CONTENT + CONTEXT = INBOUND EMAIL MARKETING We will be starting at 2:00 pm ET. Use the Question Pane in GoToWebinar to Ask Questions! 1 Use the hashtag #InboundLearning on Twitter 2 Question of the day
#INBOUNDLEARNING
WEBINAR SCHEDULE 8/5 - Designing an inbound email experience 8/12 - How to build inbound emails 8/19 - Review of customer emails
Mark Kilens @MarkKilens
Niti Shah @NitiFromBoston
AGENDA 1 Why you should use email marketing 2 How to do email the inbound way 3 What makes emails effective
1 WHY YOU SHOULD USE EMAIL MARKETING.
Email marketing is
Email marketing is SPAMMY
Email marketing is SPAMMY OUTBOUND
Email marketing is SPAMMY OUTBOUND OLD SCHOOL
Email can be one of your most effective channels when you use inbound best practices.
6 REASONS EMAIL IS AWESOME. 1 There are more than 3.2 billion email accounts today. 2 3 4 5 95% of online consumers use email; 91% check email at least once a day. Email has longer lifespan than social media. 77% of consumers prefer email for marketing communications. Email lets you be highly personal. 6 Email marketing has an ROI of 4300%. SOURCE: EXACTTARGET (1,2), DIRECT MARKETING ASSOCIATION (4, 6)
2 HOW TO DO EMAIL THE INBOUND WAY.
You can use it for every part of the Inbound Methodology: 1 2 3 Convert new leads Close leads into customers Delight customers
1 CONVERT NEW LEADS.
FLICKR USER BEN GREY People like to share content they like.
That includes email. Send relevant content to the right segments to increase engagement.
OPTIMIZE YOUR EMAIL FOR SHARING MAILTO LINKS Examples SOCIAL SHARING BUTTONS
When a lead forwards your email to someone, you gain the power of social proof. Encouraging referrals from existing leads helps you generate new ones. FLICKR RICHARD.ASIA
2 CLOSE LEADS INTO CUSTOMERS.
FLICKR KY_OLSEN When you segment lists and tailor emails to each lead, they ll be more engaged.
FLICKR KY_OLSEN Build a relationship with your new leads by being helpful.
Listen to your existing leads to trigger email nurturing based on their behavior.
Example: Say someone views your pricing page
Create a segmented list
that triggers a workflow.
that triggers a workflow. Lead receives an email from you asking if they have any questions about pricing.
that triggers a workflow. Their sales rep receives a notification that they ve viewed the pricing page.
3 DELIGHT CUSTOMERS INTO PROMOTERS.
FLICKR USER JD HANCOCK Continue to engage customers by sending helpful resources and customer-only extras Communication & education is key to delight.
Email is a cost-effective way to strengthen relationships with customers, upsell products, and help with customer retention.
+ Right Content Right Audience Right Timing SUCCESS
INBOUND MARKETING STRATEGY
INBOUND MARKETING STRATEGY This is where segmentation comes in.
HOW TO SEGMENT YOUR DATABSE. 1 2 3 Determine who your audience is Determine your audience s lifecycle stage Choose your segmentation criteria 4 Add list suppressions to improve list quality
1 DETERMINE WHO YOUR AUDIENCE IS.
BUYER PERSONAS Who are your ideal customers? What are their interests? What are their pain-points What are their behavior patterns? What are their motivations? What are their goals?
Example: Marketing Mary 25-40 years old Marketing manager or director Doesn t have time Struggles to align marketing channels Interested in improving ROI
2 DETERMINE YOUR AUDIENCE S LIFECYCLE STAGE.
The content you send is dependent on where your audience is in the buyer s journey.
The content you send is dependent on where your audience is in the buyer s journey. Awareness
The content you send is dependent on where your audience is in the buyer s journey. Consideration Awareness
The content you send is dependent on where your audience is in the buyer s journey. Decision Consideration Awareness
3 CHOOSE YOUR SEGMENTATION CRITERIA.
More criteria = more targeted lists. More criteria = smaller list sizes.
It s vital to find a sweet spot between targeting the right audience and having a proper list size.
So how do I choose criteria?
ROLE Department Seniority Experience FLICKR _HADOCK_
LIFECYCLE STAGE Subscriber Lead Opportunity Customer Promoter / Evangelist FLICKR _HADOCK_
FLICKR USER _HADOCK_ FIRMOGRAPHIC Company size Company type Industry Department size
BEHAVIORAL Conversion events Email opens Page views FLICKR _HADOCK_
FLICKR USER IRON RODAR GEOGRAPHIC SEGMENTATION IP Area Time Zone Area Code Address
MARKETING INTELLIGENCE # of Twitter followers # of Facebook fans SEO search terms Website Pages Technology ROBERT S. DONOVAN
FLIICKR USER MOHAMMED ALNASER Some leads are never going to close. But they still love you!
LET THEM SPREAD THE LOVE. Evangelists Influencers Students FLICKR IRON RODART ROYCE VAIR ( STAR SHOOTER )
4 ADD LIST SUPPRESSIONS TO IMPROVE LIST QUALITY.
Your list decays at 25% a year. A list with 10,000 contacts will only have 5,625 viable contacts in 3 years.
Emailing purchased lists increases your chances of being marked as SPAM & decreases deliverability rates. FLIICKR USER HEGARTY_DAVID
Say goodbye to unengaged leads. Suppress them from your segmented lists. FLICKR USER REMON RIJPER
FLICKR USER REMON RIJPER Example: leads who haven t opened an email in more than 1 year.
Suppress other lists that receive emails in the same timeframe. You don t want to send them double emails. FLICKR USER @NOTNIXON
EMAIL LIST SEGMENTATION RESULTS Greater Customer Retention Greater Revenue Increased Sales Leads Better Deliverability Lower Opt-Out/Unsubscribe Rates 21% 24% 24% 24% 28% % of respondents Greater Email Relevance 34% Increased Open Rates 39% SOURCE: LYRIS, INC.
3 WHAT MAKES EMAILS EFFECTIVE.
What makes an email perform well? 1 The right content + context 2 Aligning the email content / structure with the email's goal
1 THE RIGHT CONTENT + CONTEXT
Emails should add value, not ask for it.
Send persona-aligned content based on The Buyer s Journey. Videos Blog posts Slideshares Free Tools Ebooks/Guides
Send persona-aligned content based on The Buyer s Journey. Webinars Case Studies FAQ Sheets Product Whitepapers Third-Party Reviews
Send persona-aligned content based on The Buyer s Journey. Free Trials ROI Reports Product Demos Consultations Estimates/Quotes
2 ALIGN EMAIL WITH SPECIFIC GOAL
IDENTIFY A SPECIFIC GOAL: Generate new leads: enable sharing Follow up on offer download: kickback email Collect audience feedback: surveys Increase program awareness: informative copy Nurture leads further down The Buyer s Journey: resources Facilitate sales process: CTA such as call us Educate customers about new features: overview
Cool. Do you have examples?
Come back next week! Same time, same place.
NEXT STEPS 1. To be successful at email marketing you need to send the right content to the right person at the right time. 2. Segment your contacts database to increase engagement and deliverability. 3. Balance segmentation with feasible list size. 4. Optimize emails based on the goal of your email.
RESOURCES Anatomy of a Five Star Email Science of Email Marketing 2014 8 Little Tricks to Make Your Emails More Clickable
QUESTIONS?
THANK YOU.