5 Reasons Why Email Marketing is a Must for DTC Brands
So many times we will have a conversation with a direct-to-consumer brand who is doing all the good marketing things - social media, fresh on-trend photography, PR, digital advertising, and more. Yet, when we ask the question, “Are you using email marketing?” it’s quite common to hear that they are barely using it, at least not consistently. In fact, we even get asked if email marketing even works anymore. Fair question, but also *jaw drop*. There are many ways to reach consumers today and we ourselves are CONSTANTLY trying to get to inbox zero (well not me, and it gives Kristen anxiety anytime I tell her how many emails are in my inbox. ;)). Does anyone even want to receive email anymore??
Spoiler alert - heck YES.
BUT - the bar has been raised. Read on to learn why you gotta include email in your mix and how to make sure you send what your audience actually wants to receive.
5 Reasons to Include Email Marketing in Your Marketing Mix
1. Cost-Effective & High Return on Investment
If you consider that the common ROAS (return on ad spend AKA that money, honey) benchmark is a 4:1 ratio - $4 in revenue to a $1 ad spend (not including fees for vendors), it pales in comparison to the ROI of email - anywhere from 10:1 to 42:1. Yes, that means, for every $1 spent on email marketing efforts, marketers are seeing anywhere from $10 to $42 in revenue. Not too shabby...
2. Reach Subscribers AKA Your Target Audience on Your Terms
One of the biggest benefits of growing your own email list is the fact that it’s your list - not a 3rd-party list - *cough, cough all social platforms*. You never know what will happen with your favorite platform. Algorithm changes, hackers, potential US bans (hey, TikTok). What would you do if you lost the audience of thousands? Having an array of communication channels - especially ones that go directly into your consumers personal inbox - is important so that you are never at the mercy of one option or lack thereof.
3. Personalize Messaging and Recommended Products
These days, most email marketing platforms offer ways to craft a more customized experience for your subscribers. From a high-level point of view, you need to consider 3 steps:
Strategize lists segments based on your offering
Determine how you will add new subscribers to each segment
Build out an editorial calendar with custom messaging and content for each segment
4. Provide a Holistic Marketing Experience
While organic social, digital ads, PR, etc. are amazing in terms of generating awareness and traffic to your site, many prospective customers are not familiar enough with your product or ready to buy. By providing an opportunity for prospective subscribers to opt-in to your list (in exchange for something of value) you’ll be able to keep the conversation going. With the use of engaging/valuable content that helps convey the value your offering provides via your email marketing efforts, you’ll be able to convert the lookie-loos into first-time customers and ideally, delight them into loyal brand advocates.
5. Reap the Benefits of Automation
From a welcome series to a post-purchase thank you, email automation will help you do a better job of connecting with your subscribers and providing value to your customers - automatically!
Starter Automations
Welcome Series
Cart Abandonment Series
Order/Shipping Notifications
Post-purchase thank you
Additional Automations
Re-engagement Campaigns (for inactive subscribers)
Upsell / Cross-sell series
Restock Notifications
Expanded post-purchase series
If these 5 reasons have got you excited to dive into email marketing - good - you are our people. Need hands-on help with your email? We are here for you. Reach out to chat about our email marketing strategy consulting and content/design services.
Written by Arica Rosenthal