More Than Merely Marketing

Marketing is a tricky field, where the whims of the broader public reign and contingency plans are constantly being implemented. Forecasting is a tough prospect in marketing, as the dynamics of the trade are in such constant fluctuation. In general, marketing is something we experience on the TV, on the highway, while shopping or strolling through the commercial district of town. Yet email marketing reaches beyond these limitations and enters into a person's personal life unlike any other form of marketing (except for perhaps the now obsolete marketing by snail mail), and as such requires a deft strategy that fully takes into account the implications of this augmented intimacy. A good email campaign needs to leave the reader feeling valued, respected, and more than anything else, feeling like an individual and not a statistic. Of course, all these things are easier said than done, and plenty of cocky email marketers have set out on the road of email marketing only to stumble and fall into the bucket of junk mail (the tomb of online marketers). Though there are very specific, technical concepts to be applied once your email campaign has entered a more mature stage, the only way to secure the loyalty of your readers (and hence reach that mature stage) is to apply some basic concepts of respect and personal attention that necessarily must form the basis of your strategy. Here's a look at what would be the central principles for starting up a successful email campaign:

? Making it a personal affair. Don't refer to your reader with a code or a number, but rather do so by name (the fuller the better). People like to know that you know who they are; otherwise, they won't be very interested in what you're sending them. Then, make sure to get from them as much information on interests and hobbies as possible, so that you can include material of interest for each particular recipient according to what they told you. This will make them feel like you know them, and that you care. You do care, don't you?!

? Showing deference. Do not keep unwilling recipients on your contacts list: it's just a bad business practice. Show your readers how much you respect them by offering them opt-out options in every email. This sort of tactic, beyond being requred by law, let's the reader know that you don't take their interest in receiving your emails for granted. Never take anything for granted in marketing, whether it's via email or not. Of course, this all assumes that you have a list of contacts that voluntarily opted-in to your mailing list...make sure that's the case!

? Being professional. You must always treat your audience as if they were an educated bunch, whether or not that is the case. So, if your content is ripe with orthographical errors that a seventh-grader could catch, you're undermining your overall objective. You need to keep your image professional, and sloppy typos and other errors (bad word order, incorrect format, etc.) are no way to do so.

? Keeping it pertinent. If you've got a neatly-written email that addresses the reader by name and clearly shows them the way to opt-out of the list, but that simply communicates nothing of interest to the reader, then you're making a whole lot of effort for nothing. This remits back to the idea of knowing what their likes and interests are, but beyond whatever supplemental add-ons you put at the end of the email, you need to make sure that you are aiming your product or service at the right crowd. Also, recognize that something can only remain pertinent for a limited time, or at reasonable intervals; hearing the same message 20 times a week means the message has ceased to be pertinent!

So, keep your email campaign ethical and conquer those online customers-in-waiting!

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