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Email Marketing

10 Non-Profit Email Marketing Tips for Success

Email marketing is by far one of the most effective ways to reach a large audience in a manner that’s engaging and effective.

Emails are highly personal by nature and have a very good open rate compared with other forms of marketing. Many bloggers and marketing experts will tell you that email marketing is one of the most important ways to develop a relationship with an audience and eventually to generate sales – and it can be equally as useful for non-profit organizations too.

It’s a shame then that many campaigners don’t make better use of email marketing, and that it is less well-understood than other options such as search engine optimization or social media. Read on, then, for ten powerful tips that will help you increase the impact of your email marketing. Continue Reading

Business Content Marketing Email Marketing

How can a small business prepare their marketing for the new year?

As a new year begins, it’s a great time for small businesses to re-evaluate their marketing plan.

2017

What worked in 2016 may not always be the best bet for 2017… and what didn’t work, well, it should be thrown overboard.

Develop a content marketing strategy that prompts action.

Make a plan that will help your content and messaging reach more people, whether that involves social media sharing, outreach to media or traditional advertising.

Consider adding video to the mix, spotlighting your products or services. 64% of visitors were more likely to buy a product after watching a video about it online, while 90% of online users say product videos help in the decision-making process.

Make sure your website is still a good fit.

We all know an outdated website design when we see it. They have cheesy graphics, lots of textures, and they just look dated. In any industry, that’s a huge turnoff. It shows your website is nothing more than an old brochure.

38% of users will stop engaging with a website that is unattractive, while 51% of users have trouble finding the contact information they need. Other times it’s not the design and layout that are the problem; instead, you just have old content that doesn’t reflect your mission, achievements or projects.

No matter what, make sure the website is mobile-friendly and easy to navigate on tablets and phones.

2017-collage

Update products in your online store.

It’s a new year, so make sure new products stand out, and at the very least, update how current products are presented. Create new product descriptions and add new high-resolution images to put a fresh spin on offerings. Make sure your products keep up with changing trends.

Embrace the ROI of an effective email marketing campaign.

You have an email marketing list, right? If not, you should, as they produce an ROI of $38 for every $1 spent — if used properly. Consider using detailed analytics. Track which messages are opened and by whom. How many people click through to your website, and how many take an action once there? Use this to determine if it’s time to rework the message. Emails cost very little to send, but it’s important to hone the message. Otherwise you’ll end up in the spam box. Also, like websites, make sure your email marketing is designed to work on all devices, as 75% of Google’s 1 billion email users check their mail on a mobile device.

Consider using detailed analytics. Track which messages are opened and by whom. How many people click through to your website, and how many take an action once there? Use this to determine if it’s time to rework the message. Emails cost very little to send, but it’s important to hone the message. Otherwise you’ll end up in the spam box. Also, like websites, make sure your email marketing is designed to work on all devices, as 75% of Google’s 1 billion email users check their mail on a mobile device.

Emails cost very little to send, but it’s important to hone the message. Otherwise you’ll end up in the spam box. Also, like websites, make sure your email marketing is designed to work on all devices, as 75% of Google’s 1 billion email users check their mail on a mobile device.

Build your social media presence.

Social media can be a love-hate relationship, as it doesn’t usually lead to direct sales. Rather, it creates engagement and buzz, along with back of mind awareness.

Content consumption has increased 57% in the past two years on social media. But remember your target demographics, as only 35% of people age 65 utilize it, compared to 90% of millenials.

Make sure your profiles across the platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Angie’s List, etc., are all up to date. On some, like Facebook, you can now add a list of services, and, of course, reviews are always important.

This is the time to explore new ideas, create fresh content and use what you’ve learned from past marketing endeavors to draw in more customers.

Conversion is the name of the game. Let’s talk about how these 5 tips can get your business ready to bring in new customers as the year changes.

This column originally appeared in Inside Columbia’s CEO Magazine.

Email Marketing

How to Avoid 10 Email Marketing Blunders

When done well, email marketing can be very successful when it comes to increasing sales and promoting awareness of a product or service. Unfortunately, it can be quite easy to make mistakes when it comes to email marketing. Here are ten blunders you should take care to avoid as an email marketer.

email marketing icon

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Content Marketing Email Marketing Inbound Marketing

The new year is almost here, are you ready?

The new year is approaching faster than you know it… is your marketing plan ready for action? How will you make sure you have a message for every month?

You only have a month left in 2014, so what should you be focusing on to prepare for the new year?

  • Review what worked and what didn’t work so far
  • Are you relying on too many marketing gimmicks? Coupons? Sales?
  • Are you getting new customers, or just keeping old ones?
  • Are you launching a new product or service next year?

So, why am I telling you to do this now?

Well, companies often wait till after the fact to act. It’s never too early to have a new years resolution. Plus, who wants to start the year behind!

It may be as simple as tweaking some wording, or working to achieve a better balance of media placements… but it might also mean it’s time for a new website or a better strategy.

© 2014 Web Design, Branding & Marketing Insights from Hub & Spoke.