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Long gone are the days of relying only on cold calling to secure new business. Today’s strategy must focus on inbound marketing where prospects are drawn to you. A great tool to have in your marketing belt is email, and while many may argue email is ineffective when connecting to prospects, I disagree. There are many reasons to still utilize email, especially when connecting B2B.
Email isn’t dying.
The reason email receives a bad reputation today isn’t because social media drove it out, it’s because things like spam and unsolicited emails caused it to become a nuisance for users. People haven’t stopped using it though, marketers have just found it frustrating when their email campaigns get flagged or deleted by users altogether.
Unlike social media, email doesn’t always have the same level of respect. You see when someone adds you to their social network there’s a digital exchange of permissions.
You’re aware of who is following or friend requesting you, and you have the control of accepting, ignoring, or blocking them. By accepting a connection online you can grant that person to view as much or as little information as you’d like.
However, email doesn’t need the same permissions to connect with other users. In fact, almost half the emails the average worker receives daily is spam.
Spam filters do a great job at cutting down the clutter in the inbox, but that doesn’t mean an email you send to a prospect will be well received, especially if they didn’t ask to be emailed.
Build trust.
So, how do you fix this? Simple – offer your audience a chance to opt-in or subscribe to your email content. Whether it be special promotions, monthly tips, or insurance agency happenings, give your audience a reason and chance to connect with you.
Just be careful not to misuse this information. If a client or prospect subscribed to a monthly e-newsletter give them what they were promised. Don’t send them emails weekly with content they didn’t want.
Your audience is there.
86% of business professionals prefer to use email when communicating for business purposes. This means that commercial prospects are there, and you’re marketing through the right network. The problem is that if you’re doing it in a manner that seems intrusive or spammy, you’re pushing away potential clients instead of inviting them to engage with you.
Be smart about your email marketing strategy, the visuals, content, subject line, and time are all factors in a successful open and response rate. Craft an engaging experience like you would on social media. Email and social media may be different, but they’re still forms of communication. In case you need a refresher on effective email marketing, here are some great ways to revamp your strategy: https://www.paradisopresents.com/email-marketing-2017/
Email isn’t dying and it isn’t going away anytime soon. It may have changed how we communicate and process information, but if email was obsolete millions of people wouldn’t be using it around the world daily. We need email to connect to our social networks, apps, and professional lives.
Email is an active platform almost all of us use and check every day. So, you don’t have to get rid of it to effectively market B2B, just tweak it to fit your audience’s needs. Happy marketing everyone!
