Before social media, email marketing was the best way to speak to your customers, and it’s still one of the most useful tools for directly communicating with your audience. Businesses can use email marketing to quickly send out important messages, which is particularly helpful during a crisis such as COVID-19.

There are many benefits to email marketing, including the simple fact that you are communicating directly with an engaged audience of individuals you already have an existing relationship with. 

You can then analyse engagement, segment audiences and customise or automate messages to target dynamic content towards people that want to read it. 

Plus, it’s cost effective, with each $1 spent bringing in an average ROI of $42, according to a study by the Direct Marketing Association in the UK. 

Take the time to plan out your email marketing strategy and be prepared to commit to it. If you ask contacts to sign up to a monthly newsletter, make sure you can deliver well written and relevant content once a month. 

Will you be sending regular newsletters or promotional emails with special offers? Deciding on the purpose of your email marketing strategy will help you determine what you need from your email marketing software.

As with most aspects of running a business, there are plenty of software providers to choose from. When it comes to choosing between the ever-popular Mailchimp and providers like Constant Contact and Sendinblue, you’ll need to do a little research and consider the right choice for your business based on a number of factors, not just your budget.

1. What development and design resources do you have internally and what resources do you need from a provider? 
2. Can you build or customise HTML templates or will you rely on predesigned templates?
3. Do you need 24/7 phone, live chat or email support? 
4. What other backend systems, such as accounting, CRM or inventory management software, do you need to connect to?
5. Are you looking for extra reporting tools or special features such as A/B split testing, autoresponders or dynamic content?

• Build a quality mailing list — Purchasing a mailing list is a waste of resources and is unlikely to get you an engaged audience. Find opted-in subscribers using subscription forms on your website. If it works for your business, encourage new subscribers with discounts and special offers.

• Play by the rules — Be aware of your responsibilities under the current Australian Spam Act 2003, and any international regulations relevant to your customer base. Remember that customers won’t appreciate an inbox full to the brim with irrelevant content.

• Analyse and adjust — There are so many analytics tools available, so make the most of them. Experiment with subject lines, layout, the time of day you send and the content itself to see what gets the best outcomes for your business. Be prepared to adjust your strategy and tactics.

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