Email marketing is one of the most profitable
strategies available to the online entrepreneur (and offline business
owners, too).
Consider this: About 99% of your website visitors will leave without
buying anything from you on their first visit. But by creating a great
opt-in offer you can at least get their contact details -- and then use
email marketing to follow up, build relationships, and turn them into
paying customers.
And email marketing is by far the BEST and CHEAPEST way to stay in
touch with your customers and build rock-solid relationships with them
-- so they'll buy from you again and again! (This is called the
"lifetime value" of your customers, and it's extremely profitable.)
Email marketing just plain works! Just take a look at these statistics
from PostFuture:
- There are now more than 1 BILLION Internet
users worldwide -- and 90% of them use email.
- 70% of users receive opt-in email from online
businesses.
- 82% of online buyers have made at least one
purchase in response to an email promotion.
- 32% have made an immediate online purchase in
response to an email.
With numbers like these, you can understand why
I'm always stunned to hear about a business that STILL hasn't started
to take advantage of email marketing strategies.
If you're stuck for ideas on how to use email marketing to ramp up your
profits? Here are 10 proven email marketing strategies to get you
started...
Email marketing strategy #1: Develop
relationships and establish credibility by offering free information
Sending your subscribers valuable, free information -- such as an
authoritative eBook -- will help them get to know and trust you. Once
you've established your credibility, you dramatically increase your
chances of converting subscribers into lifelong customers.
You can offer anything from a free report to a free trial version of
software... whatever you think your subscribers would like!
Email marketing strategy 2: Encourage repeat
visits by announcing regular specials
Once you've started collecting email addresses, you can send your
customers and subscribers regular updates letting them know what your
specials are. Sending regular discount offers is a great way to get
your customers familiar with you and your site -- and turn them into
regulars who will buy from you again and again.
Email marketing strategy 3: Host "Customer
Only" events
Suppose you own a restaurant, and you've been collecting your
customers' email addresses. You could send each of them an email
invitation to an exclusive wine-tasting evening for regular diners
only. Rewards like this are one of the best ways to capitalize on the
lifetime value of your customers.
If you own an online business, you can set up a special page on your
site that is accessible only to customers -- and then send them an
email telling them how to take advantage of the specials you advertise
on that page.
Email marketing strategy 4: Include
promotions in appointment reminders
If you are running a service business, as opposed to a retail business,
you can still capitalize on the power of email marketing by sending
appointment reminders to your clients.
If you're a karate teacher, for example, you could send your new
clients an email three days before their first lesson, reminding them
where you are located and when they need to arrive. In that same
message, you could include a coupon that offers them 25% off their
lessons if they bring a friend to enroll as well!
Email marketing strategy 5: Follow up with
your hottest leads
You can use email to follow up with people you have spoken with
personally, but who have not made a purchase. Offer to answer any
additional questions they may have, and let them know that you are
available to speak with them at their convenience. This can
dramatically increase your chances of closing a sale by providing your
leads with extra information they're not expecting.
Email marketing strategy 6: Offer electronic
"loyalty coupons"
This is a great way to get your existing customers to buy from you
again and again. Simply send each of your customers a coupon that they
can print and bring with them into your store or use on your website.
It is always a good idea to make your coupons valid for a limited time
only to motivate your customers to make a purchase from you as soon as
possible.
Email marketing strategy 7: Send follow-up
offers to your customers
Follow-up offers are one of the most powerful ways to build a
profitable business. because they build on the trust you've established
to close the initial sale -- and turn first-time buyers into regular
customers.
How profitable can follow-up email be? My team once sent our customers
a follow-up email introducing them to a product that we thought they
might like. The entire process of writing the email and sending it out
took about 20 minutes -- and the result was a direct profit of $74,000!
Email marketing strategy 8: Encourage "Send
to a Friend" referrals
Email is a great way to encourage referrals because it's easy for
people to forward messages to their families, friends, and coworkers.
Make sure every newsletter, offer, or eBook you send to your
subscribers reminds them that they can forward your message to anyone
they think might be interested.
You could even run a promotion that gives your existing customers
something for free every time they personally refer a new customer to
you.
Email marketing strategy 9: Deliver your
product electronically
Suppose you've written a book and you're currently selling paperback
copies through your site for $29 each. By creating a digital version of
your book -- which is WAY easier than you're probably thinking -- you
can simply email it to your customers.
And since you won't have to worry about things like printing costs,
warehousing, packaging, and delivery, you can DRAMATICALLY increase
your profit margin!
Email marketing strategy 10: Use email to
sell your knowledge and create recurring revenue
If you are an expert on a particular topic -- and just about everyone
is -- then you've got a successful business based on a
paid-subscription newsletter waiting to be born.
Of course there are tons of other email marketing strategies you can
put to use. And once you realize just how easy it is to use it to drive
sales, you'll be thinking of all kinds of new strategies yourself!
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/email-articles/
10-email-marketing-strategies-to-dramatically-increase-your-sales-
595113.html About the Author
Derek Gehl, Internet Marketing Center CEO and
author of the best-selling "Insider Secrets to Marketing Your Business
on the Internet" course, helps entrepreneurs start and grow
lucrative online businesses on a shoestring budget. Click here to take Derek's free quiz and get
his proven Internet and email marketing strategies. |
