Local business ownership requires exceptional time management skills and efficiency. In this blog we’ll outline the top 3 reasons why local email marketing can be the best bang for your buck marketing tactic!
The best thing about email marketing is that everyone has an email address. Email is personal enough that 82% of America’s check their personal email daily, but impersonal enough that 61% of people enjoy receiving promotional emails.
The number one reason that consumers are happy to give away their email address is because it makes their life easier! They expect that you will use their email address to keep them informed about new products and special offers while they still maintain the control to open the email if and when they want.
The number one rule of marketing is, meet your customers where they already are. Knowing that email is one marketing tactic that can touch every consumer you’d want to reach, it’s a no brainer local marketing tactic.
Here are our top 3 reasons why your business should actively use local email marketing:
1. Stay Top of Mind
According to Bain & Company, a 5% increase in customer retention can increase a company’s profitability by 75%. Studies like this showcase the value of keeping your current customers engaged to increase their loyalty. Local email marketing is one of the best tactics for consistent and purposeful brand awareness marketing.
Your customers are busy. They may love your business and think about wanting to stop by and check out what’s new, but their good intentions don’t always translate to your bottom line. Email marketing is a noninvasive way to stay in touch and remind consumers of their intentions to visit your business.
Sending 1-3 emails a month with relevant updates, quality information, and special offerings will make your customers feel more in touch with your business and encourage them to think of you first when they need you.
2. Be in Control of the Conversation
Your marketing messages need to be clear, relevant, and compelling. Since you are in control of the email messages sent, you have the power to shape the conversation, your brand image, and consumer habits.
Build your emails with your business goals in mind – providing a content block for each type of information you want them to know. Build emails with 3-4 content blocks and consider content types like: product/service feature, what’s new, meet the team, tutorials & advice, holiday/seasonal features, etc.
Provide clear call to actions and explain the best way for your reader to purchase each product/service featured. Keep in mind that each reader is going to have different reasons for opening your email and varying time to consume your content. Be quick to the point and offer ways for readers to consume more information on your website if they have the time and interest.
3. Cost effective
In a business to consumer relationship, email marketing is proven to provide $40 return on every $1 spent, making it one of the most cost effective marketing methods available. Given that local businesses have lower marketing budgets and less marketing manpower than big box businesses, efficiency is key.
Email marketing utilizes minimal tools, can be scheduled in advanced, and often integrates personalization features and automation at minimal expense. Start small with your email marketing and consider ways that you can gradually add features and automation to your strategy as you see what works.
Consider adding email triggers when a customer makes a purchase or adding the customer’s name into the subject line to create a more personal feel to your email marketing.
Email marketing can be a powerful tactic for your local business, but with any marketing, consistency is necessary! If setting aside the time each month to craft, optimize, and send your email messages is not realistic then you need to find a partner that can provide consistency for you.
At Welcomemat we specialize in local marketing tactics and building loyal customers for local businesses. Our local email marketing program combines email capture with optimally timed email messages to provide a consistent and effective email marketing strategy for your local business.
LEARN MORE about our local email marketing program and see if it’s the right fit for your business!
