Email Marketing Strives to Compete with Social Media
13 Oct
71% of email marketers say competing with social media for readers’ time and attention will be a top challenge.
This is despite the fact that “social media use makes people consume more email, not less,” according to Nielsen.
Email and Social Media Shouldn’t Compete — They Should Team Up
A few thoughts immediately jump out at me:
- If you’re afraid of losing audience to social media, why aren’t you using social media?
- Why are you so reliant on one marketing tactic?
- Is your email marketing social media ready? Does it include “Share with a friend” or “Post to Facebook” links?
- Could you upgrade your marketing plan so email and social media work in harmony?
Social Media is No Quick Fix for an Ailing Email Marketing Program
Social media has its own challenges. Many of them are the same challenges email marketers face:
- How do I deliver highly relevant content to my audience?
- How do I measure ROI?
- How to I get people to opt in?
- How do I avoid the perception of being spammy?
- How do I convert followers into actual readers? (Or better yet, customers)
What Social Media Can Do That Email Rarely Does
Social media can do one thing really well that email can’t: Let your audience create the message.
WHAT?!?!
Yes, you heard me. Let your audience community shape your message. You’ll be amazed by the feedback and insight you’ll get, and you’ll build deeper customer loyalty as customers begin to feel invested.
- Instead of creating a discount/promotion…ask your audience what they want.
- Instead of writing e-newsletters about you…write blog posts about them.
- Instead of telling them what product they need…find out what they’re really wrestling with and connect them to solutions.
- Instead of conducting an email survey…listen to them via social channels, engage, probe deeper, and listen some more.
- Instead of building a database…build relationships
- Instead of trying to grow your audience…help your satisfied customers grow their audiences.
How Social Media Feeds Email Marketing
Here’s the pay-off: Social media users are more likely to consume email (Remember the Nielsen report). Engage with your audience via social channels — everywhere. Daily. Become an unforgettable member of their social fabric. Be less of a brand and more of a human.
You do all of that, and your email situation will take care of itself.
Social Media isn't a quick fix for an ailing email marketing program… bringing on a consultant or agency, that specializes in, and has proven their capabilities in email marketing is how you fix an ailing email marketing program.
Email is just too powerful to drop from the mix, in fact, email still drives more online conversions that other online media.
http://blog.exacttarget.com/blog/the-exacttarge...
Scott you make fantastic points that really any and all “marketers” should take to heart. There is no one way to reach a mass audience. If you think there is and you're trying to compete with all of the other available methods, then you will lose every time. Try to combine them and use them for what they're good for.
For instance:
Social Media is instant connection (relatively,) instant communication, instant feedback. After the conversation has ended, after the relationship has formed, after feedback is transferred, simply follow it up with an email stating your “thanks” for the connection, for the conversation, for the feedback, and how you plan to use it. Then offer to help them with something they mentioned to you as a problem you could solve!
BOOM! They'll more than likely open all emails from you from then on, AS LONG AS you do not abuse the relationship now by just “spamming” them your advertisements!
Connect the channels, feed one into another, create different types of messages/conversations (Social media = short `n sweet; Email = a longer discussion and follow-up; Your site/blog = the connection point for 2-way communication; etc.)
Social Media isn't a quick fix for an ailing email marketing program… bringing on a consultant or agency, that specializes in, and has proven their capabilities in email marketing is how you fix an ailing email marketing program.
Email is just too powerful to drop from the mix, in fact, email still drives more online conversions that other online media.
http://blog.exacttarget.com/blog/the-exacttarge...
Scott you make fantastic points that really any and all “marketers” should take to heart. There is no one way to reach a mass audience. If you think there is and you're trying to compete with all of the other available methods, then you will lose every time. Try to combine them and use them for what they're good for.
For instance:
Social Media is instant connection (relatively,) instant communication, instant feedback. After the conversation has ended, after the relationship has formed, after feedback is transferred, simply follow it up with an email stating your “thanks” for the connection, for the conversation, for the feedback, and how you plan to use it. Then offer to help them with something they mentioned to you as a problem you could solve!
BOOM! They'll more than likely open all emails from you from then on, AS LONG AS you do not abuse the relationship now by just “spamming” them your advertisements!
Connect the channels, feed one into another, create different types of messages/conversations (Social media = short `n sweet; Email = a longer discussion and follow-up; Your site/blog = the connection point for 2-way communication; etc.)
You definitely “get it,” Brian.
Too many business people are fly-by-nighters — we swoop in, try to sell you something, and then stop talking to you if you don't buy.
The old adage that we buy from people we know, like and trust is as true as ever. Trust — the most critical of those three attributes — is earned over time. The aggressive salesperson may close a lot this month, but he'll burn bridges and leave jobs quickly. The patient salesperson builds a long-term, sustainable business.
100% agree! There are a lot of those “fly-by-nighters” right now as people who may be unemployed are simply trying to find a buck!
The problem is they throw anything they think they can sell at you in desperation for a sale and if you do not buy that one thing, they move on to the next person.
If they simply took the time to get to know me and what my needs were, they could potentially (and easily) find a product that will solve my need and as long as I felt they were looking out for my needs (and planned on sticking around to support the offering) then I'd gladly buy from them!
We do the same with marketing. Fly-in, throw it in your face as one opportunity to “ACT NOW!” and then it's gone. Where in the process is the marketer trying to find out about my needs? Where in the process are they communicating with me, building a relationship and earning trust?!
You definitely “get it,” Brian.
Too many business people are fly-by-nighters — we swoop in, try to sell you something, and then stop talking to you if you don't buy.
The old adage that we buy from people we know, like and trust is as true as ever. Trust — the most critical of those three attributes — is earned over time. The aggressive salesperson may close a lot this month, but he'll burn bridges and leave jobs quickly. The patient salesperson builds a long-term, sustainable business.
You definitely “get it,” Brian.
Too many business people are fly-by-nighters — we swoop in, try to sell you something, and then stop talking to you if you don't buy.
The old adage that we buy from people we know, like and trust is as true as ever. Trust — the most critical of those three attributes — is earned over time. The aggressive salesperson may close a lot this month, but he'll burn bridges and leave jobs quickly. The patient salesperson builds a long-term, sustainable business.
100% agree! There are a lot of those “fly-by-nighters” right now as people who may be unemployed are simply trying to find a buck!
The problem is they throw anything they think they can sell at you in desperation for a sale and if you do not buy that one thing, they move on to the next person.
If they simply took the time to get to know me and what my needs were, they could potentially (and easily) find a product that will solve my need and as long as I felt they were looking out for my needs (and planned on sticking around to support the offering) then I'd gladly buy from them!
We do the same with marketing. Fly-in, throw it in your face as one opportunity to “ACT NOW!” and then it's gone. Where in the process is the marketer trying to find out about my needs? Where in the process are they communicating with me, building a relationship and earning trust?!
100% agree! There are a lot of those “fly-by-nighters” right now as people who may be unemployed are simply trying to find a buck!
The problem is they throw anything they think they can sell at you in desperation for a sale and if you do not buy that one thing, they move on to the next person.
If they simply took the time to get to know me and what my needs were, they could potentially (and easily) find a product that will solve my need and as long as I felt they were looking out for my needs (and planned on sticking around to support the offering) then I'd gladly buy from them!
We do the same with marketing. Fly-in, throw it in your face as one opportunity to “ACT NOW!” and then it's gone. Where in the process is the marketer trying to find out about my needs? Where in the process are they communicating with me, building a relationship and earning trust?!