While email marketing has changed dramatically in the last few years – and is almost unrecognizable compared to what it was a decade ago – any belief that this method is no longer worthwhile, strategic or profitable is flat out wrong.
On the contrary, as we see with our customers across the country, when email marketing is done correctly it can be among the most cost-effective, high-impact ways to reach new customers and usher them along the buyer’s journey (together with other collateral). And of course, email marketing is vital for connecting with existing customers and staying on their radar.
However, the fact is that email marketing isn’t often done correctly. Consequently, businesses don’t see the results they expected, or that they were promised by vendors, consultants or agencies. And while every scenario is unique, in our analysis and in speaking with thousands of business owners who’ve run into major setbacks and pitfalls on the road to email marketing and ROI, the root cause can almost always be traced back to 3 big email marketing challenges:
Top Email Marketing Challenges #1: Growing & Keeping Subscribers
Of all email marketing challenges out there, growing and keeping subscribers is at the top of the list – and the one that most frustrates (and sometimes infuriates!) business owners, marketing managers, and all others who expected solid results and ended up staring into a virtual wasteland.
And to make things even more challenging, as MarketingSherpa notes, the average email list – even a robust and functional one – will depreciate 25 percent each year simply due to attrition. That means growing and keeping subscribers is everyone’s problem; not just businesses that aren’t getting results and ROI.
Solving this challenge isn’t impossible, but it’s not a quick-fix either. In many cases, the list needs to be pruned and cleaned-up (i.e. it’s marred by “poor data hygiene”).
It’s also important for businesses to earn their subscribers instead of primarily or exclusively buying lists. In some situations buying lists can be part of the picture, but this must be determined on a business-by-business basis and should not be viewed as a general best practice – because for many businesses/marketplaces, it’s not.
Other tips for growing and keeping subscribers include ensuring that:
- Subscribers are not overloaded with emails
- Content is relevant and prospect or customer-facing
- Content is optimized for mobile devices
- Subject lines are compelling and aligned with best practices
- Testing is done on all elements to see what’s working and what isn’t
- Landing pages and other places where clicks take subscribers are working and optimized
Top Email Marketing Challenges #2: Integrating Systems
Another major email marketing problem, is that businesses struggle to integrate systems in their environment, and as such they can’t get a coherent, accurate picture of what’s working and why, and what isn’t and why not. And while a decade ago this wasn’t a big deal since all that businesses cared about (or rather, that their software allowed them to care about) was generic open rates, things are much different today as more data is available and must be leveraged accordingly.
Solving this challenge typically involves implementing the right tools to integrate and manage data, such as HubSpot’s class-leading solution. It’s also important to establish customer segments, so that different buyer personas can be targeted and tracked accordingly vs. taking a one-size-fits-all approach (which, ironically, never fits anyone so why even call it that?).
Top Email Marketing Challenges #3: Increasing Delivery
When it comes to increasing delivery rate, businesses aren’t just up against customers who are already overloaded with information in their daily lives to begin with -- they’re also facing some pretty hostile ISPs that can (and will) refuse to send an email if they detect very low deliverability rates. In simpler terms: if 80 percent of a business’s email marketing isn’t reaching its destination because recipients don’t exist or because their inboxes are full, ISPs can punish the sender even though they aren’t doing anything wrong. Nice, huh?
We’ll leave the ethical discussion for later. For now, businesses dealing with bounced emails can address and ultimately overcome this challenge by:
- Constantly updating their list
- Improving the opt-in process
- Making it easy for subscribers to update their information
- Allowing subscribers to self-identify how they want (and don’t want) to be contacted
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There are many more email marketing challenges on the digital landscape – but in our experience, the ones above are the most common, and also the most costly. However, with the right technology, resources and expertise, overcoming them is not just probable, but it’s profitable. We see this with our customers on a daily basis!
To learn more about the ins and outs, do’s and don’ts of email marketing, contact us today and schedule your free consultation.
To help you overcome more inbound marketing challenges, be sure to download our FREE eBook "A Guide to Inbound Marketing Best Practices":
Topics: Inbound Marketing
