{3:28 minutes to read} As a student, math and science always came easily to me. It was the liberal arts subjects—you know, the ones that required lots of reading and writing—that I had the most difficulty with. Writing, in particular, was always a struggle. Even today, as I painstakingly select just the right words for each sentence to make this blog as interesting as possible, I think to myself, “Is it worth it?”
Well, if you’ve read this far into my blog, then I have kept your attention at least 10 seconds, which is about as long as most people spend viewing a website homepage. Not bad for a math-head like me!
Most of you are reading this blog post because you’ve received my email newsletter. Now, I know that even my most ardent fans (my mother included) don’t wake up every morning and go directly to my blog site, breathlessly anticipating my next post. (However, if you are one of those people, please spread the word!)
So really, it’s my email that captures your attention.
But wait, you say, isn’t email marketing dead and buried? Hasn’t it been cast aside for social media, SEO, and mobile marketing? Let’s just say that the rumors of email marketing’s demise are greatly exaggerated. In fact, there’s still a lot of profits to be had from shaking the email marketing money tree.
In fact, according to Econsultancy’s 2014 Email Marketing Industry Census, email is still the most effective digital marketing channel.
As the chart below illustrates, 68% of companies surveyed rated email marketing as ‘good’ or ‘excellent’ in terms of ROI. According to Econsultancy, this marks a 3% increase from the year before. Meanwhile, organic search engine optimization, which previously was the highest ranked digital marketing channel, dropped 8%. So much for the rumor that email is dead!
According to a widely quoted statistic by the Direct Marketing Association (DMA), email marketing yields a whopping 4,300% return on investment. Even Bernie Madoff didn’t claim to make that much for his investors. If email marketers could consistently return $43 in profit per $1 spent, investment bankers would be quitting their Wall Street jobs in droves to join them.
Now, just because there is a lot of hype on the Internet about the effectiveness of email marketing, doesn’t mean that none of it is true. The digital marketing firm Outbound Engine has compiled a list of 20 “shocking” statistics about email marketing, including that phenomenal DMA ROI claim and these somewhat more believable data points:
70% of people say they always open emails from their favorite companies (ExactTarget)
Email conversion rates are three times higher than those for social media (McKinsey & Company)
95% of those who opt into email from brands find these messages “somewhat or very useful” (Salesforce)
Marketers consistently ranked email as the single most effective tactic for awareness, acquisition, conversion, and retention (Gigaom Research)
So how can you can you get your share of profits from the email marketing money tree? Stay tuned for my next blog, in which I’ll share some tips and tools for how to get in the game.
Michael Bendit
Managing Director
Software Development Resources Inc.
888-447-1591
1825 Madison Avenue, Suite 9E
New York, NY 10035
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