Tuesday, December 29, 2015

For 2016, Leverage B2B E-mail's Full Potential

E-mail marketing tops other channels in terms of ROI, per the DMA's 2015 Response Rate Report, and the majority of business-to-business marketers rank e-mail as their top digital lead-gen tool. So if you're a B2B marketer, make exploiting e-mail's potential a 2016 resolution and check out this recent smartinsights.com post for nine great ways to accomplish that goal. Tactic No. 1 is to offer valuable curated e-mail content to gain contact details, targeting by industry and area of expertise. Second, use e-mail to re-activate existing contacts, such as automated e-mail sends after a period of inactivity, with incentives for log-in. The No. 3 e-mail tactic--and one of the most cost-effective ways to boost traffic and engagement--is e-mailed announcements about new products, site updates or business milestones such as awards. The fourth idea on the list is to showcase value or gain contact data by creating a white paper and e-mailing a free download link. E-mail tactic No. 5 is a no-brainer in today's multichannel world: Include e-mail in a campaign to help drive traffic, engagement/relationship-building or action (from inquiries to purchases). E-mail is an ideal tool for event traffic-building, too, including trade shows, seminars, webinars and social chat. So suggestion No. 6 is to invite event participation with a catchy subject line and enticing information. Since e-mail and webinars are a natural combination, idea No. 7 is to e-mail a webinar invite with a simple registration form and a clear, time-sensitive call to action. Sharing success stories is another proven way to inspire action from existing and potential clients, so Idea No. 8 is to promote links to a relevant case study, based on industry and job title/responsibility targeting. Last but not least, an e-mai offer of a free trial or demo is a great way to gain leads. To pump response, try an automated e-mail follow-up to non-responders with a limited-time offer. For real-life examples of each type of e-mail, go to http://www.smartinsights.com/b2b-digital-marketing/b2b-email-marketing/9-b2b-email-marketing-examples/