Recently, I got an online marketing lesson from my wife and mother-in-law. I watched them put together a jigsaw puzzle.
As they searched for each piece, I realized a solid marketing plan was like a jigsaw puzzle.
Now before you write me off as nuts, hear me out.
Like a jigsaw puzzle, each piece of your marketing plan fits in, and must line up with, the other pieces.
Without each piece in its proper place, it’s incomplete.
It’s like that open space in your jigsaw puzzle when that last piece either goes missing. Or kidnapped by your cat.
Automated email marketing has its place in a complete, well-balanced marketing plan. But it has to be at the right place.
Let’s start with your online presence.
Your Website is Your Virtual Front Door
Without getting traffic to your website, it’s not doing you a lot of good.
So, what do you do?
You work to get it noticed. There are plenty of ways. Here’s a few:
- You can get it noticed by working on your site’s search engine optimization.
- You can invest in a pay-per-click campaign.
- You can use free social media activity to raise awareness for your site.
- There are paid social media options on all the major social networks.
- You create a podcast or appear as a guest on someone else’s podcast
And the list goes on and on.
At this point, people are on your site. Assuming they like what they see and either want or need what you have to offer, they may decide to reach out.
Get Your Prospects Involved
Your website should have multiple ways for these visitors to take some kind of action.
Some of these response methods could be:
- Click on a video
- Pick up the phone and call your company
- Sign up for an ezine or e-newsletter
- Fill out a contact form requesting more information
There are plenty of other options, but you get the idea.
The last option (a contact form) is where email marketing would fit in.
Remember, these people have already expressed an interest in what you have to offer.
But they might be worried about getting ‘sold.’
Instead, they instead fill out the form to get free information.
Is This Spam?
Here’s the thing: The visitor has to request the information.
Don’t use automated email marketing to contact a cold list. A cold list are people who haven’t given permission for you to contact them.
By filling out the contact form on your site, they have given you permission to send them more email.
So, it’s not spam.
What Happens Next?
Now that those visitors have contacted you, it’s time for you to respond.
You could reach out to them either by phone or email. Depending on your business, this may be the best thing for you to do.
But it’s not the only option. And if you’re very busy, it may not be the most efficient use of your time.
Instead, you can send a series of automated emails to your prospect at set times.
You can use software provided by companies who specialize in this type of marketing. You can set your emails to go out as soon as someone fills out the contact form on your website.
Often, the first email goes out as soon as the person finishes filling out the contact form.
After that, depending on your goals, the next email could go out the next day. Or two days later.
Then the third email could go out a week after that.
Until the person unsubscribes, you could send out emails for weeks or months on end.
One of my sequences for my previous business had an email set to go out 300 days after the initial contact!
The beauty of systems like this is that you can set it up any way you want, with the emails going out whenever you like.
Keeping It Legal…
The key to staying on the friendly side of email marketing rules? Always add an unsubscribe option at the bottom of each email.
This gives people the option to leave our list, or ‘opt-out,’ any time they’d like.
If you’re not tech-minded, all this might sound super complicated.
The beauty of the system is that it’s added for you by reputable companies. They have the unsubscribe link included in every email they send out on your behalf.
Will some people opt-out right away? Certainly.
Some people will take advantage of a free email offer and sign up just to get it. Once they have your freebie, they’ll opt-out.
But when that happens, look at it as a blessing – they are the same kind of person who wouldn’t buy from you anyway.
Consider them the virtual ‘tire kickers’ of online commerce.
How Email Helps Your Online Marketing
Having an automated follow-up system like this in place is a massive time-saver for you.
First, it saves you the trouble of following up with each email inquiry that comes your way.
Done correctly, autoresponders follow up with your prospects. They keep your business “top of mind” and guide them toward a purchasing decision.
All without being pushy or “salesy.”
Businesses vary, but many people filling out a contact form aren’t yet ready to do business with you.
Your autoresponder series can pay attention to those people… but not drain you of your time if they are still on the fence.
And an autoresponder series helps weed out the folks who are never going to buy from your company.
Now What?
Now that you understand where email marketing fits into a solid marketing plan, I’d love to help you.
Check out my Email Marketing services. You can then contact me by filling out the contact form or calling my office at (716) 940-8963.
We’ll set up a Discovery Call where I can learn about your business and answer any questions you may have.
It might be that “missing piece” in your marketing that you’ve been looking for.