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Email Marketing Beats Social Media
Rock, Paper, Scissors, Email, Social Media. Which one do you choose?
A recently published report by McKinsey featured in the Entrepreneur states that email is significantly more effective than Social Media. As a matter of fact, the researchers have found that email is 40 times more effective than Twitter and Facebook combined!
Depending on your personal experience, you may find this report either mind-blowing or simply that it states something that you already knew.
Not so long ago, some thought (and some may still think) that email was a thing of the past. I remember having a very heated discussion with a friend of mine who argued that the good old email will soon be replaced by other message-based services such as Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp. Maybe, I argued, but you still need an email address to log into Facebook!
I must agree that nowadays we are inundated with choice due to the sheer volume of messaging services available to us, however that doesn't make the good old email obsolete. Au contraire, email continues to be the first online stop for many of us and when it comes to shopping and purchasing behaviour it seems that it is our preferred medium! And McKinsey's backing me up on this one!
According to the study 'the rate at which emails prompt purchases is not only estimated to be at least 3 times that of Social Media, but the average order value is also 17% higher'. So not only is email more popular when acquiring customers, but those obtained by email also tend to spend more!
One of the powers of email is its opt-in feature. That instantly makes email a form of consensual marketing. Its permission based feature (people allow you to get in touch with them via email) essentially means that customers have given you the green-light to contact them. They want your messages, they are interested in your offering. Therefore, the success rate and the conversion of leads and prospects into actual clients is so much more likely to happen!
With 94% of internet users having an email address, and most of them checking their inboxes on a daily basis, email is the most popular online activity. Especially with the prevalence of mobile technologies, people are always listening. What this means to you as a business owner is that there is a not-so-new personal way of getting in touch with customers! In addition, email offers an easy way to track your success. Open and click-through rates and reports are a standard features for most email services; you can also measure the return on investment. This is something that Social Media still needs to work on since their ROI is more of a guesstimate. Social Media does deserve the hype, but when it comes to actual results and effectiveness, email marketing comes first as the undisputed winner.
Don't be too hasty to delete your Facebook account though! Social Media is still a great way to generate exposure and convert referrals. So don't cherry-pick one or the other, integrate!
Always cross advertise! Add a Newsletter sign up to your Social Media accounts, and always include Social Media buttons to your newsletters. Encourage people to share! Still don't have a decent email marketing software? Why not try InTouch?
If you are wondering how to start compiling emails to connect with customers, some simple things can help. Put a messages on your checkout counter saying 'Text us your email address and get 10% off your next purchase', for example. For more tips on how to grow your email list click here.
Which one do you choose?
What's your opinion? Which one do you prefer- Social Media, Email, both of them or none of them? Let me know!
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Content Marketing