Email Marketing Information



LifeHealthInsurance.ca

What's the Value of an E-mail Address?


Although it may not be practical to put a dollar-sign value on an e-mail address there are many financially-savvy reasons to start collecting e-mail addresses if you haven't already begun. If you have, keep reading for a few more tips on e-mail address collection at the end of this article.

Communicating by e-mail has a number of benefits:

1. Quick response -- You'll be able to measure the effectiveness of your message in about 48 hours, which also means if you are asking for donations to a non-profit organization or selling something online you'll have money in-hand sooner than you would with direct mail.

2. Learn something -- A content strategy that tracks the recipient's activity within the message will teach you something about their interests.

3. More affordable -- E-mail allows you to communicate for pennies per message instead of the dollars per message it costs to send direct mail.

4. Better results -- Response rates to e-mail communications are often better than traditional direct mail.

5. Segment & strategize -- The technology available to deliver thousands of e-mail messages at a time also enables you to segment groups and target specific groups of people with a message just for them.

6. It's the culture -- Most professionals who work at a desk every day (and many who don't) are accustomed to using e-mail as a regular form of communication. According to the 2004 Pew Internet & American Life Project, 93% of online Americans use e-mail.

The e-mail addresses you have already collected, just like mailing addresses, are most valuable when they belong to the people who are connected and informed participants in your organization. Many organizations who consider "buying" an e-mail list will soon learn that their money will be wasted on strangers because their best prospects are the ones who are already acquainted with the good work you do. Therefore, it is worth the effort to cultivate your current list and do all you can to acquire their e-mail addresses and their permission to communicate with them by e-mail.


How to collect e-mail addresses:

1. Provide a subscription form on the front page of your website and then give them something to subscribe to: an e-mail newsletter, weekly tips, articles, resources, etc.

2. Remind people to subscribe to your e-mail newsletter in the signature of every person-to-person e-mail message you send out. Have every employee and volunteer do the same.

3. Instruct your staff and volunteers to keep this "top of mind" -- ALWAYS ask for an e-mail address: in person, on incoming and outgoing phone calls, visitors, events, etc.

4. Include a line for "e-mail address" on every return-reply mailing, including event RSVPs.

5. Determine a method for collection ANYTIME you are face-to-face with donors. Don't forget events that have volunteer sign-in sheets, raffle ticket sales or silent auction bids/purchases.

6. Implement a "forward-to-a-friend" strategy and consider offering an incentive for people who send multiple forwards.

7. Avoid being accused of spam -- be sure to share your privacy policy with an assurance that you will not sell or share their information and, by all means, ask their permission to contact them through e-mail.

Merritt Olsen is a freelance writer and marketing consultant specializing in online and e-mail marketing.  Need unique content for your e-mail newsletter that you can't find here?  Merritt has the experience and the savvy to write about a variety of topics and can be reached through www.tomorrowsdonor.com.

Copyright © 2004 Merritt Olsen & The Pursuant Group.  Permission is granted to reprint this article in print or on your website so long as the paragraph above is included and contact information is provided to www.pursuantgroup.com.


MORE RESOURCES:

The Business Coach: How to use email marketing effectively
KC Free Press
As an example, in 2009 the Direct Marketing Association released a study showing that email marketing returned $43.62 for every dollar spent. ...



Email Marketing Joins Google Apps Marketplace
Marketing Vox News
For marketers looking to develop online campaigns on the cheap it is an interesting development. Developers are billed a flat fee of $100, no matter the ...

and more »


Online Cosmetics Company Doubles Email Marketing Revenue with Lyris
MarketWatch (press release)
Leveraging Lyris HQ's email marketing and email deliverability capabilities, Paula's Choice has more than doubled its direct revenue, achieved click-through ...

and more »


StrongMail to Deliver Email Marketing Solution Integrated with SAP(R) CRM
MarketWatch (press release)
By integrating StrongMail Message Studio with SAP CRM, customers can quickly and easily leverage enterprise-grade email marketing capabilities, ...

and more »


The Co-operative Travel Chooses New Communicator® platform For email marketing ...
Al-Bawaba
With the new Communicator® in place, The Co-operative Travel can now manage and control their customer email marketing and communication activities even ...

and more »


Social Media Evangelist Sukhjit Ghag Shares Thoughts on Blogging, Engagement ...
PR Newswire (press release)
That optimism is reflected in the interview, in which Ghag elaborates that "email marketing is not dead at all. It's very important. ...

and more »


theSkinnyScoop Selects Constant Contact Email Marketing
EON: Enhanced Online News (press release)
theSkinnyScoop has selected Constant Contact as its email marketing partner as a means of growing and strengthening customer relationships for its unique ...
Constant Contact Welcomes Sharefaith As New Business PartnerPR Web (press release)
International Erosion Control Association Joins the Constant Contact Business ...geosynthetica.net (press release)

all 6 news articles »


Getting Better Results from Your Email Marketing
WeHo News
West Hollywood, California (March 15, 2010) - If you're like everyone else in the business world and moving your promotion and client maintenance to the web ...

and more »


Email marketing lists 'are constantly in flux'
Experian QAS
Email marketing lists need to be regularly updated due to previous subscribers opting not to receive such messages any more and new recipients being added, ...
Email marketing lists must be 'kept up to date'Business Strata - Business News

all 2 news articles »


Firedrum Internet Marketing Launches New Software and Offers Free Email ...
PR Web (press release)
Scottsdale, AZ (PRWEB) March 17, 2010 -- Firedrum Internet Marketing, a leading provider of email marketing software and solutions for small to medium ...


Google News

home | site map
© 2006