Email marketing has changed a lot over the past few years. Even the reasons why businesses practice it aren’t the same. The only static component is the fact that email marketing is an essential practice of any digital marketing strategy. The reason email marketing has changed so much is because users approach their inboxes differently. People used to take their time to read each individual email completely. Now, you’re lucky if you can hold on to their attention for a few seconds. And because users’ inboxes have been flooded with promotional emails, they’ve pretty much lost their effect entirely. Now, sending emails is more about establishing customer loyalty and putting your other marketing efforts in the limelight. A recent Marketing Land article explains why businesses should invest more in their email content. Here are four reasons provided by the article:

  • Gives your subscribers another reason to open and read your emails
  • Keeps your subscribers loyal to your brand
  • Gives you the opportunity to position yourself as an expert
  • Product recommendations can be intertwined with your content

As you can see, the article mentions nothing about increasing sales. Now, it’s well documented that email marketing has the best ROI of any digital marketing practice. But that doesn’t mean it has a direct effect on sales. Instead, your marketing emails should have an indirect effect on your sales. That means that they improve your overall marketing efforts, give your brand more exposure, and create loyalty among subscribers. These three factors will eventually lead to an increase in sales, and email marketing is the puppeteer behind the scenes. It’s an indirect impact, but it’s effective nonetheless. Promotional emails were effective in 2005, but they have no place in a marketing strategy in 2015. Successful email marketing campaigns seek to create brand loyalty and engagement, which will eventually increase sales. To talk more about email marketing and automation, or anything else, please contact us. Thanks.