An overview of email marketing strategy for small business owners

The world of digital marketing is big and intricate. There are countless techniques and marketing strategies small business owners may employ to get their message in front of clients, including SEO, SEM, PPC, social media, and content marketing.

Nevertheless, despite all the cool tools at our disposal, a strong email marketing strategy consistently outperforms all other techniques and is, we might add, significantly more affordable than the average search engine or social campaign.

Marketing evolved along with attitudes and tactics across time. Email marketing continues to maintain the undisputed title of highest marketing ROI, but what worked in the past may not work anymore. The typical ROI for an efficient email marketing plan ranges from 3800 percent to 5600 percent, depending on who you ask. For every dollar spent, that amounts to $38 to $56.

To add fuel to the email fire, here are some additional statistics from email gurus Snov.io:

The most popular form of communication in 2022 is email. Email volume reached a record 319.6 billion in 2021, and it keeps rising. Over half of customers are influenced to make a purchase by an email marketing strategy, which produces 40% greater conversion rates than social media marketing. It's wonderful stuff, this!

So let's get started with some email marketing advice and how to develop the best email marketing techniques that will lead to more opens, clicks, and conversions as well as a better than ever return on your marketing spend.

Check out our article on how to plan email marketing campaigns if you want to go even farther. Along with many other useful marketing techniques you may use to create a successful campaign, we briefly discuss the tools and strategy of email marketing.

Email marketing: What is it?

Any small business marketing strategy must include email marketing since it is effective and inexpensive, but it also takes a lot of planning. But what what is an email marketing plan? Let's divide it into manageable halves.

Email marketing is a technique for promoting goods, services, and concepts. A marketing email's goal is to educate and persuade the receiver to take a particular action. To activate a trial, read an article, download some content, click a link, or schedule a discovery call, for example.

Effective email marketing campaigns are created by marketers from the outset with a specific goal in mind. The end result is rarely achieved with just one email, though. A sales funnel, a multi-step procedure that guides buyers through each stage of the purchasing journey, includes effective email marketing methods.

Why is it vital to have an email marketing strategy?

The most significant marketing channel for both B2B and B2C marketers is email. Everybody checks their email every day, which is a statistic no other channel can match. You can use it to spread your message to those who are already familiar with your brand. Since it's not a cold contact, you're effectively already halfway there.

Additionally, email is the only medium that you completely control. That is not true of social. That information is permanently deleted if you ever lose access to your Twitter or Facebook account. Or you risk being permanently removed from your followers' newsfeeds if one of the platforms suddenly alters its algorithm. An email list, however, is yours and cannot be taken from you.

Rising above the noise in the age of oversaturation, where every marketer on the planet competes for customers' attention, is not an easy endeavor and does not come cheap. Compared to SEM and social media marketing, email marketing efforts are incredibly inexpensive and produce better, more consistent results.

Your email list is marketing gold, to put it simply. You virtually have it in the bag if you're looking for a marketing plan that works and already have a strong email list.

Which 4 categories best describe email marketing campaigns?

Even if we're talking about marketing, not all email campaigns explicitly include selling. Email marketing can take four different forms.

Newsletters

One of the most popular categories of marketing emails is the e-newsletter. The majority of newsletters aim to educate readers or offer helpful advice and insights on subjects you are already knowledgeable about. If you work as a landscaper, for instance, you might send out a seasonal newsletter with a tip sheet to assist your clients in getting ready for the upcoming season. Customer loyalty can be increased with the use of this kind of free content.

acquiring clients

Email marketing is a great approach to turn people who are already familiar with your company into paying clients. You don't need to work very hard to catch their attention because they are already familiar with you and have subscribed to your list. Fill that time with engaging, educational material and marketing offers since they want to see what you have to offer. This will entice them to proceed and become new clients.

E-mails for archiving

Following up with clients after a sale or reminding them of things still in their cart are two purposes for these emails. Reaching out to past clients who haven't interacted with your brand in a while with a re-engagement campaign. They allow you to stay in touch with people while also demonstrating your interest in their thoughts and opinions. A quick survey sent soon after a sale to get feedback right away is an example of a retention email.

marketing emails

Use these emails to cross-promote items, announce the launch of a new product or service, advertise a special offer or promotion, or extend exceptional discounts and savings to your most devoted consumers. Promotional emails often target clients who are already engaged with your brand or subscribers who have already purchased from you.

12 advices for small business email marketing

The best email marketing campaigns are well-planned before they go live. Here are a few steps you can do to prepare your email for a successful email marketing campaign.

1. Create a list for email marketing

If not, there are many methods to start accumulating email addresses. You may already have one.

Include a signup form on your website.

Include a signup link on your social media pages.

In-store email collection from customers

Request emails for any invoices.

Introduce loyalty schemes

a pop-up offering a discount in return for an email appears on your homepage.

Put a popup exit on your website (intent popup)

Ask for registration at the end of a blog article (or social post)

Opt-in boxes, homepage popups, and exit popups are just a few of the features available in the Invoice2go website builder to assist you in gathering emails and generating leads. They are simple to include and will keep assisting you in expanding your list without any more work.

It's time to tidy up.

Give your email list a thorough "cleaning" if you have one that you haven't used in a while. Ensure that your messages are getting to their intended recipients. You will get stats on which addresses bounced, unsubscribed, were designated as spam, and so on if you use an email marketing program. If you perform a small cull and eliminate email addresses that have been inactive for any of the aforementioned causes, your stats will considerably increase.

Should I purchase email lists?

Starting marketers and small business owners might be tempted to buy email lists, but stop right there. There are a lot of reasons why you shouldn't acquire mailing lists, but the main one is probably that these people aren't your consumers, therefore you're unlikely to get any traction or make any sales. Additionally, because it violates the terms of service, email marketing platforms do not permit you to use purchased email lists. Every email address on your list needs to have given their consent to be included, and they should all have the freedom to opt out at any moment.

2. Select the email campaign platform.

Are email marketing platforms required in order to send promotional emails? Actually, the answer is no. However, a platform offers you extensive reporting so you can determine the exact success of your email marketing plan. Most platforms offer free membership up until you achieve a particular threshold of subscribers. Additionally, premium subscriptions could provide more advanced analytics or additional design features.

3. Establish your goals.

There are numerous possible goals for email marketing. Results measurement will be simpler the more specific your objectives are. Choose whether you want to create leads or promote revenue, awareness, or loyalty before you start.

4. Create list segments.

By using list segmentation, you may separate your subscribers based on their age, gender, marital status, income, favorite social media platforms, location, buyer personas, or other predetermined characteristics. You can promote to groups with various incentives by segmenting your audience. For instance, you may send various messages to subscribers who are active and inactive.

You'll get better results if you modify your communications to address more specifically to those audiences. Thankfully, your CRM or email marketing software will make it simple for you to do this with just a few clicks.

5. Individualization

Personalization comes next after segmentation. Personalization makes it possible to run hyper-targeted campaigns and can boost your output by more than 700%. Personalization in the email body increases conversions by 51% and raises the likelihood that the subject line will be opened by 65%. Don't undervalue the power of customized communications!

6. Create a killer subject line for an email

The reader will be more likely to open an email with a good subject line. Tell them what's inside in a direct manner.

Use attention-grabbing language.

Pick strong words; eschew weak or meek ones.

Mention any discounts, special deals, or time-limited offers you're making.

Avoid using full capitals.

Don't use special characters

Create a tailored message by using the subscriber's name in the subject line.

Also, don't stick to just one email subject line. A/B test a few of them to determine which ones are most effective for you.

7. Produce worthwhile content

A successful email marketing strategy must offer something of value. You must demonstrate to your clients that you comprehend their requirements and possess the information, resources, and insights necessary to make their life easier.

It will be simpler to provide your audience useful, specialized communications the better you understand them and their motivations: Videos, checklists, before-and-after pictures, DIY design projects, tip sheets, and how-to guides are all wonderful examples of pertinent material.

8. Make powerful appeals to action (CTAs)

Don't forget the CTA after creating some fantastic marketing messages, a flawless email design, and a catchy subject line. Make it simple for them to execute the action you want them to by giving them clear instructions. Provide the link and make it clickable if you want them to click it. Put your optimized links near the bottom of the page if you want users to share on social media. Be clear.

Improve your landing pages.

The landing page should be optimized to produce the intended outcome when your reader clicks on a link in your email campaign. Make sure your link points directly to a website where they can purchase a product, for instance, if you want them to. If you make it simple for your customers to do the desired activity, they will frequently do so.

10. Examine your emails

Test emails can be sent to yourself or coworkers to see how they appear in various email applications, browsers, or mobile devices. Even the most talented authors require editors. You can prevent sending emails with mistakes or typos by having another set of eyes review your work.

11. Use the best time possible to send your email marketing efforts.

Emails sent at the ideal moment will produce better outcomes. The best send time for your audience will vary depending on the industry segment, claims Marketo.

To contact people at their workstations before the day gets busy, send emails between 8 and 10 am. If you own an online store and want to connect with customers, try the early morning or mid-afternoon, around 3 or 4 pm. Avoid sending emails after hours since they can get lost in the flow.

12. Evaluate the success of your email marketing efforts.

Your email marketing strategy's effectiveness will be measured by its results. Results of the effectiveness of a campaign should be measurable and quantitative. Fortunately, once your campaign is over, your email marketing software offers thorough campaign metrics for you to evaluate. From there, you may determine your ROI and evaluate your performance.