Is Email Marketing Dead in 2023?

Every day you open up your email to see a list of 5-20 emails in your inbox from businesses you've interacted with, and some from ones you've never heard of. Most of the time you go through and mass delete, but sometimes you open one up because a subject line caught your attention. So is email marketing really dead in 2023 if emails are only getting opened once in a long while?

The answer is a big fat giant NO! Email marketing is not dead, but the way people think it works is. People want to think that every time they send an email it should be opened and its contents thoughtfully considered, but that is simply a pipe dream. In reality, email should be used to stay front of mind until the customer is ready on their own to make a purchase. 

There are two types of campaigns you should be using: Sales Campaigns, and Nurture Campaigns. Both of these should stem from some sort of lead generation tool that has given you permission to contact someone. Once you have that, it's time to hit them with the first sales campaign.

Sales Campaigns

Sales campaigns are designed to do exactly what they're titled to do: make a sale. The goal of this campaign should be to offer a solution to your customer's problem. Share some details as to why they need to take advantage of the product or service you offer NOW, and ASK FOR THE SALE. Your entire email should be one big call to action.

This sales campaign should include 3-5 emails that start off with some sort of offer (limited time offers work best to drive action now), then provide a customer testimonial to show that others have been happy going with you. Third, you'll want to overcome some sort of emotional objection. It doesn't have to be the exact one that particular customer has, but the similarities will still ring true with your customer. After that, you'll want to show them why you're different from a competitor that they may have not had as great of an experience with. Finally, Ask for the sale again. Don't add a bunch of fluff, just ask for the sale. Give them something to accept or reject.

Once you've completed this cycle, you'll have a number of people who have converted, some who have unsubscribed (which is a good thing), and those that you'll put into a nurture campaign.

Nurture Campaigns

A nurture campaign is designed to keep you front of mind until the point that the customer is ready to buy. These emails aren't going to be focused on making a sale, but rather providing value. If you only have the bandwith to create one of these two types of campaigns, focus on a nurture campaign.

Ideally, you should have this set up to send an email once a week to your email list. These emails can be anything related to the problem your business solves that provides value. Examples would be weight loss tips for a gym, recipes for a business revolving around food or utensils, Motivational Monday tips, etc. The goal is to provide value to the customer to 'NURTURE" your relationship with them.

Talk about the problem they have that your company solves, but don't pitch your company yet. Just provide the value. At the end of the email, after uninterrupted quality information, then you can offer a call to action in the event they want help facilitating these tips and tricks.

"Unsubscribes" Are a Good Thing

At the end of the day, most of these are going to go unopened. But, as long as they don't hit you with an unsubscribe, they are continuing to say that they value your company enough to see what you have to say next. Once they make the decision that they are in need of the services you provide, you'll be front of mind as the answer to their woes. So why are "unsubscribers" a good thing?

Let's say you're out at a bar and there are two people you're interested in chatting up. The first one has been eyeing you all night and you know it would be an easy win for you. The second glanced at you once, and then forgot you existed. Now, you have a choice: you can either go spend your money buying a drink for the person that has been eyeing you up all night, or you can go toss money at someone who really doesn't care what you have to say.

The same scenario is happening with your business. If person B could have simply hit "unsubscribe", you wouldn't have wasted your time going after the challenge win, when the low hanging fruit was just a few feet away. Why put effort toward someone that doesn't want to hear your message. If someone unsubscribes, they did you a favor because you're list is becoming populated ONLY with people that want to hear what you say next.

To wrap up, email marketing is NOT dead. You just have to know how to use it. Making it a part of your sales tactics will help you win someone you may have thought was never going to buy from you. The truth was, they just weren't ready. Use these campaigns to spread your message, and build relationships with your customers.