Get the OptIn! Email Marketing Wants YOUR Customers to Volunteer
OptIn email marketing neatly represents the best route to successful database marketing: fill your database with people who have chosen to join it. As many as possible.
By all means make use of the soft OptIn (see anti spam laws), but the greatest rewards come from creating your own voluntary OptIn email marketing lists, mailing lists etc.
The reason is very simple - you will enjoy a far greater response to your campaigns. And that applies to all other types of database marketing too, such as an sms campaign or mailshot.
Give customers a great reason to OptIn
To start the process of OptIn email marketing, decide what your customers would value enough to OptIn to your database:
- Extra discounts (nothing talks like money off!)
- Exclusivity and status, eg VIP membership
- Loyalty program, eg offering repeat purchase rewards
- Valuable information see this case study of a bulk email marketing campaign that uses recipes
- Priority access to special events, sales etc
- Competition or prize draw with a juicy prize (see the link below for more on this)
Let’s be blunt - we’re talking bribery! Marketing in general is getting tougher due to more savvy customers and information overload. Email Marketing in particular is getting tougher due to the vast quantities of spam making everyone reluctant to give their email address. A big juicy carrot helps overcome that reluctance. The juicier the carrot, the better the response.
...and a great reason to STAY
After the OptIn comes the next challenge - keeping them there. You’ll never BUILD a database if you constantly lose lots of customers who unsubscribe after one email marketing campaign or sms campaign.
Remember, anti spam laws require you to make it easy for people to opt out, so the pressure is always on!
Success here will be down to a great many factors, but by far the most important is the VALUE of the content. It doesn’t have to be monetary value (although that does help), but it has to be useful or interesting or entertaining or educational enough to make it worth their while.
Otherwise, why should they bother opening your marketing email or reading your mailshot?
OptIn email marketing - like all database marketing - is an exchange, a transaction. Customers give you their contact details, you give them something of value in return.
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I’ve seen email campaigns sent to OptIn lists that have been opened by 50% of recipients. And I’ve also seen campaigns sent to bought lists that have been opened by no-one. Not a single person.
And the crucial difference? The OptIn. It doesn’t mean bought lists don’t have their place. But the contrast in response can be enormous...
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We’re just scratching the surface! Dive on in to these other pages…
To leave optin email marketing and find lots more practical tips and advice on database marketing, take a look at our homepage>>
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