Is it the right time? Is it meaningful? Is it relevant?
by Kim-Denyse, Director of kim-denyse.com
Most Businesses rely on the Christmas period to be one of the most successful of the year and depend on this success to carry them through the quieter months of February and March. Therefore, so does your competition. Right now is the most crucial time for you to make some very significant business decisions. These decisions could mean ‘Make or Break’ for you. Looking at your overall business plan and budgets can be very daunting, especially when you are gearing up to be very busy, but some actions you can take can be a lot simpler than that. Your email marketing plan for instance
Emailing is simpler, but it does not mean that some strategic plan is not required. Its not, ‘What you do but How you do it’ – in other words don’t just say it and then pray for it. Here are some simple email tips you can immediately practice that will mean you can keep both your brand and your self-respect at the same time
Measuring success is determined by looking at the bottom line and the amount of revenue you have generated. Your product could be the best on the market but it is how you are marketing it that will determine how well it sells and an email can play an important role in this. Remember that increasing your profits requires far more that just increasing your contact list. Your business success depends on the trust you earn by creating a customer experience. Put your customers first, be in their shoes and email them with information that is at the right time, meaningful to them and relevant to their bottom line
You will use different approaches to the different types of customers you have. For instance you may be a retail Business targeting everyday Retail Consumers or you may be a business targeting other Businesses – or both. Therefore it makes sense to approach them in different ways that makes sense to them.
Here are 5 email tips for each of these target markets so you will become strategically savvy with every contact
5 Retail Tips
Here are five business-to-Retail Customer Christmas email tips that transcend sending quantity and focus on quality instead
1. Reward and encourage loyalty from your Customers!
Create an email promotion that encourages people to buy online. Gift vouchers are ideal for this. Here is an example: “We’ll give you a $20 gift card you can apply to your next purchase for every $50 you spend. It’s our way of saying thank you and Merry Christmas!” Remember to promote the gift vouchers as the perfect gift for those “difficult to buy for” people. Gift vouchers are also great as last minute gifts! Plan to make gift vouchers the feature promotion of your Christmas email sends. “Still floundering to find that perfect gift? Give them a gift Voucher!”
2. Avoid offering too much.
If you show too much product, you can confuse your subscibers and overload them with choices. Avoid this by grouping great gift ideas by price point. Eg Gifts under $25, Gifts under $50, Gifts under $100, and etc. Then create supporting website pages to reflect those gift items. Add to this by featuring your top-rated products. You can increase the average order size by choosing your most cost effective products. Offering incentives such as “free shipping on orders over $100″ might be a great revenue boosting option too
3. Bring that Experiential ‘I’m in your store’ feeling to the inbox.
Remind your customers of the terrific customer service you offer, your stress-free return policy your money-back guarantee, or your USP that makes you stand out from the competition. Be loud and clear. It may seem a little too obvious but this type of message might be just what your customers resonate to. To go beyond the norm and take it up a notch think about creating one to one connections by introducing livechat technology onto your website. Livechat technology is a terrific way to connect with your website visitors and email subscribers by having real-time conversations with them. As well as this connection, you also will appear bigger than you actually are! It’s all about connection…and making it easier for them which in turn shows your customers you care
4. Create a sense of urgency with simultaneous assurance – Include the deadline date for shipping guarantees
Include , “Make sure your gift is delivered on time for Christmas – buy before December 21 “ for example. It’s also important to remember your international customers may have different deadline dates than your domestic ones. So separate your domestic and international clients in your contact lists and send appropriate emails at the appropriate times. Segment your lists by country, and publish the single deadline date that applies to them. You will then increase the relevancy factor and you will be simplifying the process for everyone. Now you have not only created a sense of urgency you have also provided an assurance their gift will be delivered on time
5. Segment the Segments
You may be sick of hearing this but are you actually doing this yet? During the Christmas period you have many email campaigns to send and you really do need to monitor the numbers of emails any given subscriber receives. Do this by segmenting. Aim for quality versus quantity of send. Minimize the risk of being perceived as a nuisance and therefore ‘junked’ by being strategic in terms of who receives what
5 Business to Business Tips
1. e-cards vs. Traditional cards
Use your Christmas card email as an opportunity to have fun within your company which will in turn enhance your image as being more human and personal with your customers. Organise an internal competition inviting your employees to have their children design an image for use on your corporate Christmas e-card. Let your customers know this and that you are sending them an e-card rather than paying for stamps and paper. Now you are ecologically friendly. Add to this by announcing that you are donating those dollars you would normally would have spent to a worthy charity.
2. Pay it forward to a Charity!
Include the announcement that for every purchase of $150 (or whatever dollar amount you like), you’ll donate 5% to a charity. Remember the tax advantage of charitable donations…its a win win win
3. Develop a special Christmas email series
Alieviate your customers’ Christmas stress by sending them a series of 3 -5 light-hearted emails. Show your personality wilst wrapping up your core business messages into the series. Eg. If you have a corporate brand in nature, this is a great opportunity to include a photo of you or someone in your team dressed up in a Santa Suit versus a business suit. Humour and humanisation goes a long way!
4. Organise a Christmas party or event and send an e-invitation instead of a printed one!
Sweeter than the Christmas e-card idea; organise an event and invite your customers. You then can very easily manage the flow of RSVPs. Emailing these invites makes it easier to send segmented follow-ups. Eg you can send a targeted email to those only who didn’t reply only to remind them to RSVP; whereas those who did could receive a reminder email with ”See you tomorrow night” and important last minute particulars
5. Remember your mobile Contacts
Did you know that 64% of key decision makers are looking at their iPhones, BlackBerrys, and other mobile devices? If you think your recipients are using their mobile devices for emails, offer a link to view a ‘mobile-friendly version’ ( text only). Include a link to this mobile friendly version the very top of your email
IMPORTANT: One last tip for all of your email campaigns:
MAKE RELEVANCY A PRIORITY
Set to and segment your contacts now. Then design and write your emails targeting the different groups within your list. This will assist you in continuing to build your subscribers’ trust, which translates into loyalty and that translates into revenue.
So, now is the time to start. Make the time to sit down and plan your Christmas email campaigns! Ready, set, go!
