Email Marketing

Email Marketing

The Wonders of Email Marketing

A common question business owners ask is, "How do I attract more customers, and keep the ones I have coming back?" The answer...marketing. But not just any marketing—the you need the RIGHT marketing.

Having marketing materials and an attractive website is a great start, but it doesn't stop there.  One of the most popular ways to reach your audience today is through Email Marketing.

What is Email Marketing?

Email Marketing is a form of Direct Marketing, in which you email customers your offers and messages as a way of enticing them to do business with you.  Think of it as an electronic advertisement to their email box.

Why Should I Use Email Marketing?

Email Marketing is a fast, cost-effective way to reach a prospective or repeating audience immediately with your lastest promotions, and can increase customer loyalty.  The Direct Marketing Association found that US firms alone spent $400 million on e-mail marketing in 2006. ("The Power of Direct Marketing: ROI, Sales, Expenditures and Employment in the U.S., 2006-2007 Edition", Direct Marketing Association, October 2006)

Advantages:
  1. Fast and Convenient. Emails can be delivered in seconds, or even scheduled for delivery.
  2. Cost-effective. Companies charge low fees for email marketing services.
  3. Exact Return on Investment can be tracked. View click rates and responses through reporting tools.
  4. Allows you to Push information to your customer, instead of relying on customers to find your website
  5. You can generate repeat business. Build your loyalty by keeping customers informed.
  6. Its GREEN...because is paperless!
  7. Its the way of the future. Capture your audience where they're at the most...their computer!
  8. Its professional. Increase your brand recongnition with consistent advertising.

How Do I Get Started with Email Marketing?

Getting started is quite simple. Simply sign up for an Email Marketing service and let us handle getting your accounts setup and your database of names ready.

The Steps:
  1. Sign up for the Email Marketing service of your choice. Which one is right for you? Compare Email Marketing options here.
  2. When you've chosen the company that's right for you, call us and we'll walk you through the process, or we can set it up for you.

How Davis Designs Can Help

  1. Setup your Mail Lists. Upon account creation, we set up your database with existing email addresses that you have on file. Most email marketing companies require that these addresses have already given you permission to market to them.
  2. Setup your "Email Sign-Up" form for new customers. To build up your list, it is imperative to have a signup form. This goes on your website, and also on each email advertisement that you send out.
  3. Implement your Sign Up Form. After the form is set up, we will work with your website designer to include this form and link on your website and any future email campaigns.
  4. Create Custom Templates. Many email marketing programs come with standard templates, but we highly recommend customizing these to match your brand and identity. Davis Designs Online will create custom headers that include your logo and contact information in a professional manner. This way, when you send out an email, customer will recognize that it is coming from you and not just a random spammer.

Common Questions

How Much Is Email Marketing?

You can choose monthly plans or use a pay-as-you-go service.  Monthly plans tend to range from $10-20 per month and may include an image gallery, storage for your own images and other perks such as unlimited emails to clients. While you may not see yourself sending out more than 1 email per month, you may start to segment your lists, therefore you will send out 2-3 emails per month—each to different clients.

Pay-as-you go pricing is great for very small lists and infrequent emails. How small is small?  That can be calculated based on their per email rate (a few cents) x the amount of email addresses you have and your frequency.  It varies per company. Some pay-as-you-go plans do not let you send multiple times per month, so its best to plan out your email marketing objectives first.

Why Pay a Service When I Can Send My Own Emails?

There are several reasons, and not one is more important than the other.
  1. CAN-SPAM ACT OF 2003. You don't want to get hit with a spamming fee of $11,000 per email address that you were not allowed to email to. And unless you can prove that the customer authorized you to email them, you're out of luck. Most if not all email marketing services comply with this act, so its a great way to cover yourself.  Examples of some rules of Can-Spam are: the customer has ability to opt-out; customers go through email validation upon sign up; and the advertiser's name and address appear on each email for legitimacy.
  2. Professionalism. If you've got a great product or service, give it the appearance it deserves. Don't sell yourselves short with unattractive advertising.  Remember, the rules of brand recognition.
  3. Mistaken Identity to Your Customers. Aside from looking good, its crucial not to look like someone else—a SPAMMER.  People are getting loaded with emails every day. The last thing you need is to be mistaken for an obnoxious spammer and having your customers immediately deleting your great deals. Create beautiful, easy to read newsletters that entice customers to keep buying from you.
  4. Mistaken Identity to Email Engines.  Just because you sent an email doesn’t mean it was delivered. With the increase of junk mail and consumer’s outrage over receiving junk mail, email engines have been proactive in screening emails that appear ‘suspicious’. This includes emails sent to multiple people from the same unrecognizable address (possibly yours), and emails containing attachments. Your email may not be recognized as “safe” to some popular email engines and could end up in a JUNK folder, or even worse, not end up even making it to the JUNK folder. Email marketing companies are known for their business, so their emails are less likely to be viewed as potential spam.
  5. Manageability. Mail lists have never been easier to manage. The email marketing systems allow for complete organization and manage all new users and opt-outs. You no longer have to worry about who to remove and who to add back. That is all system-driven for you.
  6. Event-Triggered Emails. Let's say you have a new email customer, and oops...you were too busy and forgot to send them a Welcome Email with your New Customer offers.  You might have just lost a sale. Well, not any more. With Email Marketing, you can setup your templates and schedules to automatically send campaigns to clients based on actions they’ve taken to sign up, make a purchase, etc.  You can also setup emails in advance and schedule them to send out when the time is right.
  7. Tracking.  Using a system allows you to get quick results about who opened your emails, how many links they clicked on and what interested them the most. Did they visit your website as a result? Did they download the flyer you included? A system like this tells the business owner what they're doing right, or wrong.

Which Service is Right For Me?

Compare some email marketing plans here. They're similar in what they offer, but the fees vary depending on how many emails you plan on sending, and how often.