As the most efficient way to acquire and retain customers, email remains the leader. According to the Direct Marketing Association, email has an ROI of 3800% and Radicati reports, email will be used by 3 billion people by 2020.
However, for many marketers, email can be frustrating to determine what messaging to send and when. Let’s make it simple. There are only 5 types of emails: Indoctrinate, Progress, Elevate, Segment, and Automate.
Indoctrination
Indoctrinating your clientele and aligning them with your brand is the only way to grow a subscriber into a tribe member. Likewise, marketers need to train their subscribers from the first email.
- Thanking Subscribers – Offer gratitude and a hearty welcome immediately and frequently.
- Yourself & Background – Let them know who you are, where you’re from, and why you’re here to help.
- Values – Identify central ideas, topics, and interests that rally your tribe around you and keep those values.
- Products & Services – Make sure to present offerings and how they may best fit into their life kindly and consistently.
- Telling Stories – Tell your story in a way that connects deeply and emotionally with your subscribers and keeps them wanting to come back for more.
The next step is to continue progress to make them loyal lifetime customers.
Progression
Progression emails move subscribers deeper into your brand in a way that helps them celebrate being a part of your tribe with you.
- Client Success Stories – Have your clients tell how your product(s) and/or service(s) changed their life. The more a prospect can relate to a current customer, the more they feel a sense of belonging .
- Employee Stories – Highlight how your company has changed your employees’ lives. Just because you pay them, doesn’t mean that they’re not part of your tribe.
- Newsworthy Content – At least every 3 months, your company should have an announcement, change, addition, event, etc. Give your subscribers something to be proud of.
- Philanthropic Activities – Show that your values are something you act on.
- Product Launches – When you launch a new product, product line, or service offering, it should be a celebration heard far and wide.
- Product/Service Deep Dives – There’s always an opportunity to better define, describe, and share your product/service. Even for simple products, tell a story to provide meaning.
- Pre-Sale/Post-Sale Education – Before a client buys, they need to have clearly identified what problem your product/service solves. After a client buys, they need to know how to maximize your product/service.
- Contests – Rallying your tribe for a contest is fun for all, will bring in new subscribers, and gives you an opportunity to let subscribers know how valuable they are.
Now is the time to elevate their position in your client base.
Elevation
Everyone wants to be a VIP or insider. Without elevation, you’re not selling more and, thus, not serving your clients to the best of your ability.
- Cross-Sell/Upsell Same Product/Service – If there’s a premium product/service level that you know some customers would love, present it to them. The more customers buy, the higher their brand experience.
- Cross-Sell/Upsell Complimentary Product/Service – Are there other products/services that you can share with your to get them better results or that adds extra value?
- Promotional Emails for Discounts – Discounting should not be your core means of communication but loyal followers can use a push from time to time.
- Customer Referrals – Word of mouth is the most compelling and credible way to spread the word about your business.
Segmentation
When you segment your list, you start building personalized relationships with customers and when you segment your list well, subscribers care. Here’s how:
- Welcome Series – When you earn a new subscriber, give them a proper introduction to your brand.
- Post Transaction Series – When you’ve earned someone’s business, make sure that you’ve not only set proper expectations pre-sale, but that you’ve set proper expectations immediately. Always remember to thank them for being a customer.
- Membership Lapse – When an existing client’s term is expiring, be sure to have mechanisms in place to segment them to lay the groundwork to lock a renewal.
- Re-Engagement Series – You should have a systematized method to segment and re-engage prospective and/or existing clients during different periods of time (i.e. 30 days).
- Winback Series – When a subscriber or a customer begin to disengage with your brand, a personalized subject line and the right offer can go a long way.
- High Value Subscriber Series – What if 20% of customers generate 80% of your revenue? Find them, profile them, talk to them, and serve them the best you can.
Customer/Non-Customer Tracks – Customers and non-customers should generally be on separate tracks of communication frequently.
Once you experience the glory of segmenting, your retention, engagement, performance, and revenue will shine.
Automation
Email is the heart of “Marketing Automation.” The most accomplished email programs weave creative marketing strategy, design best practices, sales funnels, testing, personalization, and automation. Examples include everything from cart abandonment and low inventory triggers to weather-based and new arrival triggers.
Never ask, “What do I email?” or “What should I email?” again. Use this simple methodology to maximize the value of your email subscribers.
Andrew Christison is Director of Business Development at Elite SEM
