How We Use Email To Drive Conversions.
When working with new Tracking Conversions clients we always like to make sure we cover the basic things first. So, one of the first things we do is hammer through establishing a well focused strategy for email marketing to that client’s existing list.
This does a couple of really amazing things very quickly. And, you guessed it – conversions is one of them.
First, it establishes what sort of list they have and how they have been collecting client and prospect emails. If they don’t have a reasonably clean, simple way to keep, gather and organize their email list we set that up. It can be as simple ( www.MailChimp.com – www.GetResponse.com – www.Aweber.com ) or as complicated ( www.InfusionSoft.com ) as you want it to be. Just start somewhere any list can be taken and uploaded from one email system to another auto-responder and then to another newsletter system. Don’t worry about the tool – worry about how many interested people you can add to your list.
Secondly, this helps to develop and define your “relationship” with your clients and prospects. Think about it: everyone else is marketing to your list – why not you? In most cases (hopefully) you have actually been given permission to chat with them – so do it. What do you send them? What would you want from you? If you were your client what interesting, engaging and valuable information would you want to see. Don’t go “weenie” on this and send some spam updates about your 5% off, made up sale. If you want to send a coupon send out something that has some zing to it – “50% off for two days for current customers and their best friends”. In the medical world? Comment on whatever study just got published that matters to your patients that they are already thinking about – weigh in and tell them what it really means – how it impacts them or tell them it’s total crap and why. Become a resource, and above all be REAL. Don’t be something that you are clearly not. You will hopefully be doing this for a while so faking it may work initially, but people are really good at seeing through “fake”, and plus it will get painful keeping up with being someone else pretty quick. Be REAL.
Thirdly, and potentially most importantly, this can help to create an immediate and reasonably cheap source of traffic to test and measure conversions. If we can get existing clients, customers, prospects or patients to convert then we can then use that same template or funnel on colder prospects and grow from there. Find what works and do more of that.
So . . . . check this out from this earlier this week: Below is a screen shot of a client we work with. It shows the uptick in visitors to their site via Google Analytics after we dropped an email out for them. Can you guess what time the email dropped? (Yep – right about noon) Now these guys are sort of in the Summer Camp niche so just take a guess how much you might have to shell out on adwords or facebook ads to generate an extra 78 unique visitors in a day that were all looking for the same exact kind of camp that they are offering?
How about conversions you say? Glad you asked. This also generated 2 immediate conversions the very same day the email dropped for two $1200+/- camp sign ups. And, I assume because of the high sticker price that many of those that viewed the camp options may be having conversations with the family about signing up this weekend once they look at family budgets and their summer calendars.
So, the important thing here is that as a small business or entrepreneur you are really hard pressed to find a more valuable use of your time and resources (other than religiously tracking conversions) than on establishing a solid email list and then really working on building a solid relationship with that list.
Got any questions? Drop us a line – ask away . . .
Update 4/29/13: Want even more information on email marketing and tracking what your competition is doing. I couldn’t have done it better myself – so here ya go.
http://www.seomoz.org/blog/competitor-research-in-an-inbound-marketing-world
