Doing email marketing as an online marketing strategy is not dead by any stretch of the imagination. Companies must change a lot with regards to their email marketing strategy if they want to achieve success. Here are some of the things to note for entrepreneurs and email marketers must embrace:
Targeting
Like how pay per click focuses on retargeting, the biggest brands in the business know the value of capturing the behavioral patterns of their customers across various channels and using this to improve their offerings. The exact channels from which to get information are brand specific, but in many cases, it involves the gathering of information on website browse, email click, mobile apps and purchase behavior. Any brands that do not make use of behavior will likely remain behind. Even then, it is not reasonable to expect perfection in technology with regards in getting the right message in time to the right person. There will still be a place for relatively untargeted broadcast communication.
Automation
Instead of switching completely to automation, brands should use it as a complementary tool. Blend automation with existing email activity to supplement the broadcast activity. Many brands are already embracing this trend, and it is likely to be on the rise in the near future. The broadcast data should be driven or supported by behavioral data. The best places to use automation are those that show promise for conversion.
Inbox placement
Internet service providers today have been largely successful at developing algorithms that make sure the sending of illegal and indiscriminate emails are reduced. Users still see a little spam and unwanted email. What they do not realize is that there are numerous messages that never make it to their inboxes. Filter rules will make it difficult at a personal level as permission based emails are filtered from inboxes.
Privacy
Regulation is only going in one direction, both in the European Union and across the world. Regulations are getting more stringent in the online marketing world, and what marketers can do with information is going to be more stringently restricted. As soon as the general data protection regulation regulations are agreed, one can expect to see stricter privacy regulations in Europe. It looks like these regulations are going towards the ending of pre-ticked email check box permissions. Marketers are going to have to work harder to and find stronger reasons to get permissions.
Interactive
A few brands have in the past experimented with interactive email marketing designs, like the creation of carousel type elements or hamburger menus. Progressive and creative online marketers will look to push HTML5 to the limit. Developing what one could consider a min-website design with email. However, the jury is still out on whether this is a good thing. Some designs are dubious, making it harder sometimes to access content. Not all email clients can support the top of the range approaches.
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