Are you looking for new ways to engage your audience and drive traffic to your website?
Do you ever feel as though your inbox is drowning in marketing messages? Same here. Which begs the question: why do so many companies send out marketing emails? Allow us to shed some light.
We’ve worked with many clients over the years to create bespoke email marketing campaigns, so we’re confident we can provide a detailed and unbiased overview to help you determine if email is the right path for you.
We’ll examine the benefits and drawbacks of email marketing, from return on investment (ROI) to potential legal repercussions, to help you make an informed decision.
Benefits of email marketing
Judging by the number of emails we receive daily; these remain a significant part of many companies' downstream campaigns. Clearly, there’s something special about them that keeps businesses hooked. Let’s dive in and uncover the perks they offer.
Targeted communication and personalisation
Email marketing allows you to target specific segments within your audience. You can categorise subscribers on your mailing list based on factors such as location, age, seniority, role, industry, and more. You can gather this data by either asking your audience for it when they sign up for your mailing list or by purchasing a pre-populated list.
This is done by adding additional fields to your mailing list sign-up form. You can ask for as much information as you want, but asking for too much may put people off.
Having this information allows you to send out tailored content designed to engage that segment. For example, you may choose to include location-specific information or change the pain points mentioned depending on the job role.
This content is likely to be more engaging for your audience, and you’ll probably see a higher conversion rate as a result. However, this only works if you commit to growing and maintaining your mailing list by keeping it up to date with the latest information about your audience.
In addition to tailoring the content, you can also personalise the email, for example by addressing it directly to the reader. Personalisation has been shown to increase open rates by 139% and lead to a better relationship with your mailing list.
If you want to learn more about optimising your emails, look at the guide on our learning hub and grow your email campaigns.
Building relationships
Email marketing offers an opportunity to build and nurture relationships with your audience. You can send valuable and informative content, such as product updates, educational resources, or industry insights.
By sending this content, you can establish trust and credibility as a helpful source of information. This will lead to increased brand loyalty and customer retention, which benefits your bottom line.
Building trust with your audience can be tricky, but it’s a core principle of marketing. If this is something you want to work on, have a look at our content marketing article.
Cost-effective
If you’re concerned about your marketing budget and want a strategy that won’t break the bank, email marketing offers a cost-effective option.
Email eliminates the printing and postage costs associated with traditional direct mail campaigns and doesn’t require the same level of hands-on work as other channels. Instead, your costs would be limited to your email platform fee and design fees (if working with an agency), which can be very economical once initial templates are developed.
Previous studies have shown that email marketing offers a highly positive ROI, with an average of $36 made for every dollar spent. E-commerce companies are likely to have driven that average up, but even medical device companies can see a good return for a relatively small investment.
Driving traffic to your website
Email is a great way to remind your audience that you’re there.
It’s rare for users to convert the first time they visit a website, possibly because they don’t need that product or service at that particular time, or because they need time to consider it. Whatever the reason, you need to ensure they recall your brand when they’re ready.
That’s why emails are so handy; they act as little reminders that you exist, putting your brand front and centre in their mind. The more times you get in front of them, the more you become cemented in their head so that they think of you when they’re ready to convert.
You also make it easier for them to find you again. Instead of having to search for you, they can simply click a link in an email to go straight to your website.
Drawbacks of email marketing
Email marketing can deliver impressive ROI, but it requires dedication and attention to detail. For the best results, you need to invest time and effort. Failure to do so can mean that your emails are missed altogether, but when done correctly, the results can be very rewarding.
Regulatory compliance challenges
With email marketing, you’re exposed to the world of GDPR and all the rules that come with it. GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) is an EU regulation that safeguards the privacy and personal data of EU citizens.
These rules for collecting, storing, and transmitting personal and sensitive information through email can be complex, but if you fail to comply, there can be serious legal consequences for your company and reputation.
The main takeaway with GDPR is that you must have explicit consent for commercial emails to be sent to the people on your mailing list. These emails must include an unsubscribe option, and the data you collect shouldn’t be used for any other purpose than email.
If this is something you’re worried about or would simply like to learn more, we have a guide to GDPR that talks you through all the dos and don’ts.
Deliverability issues
Email deliverability is a common challenge in email marketing, as many emails get caught in spam filters, end up in junk folders, or get blocked altogether. Email delivery can fail for several reasons:
- Incorrect details
- Inactive accounts
- Your emails have been blocked
- Recipient’s email box is full
- Email is too large to be received
You have little control over your audience’s email settings, but when they sign up, you can encourage them to check their settings and ensure they don’t have marketing emails blocked. For more information on how to do this, HubSpot has published a guide.
There are also steps you can take to ensure that your email doesn’t get marked as spam, including:
- Addressing the email to the recipient.
- Creating a strong, relevant tagline.
- Authenticating your domain (this includes adding a TXT file from your email host to your DNS – your IT team should be able to handle this).
- Sending emails consistently, but not too frequently, as that can become annoying quickly.
Information overload and engagement
The medical device industry is full of extremely busy people who receive a significant volume of emails each day. They receive so many, in fact, that yours could easily get lost in the noise, so your time and effort might not be worth it if they don’t open it.
One of the biggest challenges with email marketing is making sure you stand out so that your email is seen by as many people as possible. Crafting compelling subject lines, relevant content, and clear calls to action (CTAs) can help increase your open rates.
Another way to make your emails stand out is by including personal videos, which statistically leads to a 4x higher click-through rate than emails without video. This is increased even further when you add the word ‘video’ to your subject line.
Opt-out and unsubscribing
Recipients must be able to opt out of email marketing, so you may find that you lose subscribers from time to time, causing your reach and engagement levels to shrink. If a significant number of recipients choose to unsubscribe, it may limit your ability to stay connected with potential customers and build long-term relationships.
Unfortunately, you only have so much control over your audience’s actions. Sending out relevant, engaging information is the best way to keep them interested, but ultimately, if they decide to leave, you have to let them.