Although many brands have turned most of their attention to marketing to fans and followers via social sites, email marketing remains one of the most direct and effective ways to reach and engage customers. In fact, best practices for email marketing have simply changed to include the opportunities provided by social engagement. Lyris recently compiled some updated best practices for email marketing. Here are six easy ways they found to improve your engagement with customers via email.
Embed Social Media Links In Email
Drive traffic to your social profiles by giving your customers everything they need to find you. Instead of relying on them to search for your page on Twitter or Facebook, simply embed links to each of your social profiles in your emails. The familiar logo icons for each of the platforms will attract attention immediately, and with a simple click, they’ll be redirected to your page. It’s a simple change but it could drastically improve your social following.
Offer Promotions Redeemable In Store Via Mobile
As of 2012, 106 million people in the U.S. have a mobile phone and 54 million have a smartphone specifically. Take advantage of this large customer base by offering email promotions that customers could easily redeem via their mobile device in store. It could be in the form of a barcode that associates can scan, or an alpha-numeric coupon code that can easily be shown to an associate.
Drive Email Opt-Ins From Social Pages
Just as you might have email subscribers that haven’t found you in the social sphere, you might have social followers who haven’t signed up for your mailing list. Use your social accounts to promote your email list and provide links or tabs (within Facebook) that make it easy for followers to sign up. If you use MailChimp, integrating it into your Facebook page is very easy. If not, a search for newsletter apps on Facebook will help you find what you need.
Add ‘Share To Social’ Links In Email
If you highlight special promotions or products in your emails, give customers the option to share it to their own social networks with just a click. Studies have shown that Facebook and Twitter recommendations have led to purchases by more than 30% of female users — more than enough reason to introduce a share to social link in your emails.
Drive Customers To Pinterest Boards Via Email
Studies have shown that embracing Pinterest can lead to some serious conversions, so if you’ve already made the jump to the popular site, let your customers know. Drive traffic to specific themed boards, like a must-have holiday gift board, or simply include a general link to your Pinterest profile so customers can follow some or all of your boards.
Leverage Social Insights To Drive Email Content
If a specific blog post or social post getting a lot of positive attention, use that as material for your email blast or newsletter. Yelp regularly culls new and hot lists and reviews and highlights them in its weekly email blast. If something is getting lots of attention, don’t be afraid to showcase it in your emails.
Of course, we know that a large part of email marketing is nailing your timing perfectly. What send times result in the best engagement? Check out our full report for more email best practices.
