How to Connect With Email-Fatigued Prospects in Three Simple Steps
After surviving the competitive holiday season, many marketers could use a
break. Unfortunately, new challenges come with the turn of the calendar page.
Many people feel compelled to clean hypothetical house at the start of each
new year—purging clutter, conquering unhealthy habits, and opting out of emails
from the brands that crammed their inboxes in December.
So, how can modern marketers deal with this detox mode—and make sure their
messages aren't lost in the New Year's clean sweep?
Here are three simple steps to connect with post-holiday email fatigued
subscribers.
1. Show subscribers you've got more to offer
than deals and discounts
If I'm paring down my subscription list after a major purchase or buying
season, the brands that offer me valuable content along with their offers are
much more likely to make the cut.
In the wake of the holiday crunch, most consumers are less interested in
"save big, limited time, act now" messages. They may not need
anything from you right now—but they're still looking for content that offers
relevant and sharable industry insight, inspires positive change, and builds
continued trust in your relationship.
That kind of content shows subscribers you value them even when they're not
in active purchase mode—and goes a long way toward encouraging retention.
The beginning of the year is the time to show your brand's worth as a
long-term investment. Share evergreen tips and advice that are related to—but
not all about—your product or service. Offer a free e-book or whitepaper
sharing projections or trends to watch during the year.
It's a great time of year to position yourself as a thought leader in your
industry or mindspace, and the best way to accomplish that goal is to regularly
share relevant content that makes your subscribers click—and then makes them
think.
2. Offer a steady stream of customized content
through an automated series
Yes, I know: It seems counterintuitive to create a series targeted to
email-fatigued subscribers. But hear me out.
When strategically planned and properly timed, an automated series
establishes your depth of expertise and shows consumers you have valuable
information to share—and that you know how to break that content down into
bite-sized nuggets that won't tax their attention, their schedule, or their
inbox storage capacity.
First, select an umbrella topic relevant to your recipients' business
objectives. You can probably look to your own first quarter plan for great
ideas on content that will resonate with your audiences: Think
"organization" and "optimization" to start. Those concepts
are practically universal this time of year.
Once you know what you want to say, create a schedule and a mini-messaging
plan for this push. For example, you might send 4-6 messages every few days.
Or, consider offering subscribers a weekly "Top Five Tips for the
Year" countdown.
The goal is to create meaningful, periodic touchpoints over the course of a
few weeks to remind your subscribers that you're a valuable resource
year-round—not just during the holidays.
3. Give customers the option to connect a
little less frequently (You know, if that's what they really want)
We get it. Seasons change. After the holidays, many subscribers don't want
to sever the relationship with your brand, but they definitely want to hear
from you a little less often. The customer who wanted your sales emails twice a
day in December may feel harassed by that level of contact now.
However, with some savvy handling, you can maintain the contact by simply
scaling back your contact strategy.
Consider offering a way for readers to manage their subscription preferences.
An "all or nothing" model can alienate consumers who want to hear
from you only on their schedule. Instead, build some flexibility into your
subscriber services and allow customers to deal with their email fatigue by
reducing contact rather than eliminating it completely.
Make it easy to "turn down" the conversation volume—but continue
to share valuable content on a schedule that appeals to each user.
With that said, remember: The average email list churns by about 30% every
year. If a few subscribers decide to opt out of your list, it's OK—because new
subscribers are everywhere!
Put equal emphasis on finding new contacts and retaining the ones you already have, and you'll be well positioned for success in 2015.
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
How to Connect With Email-Fatigued Prospects in Three Simple Steps
Posted by John Hornyak, X2 Media at 3:52 PM
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