Is it that time already? I can’t believe that I’m sitting down to write my top 5 predictions for Email Marketing in 2016, this year has just flown by … and so have developments in digital marketing.
So here it goes, grab a cuppa and have a read of …
My Top 5 Predictions for Email Marketing
1) Synchronising content
It’s a bit of a bugbear of mine when brands don’t launch integrated campaigns. A single person makes a transaction with you. They may make that purchase in a shop but chances are they’ve already browsed your website, read your product reviews, followed you on Twitter and have signed up to receive email marketing from you. They’re a multi-channel customer. If you have a promotion in your shop the chances are you’ll tell that customer when they’re shopping, hey you might even put up a few posters. Have you emailed them about it too? No? Why not? Ok so to an extent synchronising content is already happening – it’s Christmas, you put your decorations up in your shop and you send an email with Christmas offers. The future of email marketing? It’s taking that one step further and synchronising the in-store experience and online experience through your website and even social media channels with specifically targeted content that complements your campaign messaging. Sounds so simple. That’s because it is. You have so much to talk about, your customers are talking about you, take that content and synchronise it into a seamless email campaign.
2) Micro-targeting content
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again … digital = data. We can track so much more with our customers now than we have ever been able to. With increasingly more intelligent CRM systems creating micro-targeted content that is specifically tailored to a unique group of customers, or even individuals to serve them the most relevant content is within our reach. The most obvious starting point would be social media – if you can match your customers’ email with a social media profile then chances are you can track their interests. Are they tweeting about an upcoming holiday they’re planning? Send them an email about holiday insurance, hire cars, recommended hotels or even a reminder to get their jabs … whatever the message keep it relevant, but more specifically, if you can, micro-target it. Check out Spotify’s super targeted email marketing to a Lady Antebellum fan …
3) Email designs for wearables
So tablets and mobiles entered the digital world and we responded with responsive emails. Apple watches and internet wearables come into play and we … haven’t really done anything about it yet. Wouldn’t it be super clever and super proactive if brands started thinking intelligently about the design and display of email marketing for a new era of devices?
4) Campaign automation
Email Marketing doesn’t have to be a lethargic digital marketing service. It shouldn’t be overly time consuming and it most definitely shouldn’t be forgotten. If a customer has given us their email address let’s use it in the right way, at the right time with the right message: “Thank you for your purchase”, “Happy Birthday”, “Are you running out of your moisturiser yet?”, “We noticed you abandoned your shopping basket, can we tempt you back?” With an increasing amount of simple automation software options available in the market there really shouldn’t be any excuse for not setting up automated email campaigns however large or small your business is.
5) Big Data Usage
The beauty of the digital age is that behavioural data can be monitored, captured and utilised. If we know who are customers are, when they shop, how they shop, how long they spent on our website, when the last time they shopped with us was, how much they spent in a single transaction, how much they spend in an average transaction, what they abandoned in their shopping cart (… you get the idea) then we should be translating this data into intelligent targeting to push each website visitor and customer further through the conversion funnel.
AND FINALLY … don’t forget your WWW … Why are you emailing a customer? What are you emailing them about? Where will you track results?
How do our predictions for Email Marketing compare to your strategy for the new year? Think you might need some help mapping out your Email Marketing strategy for 2016? Give us a call on 01992 582824 or complete a contact form and a super Email Marketing whizz in at Cariad Towers will get back to you asap.
