The most popular business channel used by businesses is email marketing. It is described as being the “king” by Larry Kim. I don’t know about you, but I have at least 10-15 emails that pile up in my promotion and spam box each day. It gradually happens as you sign up for that free pretzel at Auntie Anne’s or that first order 20% off at your favorite clothing store. I am beyond the point of even going through each one. This could lead one to believe that email advertisements are dying. However, email is an extremely important form of communication that almost anyone in the working world is using multiple times a day. Businesses can still successfully use email to increase their sales, they just have to be aware of how to use it properly.
The issue with email advertisements is that most of the emails sent out by these companies are spam and end up in a junk box or a promotions box that never get read by the customer. Privacy policies have also decreased the freedom that companies have when contacting customers through email. Yet, there are still ways to effectively reach people through email. One way a company can do this is by capturing data in order to make custom audiences. Custom audiences allow companies to upload emails to specific consumers who it would appeal to. An example of this would be sending an email to customers who have non purchased products in their carts. If a company blasts their list too often, people will unsubscribe. This specification is very valuable and it can be very cheap in comparison to other marketing strategies, and will limit the amount of emails that the customer gets to ones that are more appealing.
I believe that people will be receptive to emails that are catered for their likings. When I really like a brand and I get an offer from them, I will open it and click to see if there is anything I want to purchase. I also am less likely to unsubscribe from an email thread if I only receive offers every so often. Email is definitely not dead, companies just need to adjust to its adaptations.
