4 Ways Retailers Can Court Email Subscribers
As retailers, you're on a constant quest to connect with new customers. And whether you operate brick-and-mortar stores, an e-commerce website or both, a high-performing email database is one of the best tools in your sales arsenal.
However, cultivating a high-performing subscriber base takes work — and it's a never-ending process. The average email list churns by about 30 percent every year, so a successful email marketing strategy should include a whole slew of activities to keep that list lively and growing.
The following tips can help retailers connect with customers and nurture a subscriber list primed for sales engagement:
1. Make it easy. Journalists are taught to make the most important details of a news story easy to find. In fundraising, development pros learn to lead with their ask, followed by supporting facts to establish need. Retailers should follow this same model when considering how they present an email sign-up form on their website.
Many retailers’ websites corral links in footers for the sake of design. Sure, it looks clean, but this is a surefire way to miss opt-in opportunities. Don't make site visitors work to make a connection; put your sign-up form at the top of your homepage alongside some other engaging content. You'll get the most eyeballs possible on your form without requiring site visitors to scroll all the way down to the bottom of the page.
2. Spread the word — then spread it again. We're all storytellers. In retail marketing, your brand story is the center of your strategy. Every organization should have three to five key messages ready to share with prospects at any time. However, many organizations fail to plug these messages into channels that can help grow their list, resulting in missed sign-up opportunities. Adapt one of your core messages to create a clear call to action for prospective subscribers. Then, use this new messaging to promote your company's sign-up link on social media. Not just once, but on an ongoing basis.
Your social audience has already shown interest in your organization, so don't play hard to get! Invite friends and followers to take the next step in engagement by sharing your sign-up link across social channels regularly.
While you're spreading the word, don't be afraid to harness the social power of your staff and stakeholders. These "insiders" have a vested interest in your company's success, and can be some of your best ambassadors. Ask those in your inner circle to share your emails with their social networks, or encourage them to post a link to your sign-up form on their personal social pages to get more exposure with new audiences. Third-party validation is powerful, and the really successful brands do a great job of leveraging the fan base they already have.
3. Be a (strategic) tease. There's no better way to show the value of being on your email list than to share snippets of emails on your own social networks. Previewing the goods (i.e., your valuable content) can entice interested consumers to sign up for future messages, which is a really big deal. Email conversion rates are 40 times that of Facebook and Twitter, so moving someone from fan or follower to email subscriber puts them in a really good position to become a customer. Take the time to provide a strategic sneak peek of your email content on social media. You'll draw in quality subscribers who really value what you have to say.
4. Look for connections in unexpected places. If you're like most people, you send scores of emails every day. Now, consider all the emails your colleagues send, too. Each recipient could be a future member of your contact list. Consider making a minor change to your company's standard signature block, and add a sign-up link to each employee's standard email signature. This simple step makes every email a gateway for someone new to join your list.
Events are also a great forum to collect email addresses. If you regularly attend networking functions, conferences or professional meet-ups, consider ways to convert introductions into sign-ups. A simple pad of paper and pen will do in a pinch, or you can use Guestbook, Emma's iPad app, to avoid the messy handwriting guesswork and automatically populate your list with new connections.
Retail brands reach more customers and cultivate more sales when they use different channels and strategies to accomplish the same goal. Consider deploying a combination of these four simple steps, and you'll open up all kinds of new avenues for adding email subscribers.
Christopher Lester is the vice president of sales at Emma, an email marketing company.