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Wow! Just in time for 2023! As we approached the end of the year in December, the finish line seemed so far away. Many marketers have told me they are busier than ever.
I myself was answering calls for strategy help, working on business deals, and managing chaos right up until the eve of Christmas Eve — a rare occurrence in a career of over 20 years.
Look back, celebrate and move on
The first business of 2023 is to take a step back, clear your head, and reflect on all the great things you’ve accomplished in 2022. chain shortages and other problems, facing a potential recession), and how they affected the work they did to succeed.
And now it’s 2023. I hope the budget request is approved and you are ready to hit your new KPIs with a clean slate. Perhaps you’re thinking, ‘What can I do now to grow my program?
3 pivots to grow your email program
Of course, every marketer has different goals. We have different audiences, challenges, resources, and goals. But I’m focusing on her three major shifts in direction with clients this year. Which of these will help you succeed this year?
1. Stop sending mass emails
yeah i know It seems strange to say this from someone who truly believes in email and its business-building power. But I have my limits!
The emails during this last holiday shopping season were insane. He’s been in the email industry for over 20 years, and he can’t remember a time when his inbox was full, even during COVID-19 lockdowns.
I’m not the only one who noticed. Customers also found their inboxes blown up in the North Pole. As The Washington Post reported, they complained about it (“Retailers are sending more emails than ever to lure you into shopping”).
I didn’t run numbers to measure volume, isolate cadence, or track frequency curves.
A tip for everyone on frequency: If you throttled up on vacation, it’s time to throttle down.
This should be a regularly scheduled move. However, it is important for management to understand that increasing the frequency, volume, and frequency of emails is not the new email norm.
Committing to this heavier schedule will drive you crazy and drive your audience away from other brands and social media.
If you increased your cadence, what did it do for you? You may have achieved your numbers, but consider the long-term costs.
- further resigned.
- Spam complaints are on the rise.
- Deliverability issues.
- Lower revenue per email.
Use what you’ve learned from your vacation rhythm as an opportunity to discover whether it’s a viable strategy or just an “emergency break a glass” move.
my advice? slow down. Return to normal volume, frequency and rhythm. Think of your customers and their reactions to a flood of emails over a 60-day period.
2. Stop spamming
I was encouraged by the Washington Post article I mentioned earlier citing one of my e-mail complaints.
Or give Post a caustic quote about my experience with SafeOpt and predatory emails to visitors to a client’s website (“Business stress is no excuse for spam”). You could.
Successful email marketers believe in the sacredness of permission. Buying a list means not hiring a company to sell you the list, whether it’s a data broker or a technology provider like SafeOpt.
Spamming people doesn’t work in the long run. Sure, I’ve heard stories of people making money with purchased lists and companies like SafeOpt. But that’s a peculiar way of looking at the impact.
Email is the only marketing channel that can make you money even if you do it wrong. But is it correct?
The problem with the “I made money” argument is that there is nowhere to go after that. Are you measuring how many customers you’ve lost due to sending spam or how many times your reputation has been impacted?
You may achieve your short-term goals, but you may lose the long-term battle. If you become known as an untrusted sender, you risk losing access to your customer’s inbox.
Permission violations aside, sending an email after a visitor leaves your site is a waste of effort for three reasons:
- A visit is not the same as an intention. I don’t understand why they ended up on your site. Perhaps they mistyped your URL or quickly realized that your brand wasn’t what they wanted. Even if you track it by email, it will not return.
- You are not measuring interest. Did they visit multiple pages or check your “About” or FAQ page?
- You didn’t give me your email address. Given their interest and intent, they will want to connect with your brand. No email address, no permissions.
Good email practices dictate that email is most effective when it is permission-based. Most ESPs and ISPs operate on this principle, as do many email laws and regulations.
But even in the United States, where opt-out email is still legal, just because someone landed on your website doesn’t mean they should email you without your permission.
3. One new thing
Many email marketers start the year with a list of 15 things they want to do in the next two months. I try to soften these fanatical visions by focusing on achievable goals in the following questions.
“What can you do this year that can make a big difference to the success of your email program?”
When I started as Head of Strategy at Acxiom, I wanted to come up with a long list of goals to impress my new boss. I showed it to my mentor, the great David Baker.
Hmm…
“That’s why we don’t set so many goals,” he said. “Come in alone. When you’re done with that, come up with the next thing. Then do something else. If you don’t, it means you didn’t make it.”
It’s some of the best advice I’ve ever received and I’ll pass it on to you.
Come up with one goal, project, or change that moves the program forward. Take it to your boss and say, “Here’s what I’m going to do this year.”
To find that one project, check out Martech, then see Martech’s 6 Most Popular 2022 Articles for expert advice.
There are many ideas and tips that can help you articulate the one big idea that will drive your growth and bring you success. But be realistic. You never know what kind of event will affect your business.
Move your email program forward in 2023
The new year is just getting started, and I’ve had a little trouble getting the motivation to work on what I’m trying to be the beast of the year.
I enjoyed my vacation. Attending golf with my dad and his buddies, eating great food, taking time to step back and appreciate the amazing people I work with and our amazing industry.
What finally drives me? I reach out to my team, friends and you. A lot of my motivation comes from fellow marketers. What do you need, what are your concerns, and what can I do to help you succeed?
If you’re on the battle bus with me, borrow motivation from your colleagues and teammates. That way, 12 months from now, he can get together and toast each other to get through the next year of his life.
It’s time to put on the marketer’s helmet and hit the starter. Let’s spend a wonderful year together. Get the job done!
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The opinions expressed in this article are those of the guest author and not necessarily MarTech. Staff authors are listed here.
About the author
As co-founder of RPEOrigin.com, Ryan Phelan’s 20 years of global marketing leadership have brought innovative strategies to high-growth SaaS and Fortune 250 companies. His experience and history in digital marketing has shaped his perspective on creating innovative orchestrations of data, technology and customer activation for Adestra, Acxiom, Responsys, Sears & Kmart, BlueHornet and infoUSA. I was. Working with his colleagues to advance his marketing digitally and mentoring young marketers and entrepreneurs are two of Ryan’s passions. Ryan is Honorary Chairman of the Email Experience Council Advisory Board and a member of numerous business community groups. He is also an in-demand keynote speaker and a leader in the digital marketing sort he is.
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