Email marketing for retailers can be used to create a direct line to the customer base, but many fail to make the most of this platform. Tying directly to conversion rates, customer acquisition and purchase behaviour, retail email marketing is one of the most simple and cost-effective ways to grow a retail business.
Here are 7 reasons why email marketing for retailers is important:
1. Keep subscribers up to date
Regular updates can work to successfully keep retailers at the forefront of consumers’ minds, giving you a head start against competitors.
Announce your latest products, events, campaigns and showcase new stock lines via email. Even if customers haven’t been into your store recently, you can easily remind them exactly what you offer and why they should return.
For ecommerce retailers, emailing subscribers with new stock announcements can work to encourage business, while sending delivery updates when items are being shipped is a guaranteed way to keep customers happy.
2. Build buyer trust
Grow your reputation with your subscribers through personable and targeted email marketing campaigns. By bearing customers’ preferences in mind, they learn to trust your recommendations and pay more attention to relevant calls to action.
Personalise emails by using customers’ names, promote products they have previously bought or link similar items which may be of interest based on their previous purchases.
3. Loyalty
Why not go a step further and make your subscribers feel valued? Reward loyal customers with offers, discounts and promotions. Send birthday or anniversary emails with discounts, encouraging business while adding a personal touch.
4. Make a big impact
Email is 40 times more effective at acquiring new customers than Facebook or Twitter. With no limit to the length of an email, you are able to send more substantial messages to customers, adding imagery and other eye-catching content.
5. It doesn’t have to be time consuming
There are countless platforms out there which mean you can create an email marketing campaign quickly and easily, with templates and even databases to upload contacts.
You can plan campaigns in advance and schedule them to go out to your email list at a chosen time, even automating additional messages when specific actions are made. For example, you can tailor email marketing journeys to each customer, sending a designated email when a specific link is clicked, or sending a reminder when no action is taken. Email automation allows you use sophisticated techniques as part of your marketing strategy – which can be set up and left to run in the background.
6. Integrate online and offline communication
Email can link brilliantly with brick-and-mortar retail. Many people prefer to see products in person or try it on, so while email marketing isn’t as personal as face-to-face communication, it can work to initially capture the attention of customers.
Once an email has shown desirable products to a customer, many will then travel to stores to view the product for themselves, increasing footfall through simple email marketing.
7. Higher ROI
Email marketing for retailers can deliver a higher return on investment than most strategies, creating a clickable and actionable link from online customers, directly to the retailer. Email marketing creates more conversions than any other marketing channels, including search and social, representing a higher ROI.
Email marketing for retailers in numbers
- Email is 40 times more successful at acquiring new customers than Twitter or Facebook
- An email is five times more likely to be seen than a Facebook message
- 72% of people prefer to receive promotional content via email, rather than 17% who prefer it on social media
- 96% of site visitors aren’t expecting to initially buy, unless they receive additional messaging
- Email’s ROI is 28.5% on average, while direct mail’s is only 7%
- 54% of shoppers will purchase a product in an online shopping cart, especially when they receive communication it has been discounted
Popular forms of automated email
Automated emails work to take customers on a journey, enabling you to introduce a sales funnel. See this incredible email automation strategy that you can implement on a budget.
- Welcome emails
- Product launches
- Receipt sending
- Cart abandonment emails
- Customer support
- Account information updates
- Registration confirmation
- Market research
- Discount and deal promotion
Click here to learn how to find out if someone has read your email.
Holly brings a wealth of experience in both print and digital publishing. As Modern Retail’s Content Editor, Holly is passionate about helping independent retailers to thrive in today’s ever-changing market.
