Even if
you press the delete button on emails and company newsletters without giving them a passing glance, email marketing continues to be one of the most successful forms of marketing in terms of return on investment. Having said that, email marketing strategies are constantly evolving to placate the changing needs and tastes of consumers. If your company isn't already on the email bandwagon, here are some new trends and changes we're seeing in 2018.
New Regulations to Protect the Consumer
Do you frequently send emails to European customers? If so, we hope you've read the new rules and guidelines of the General Data Protection Regulation of the European Union (GDPR). As of May 25th, all businesses must adhere to new rules when sending out emails to customers. And expect these changes to affect you in a major way. The EU GDPR has put these regulations in place to "protect all EU citizens from privacy and data breaches in an increasingly data-driven world..." Some major changes that are occurring include:
- Anonymizing data to protect customer privacy
- Soft opt-in or opt-out will no longer be allowed
- No more distinctions between B2B and B2C email recipients
- Mandatory breach notifications
- User's right for companies to "forget" their data
- User's right to full access to data use records
Before May 25th arrives, take the time to familiarize yourself with the new rules if GDPR applies to your email marketing or business model.
More In-Depth Personalization
List segmentation will be even more important this year. Simply adding your customer's first name in an email isn't enough anymore. MailChimp, Constant Contact, Drip—no matter what email marketing platform you use, you will find that all of them offer intelligent email lists based on customer location, age, gender, education, email preferences, etc.
The more personalized your emails are, the more your customers will stay connected to your brand via email. They want to know that they're not just another name on a list. They want to know that you've catered content specifically to their demographic.
Editorial Content That Goes Beyond the Flash Sale
This year, email marketing is all about sticky content. Yes, flash sales and discounts are great, but those emails aren't always enough to gain your customer's attention, especially since you're competing with dozens or even hundreds of other companies vying for your customer's business. Editorial or sticky content gives something the client will find truly valuable. How-to's, recipes, gift guides, and geo-targeted content are all examples of sticky content.
It's getting harder and harder to reach customers. Obviously, giving clients a reason to go back to you over and over again offers more guarantees for continued brand loyalty.
More Ways to Interact With Email
It's 2018, for crying out loud. Your emails should be
doing something! That is, whatever you send should be interactive and dynamic, not static. This year, email marketing is all about what the end user can do right from their inbox. Kinetic email options streamline the purchasing process by making it easier to customize orders, add to shopping carts, and track packages.
Email Marketing is the Tip of the SEO Iceberg
Digital marketing should be part of a multi-pronged approach to reach new customers and make your existing ones happy. To stand out from the rest of the pack email marketing shouldn't be your only focus this year. Therefore, ensuring that your website is optimized for mobile and that your
SEO game is completely on point is just as important as nailing your newsletters. Here's a fun fact: Awkward Media knows a thing or two about helping brands get their email marketing and SEO off the ground.
Contact us today to get started.
