and design
- Make sure your newsletter is readable on a smartphone (81% of people check email on smartphone or other device)
- Focus on one CTA (call to action) per newsletter
In the end, what you’re really doing with your email newsletter is engaging those four billion daily email users (you know, the ones you’re directly talking to one-on-one) in a conversation that adds value to their lives. You might be sharing a case study of someone who has made a positive change, or you might be explaining an event, or making personal recommendations or comparing products. You might be demonstrating a step-by-step process or sharing an interview. You might be preemptively answering common questions. Whatever you decide to focus your newsletter on, it’s critical to remember that you’re one half of that conversation. The other half is your engaged, curious, connected customer.