Here are six simple tips to help you either get started or get ahead with E-marketing: Our recent in-house survey shows that of the 9,222 registered businesses in East Yorkshire and North Humberside that employ less than 50 people – only 32% have a web presence that allows contact by e-mail.
On the other side of the coin, around 80% of UK adults will use the web for research or to make a purchase this year.Are you missing a huge opportunity?
1. Use your Company Database
Do you have an up to date list of your customers, leads and prospects? If you do, what percentage of your contacts have an e-mail address? Building your e-mail list from people you know or have dealt with adds value to your marketing. Updating your database should be your first priority.
2. Start Website Data Collection
How hard is your website working for you? do you have a mechanism in place to collect e-mail addresses from visitors or do you simply allow them to browse and click away?
3. Use E-Brochures and Catalogues
Do you have an electronic version of your brochure or other sales material? With an e-brochure you can kill two marketing birds with one stone! Firstly you can ask for an e-mail address when an enquiry is received and then you can deliver that information virtually instantly as an e-mail attachment.
4. Install and use Auto Responders
Everyone has heard of them but how many companies are actually using them? Autoresponders allow you to reply automatically to e-mail requests and can even deliver your brochure or catalogue automatically as an attachment. They can be programmed to send just one message (single autoresponder), or a series of pre-written messages in a dated sequence (sequential autoresponder)
5. Start a Newsletter
A regular newsletter provides a great opportunity to keep your name in front of customers, prospects and leads. It doesn’t have to be complex or particularly large. The secret of success is to give your readers some content of value that relates to your product or service offering. It can be managed in house or outsourced and can even be pre-written and inserted into an auto responder series so that you never forget to send it out on time!
6. Learn to read your Website Statistics
Statistics on the web have always been a source of confusion, many web designer even use them to confuse their customers! Stats are important, especially if you’ve invested time and money in marketing online. You want to know how well your strategy has performed and in particular what the return has been. This is where E-marketing scores heavily over conventional techniques. It can be measured in real-time and altered ‘on the fly’.
