Hopefully you read last week’s blog about why email marketing is a no brainer, and now you’re convinced that you need to start emailing. Not sure how to begin? It all starts with building your email list. Different businesses will have success different ways, but below are a few ideas to get you started.
1) Start with your contacts. Create an opt in email and send it out to your list. Think about using an incentive to get them join such as a special promotion, coupon, or useful tip.
2) Make it easy for your customers. Link your email sign up form to your website and ALL of your social media sites.
3) Create a SHORT sign up slip for customers to fill out while your employees check them out. The key here is short. We suggest first name, last name, and email address at a minimum. B2B companies should also ask for the industry the customer is in, and B2C’s should ask what kinds of emails they would be interested in (ex. Company newsletters, special deals, coupons, events, etc.)
4) Tell employees or co-workers to request the information noted in tip 2 as they are finishing up phone conversations or one on one interactions with customers.
5) Put a link to your sign up form in the signature block or your email.
6) Create business cards (since they’re relatively inexpensive) with just your email sign up information and hand them out at networking events. Restaurants can use this idea too, by having wait staff hand the cards out when they deliver the bill.
Just a few things to remember. Let your customers know what kind of email you’ll be sending them; whether event updates, promotions, newsletters, coupons, useful tips, or a combination.
You won’t collect many emails if your employees aren’t on board. Try having a contest where the person who gets the most subscribers gets a reward.
Last, avoid cliché in your subject lines or your email will be filtered out as spam. Not sure how to, or don’t have time to come up with a plan of your own?
Let’s get your e-mail marketing ball rolling! Contact us at Magnus Marketing and we’ll do all the work for you!
This post was written by Alex Toledo, Marketing Associate at Magnus Marketing. Alex can be reached at alex@ineedmagnus.com
