Email Marketing Software
Produce Dollars Online
As an Internet entrepreneur, the most valuable asset I have is my mailing list of past customers. Whenever anyone orders a product from one of my sites, they have to enter their contact information in case I need to get in touch with them to confirm a billing address or notify them of a shipping delay. And of
course I keep all that info on hand to periodically reach out to these same customers to tell them about sales or special deals for other products. Having the right email marketing software makes this task a whole lot easier, and has resulted in a lot of repeat business for me.
I've tried a lot of different email marketing software over the years, so by now I've come learn exactly what to look for when you want to find this product. I've discovered that the particular brand doesn't matter as much as the actual features that you get. Some products come with a lot of bells and whistles (which means a proportionally higher price tag), but I've found that I'm not likely to use many of those things. Instead, I've had the most success with mid-range email marketing software that's a cut above the basic stuff, but not quite as elaborate as the high-end offerings.
Before buying any email marketing software, I recommend that you check for the following capabilities. First of all, there should be a mailing list management feature to help keep your contacts organized. While you'll frequently want to send your mailings to everyone on your list, there will be times when a more targeted approach is called for. Therefore, having the ability to separate your customers according to different criteria is a must.
A second must-have feature in email marketing software is a tracking component. After all, if you can't tell how many people are responding to your mailings, then you'll never know how effective your various campaigns are. Good email marketing software will be able to track every message you send, show you which customers on your list opened the message, how many friends they forwarded the message to, what links they clicked on, how long they stayed on your website, and if they bought anything as a result of your campaign. With this kind of data, you can create very powerful advertisements that will keep your customers coming back.
And finally, you have to take deliverability issues into account. Any email marketing software you purchaseshould comply with the 2003 Can-Spam Act (which essentially means that there should be a prominent opt-out link somewhere in the message) and should be tolerated by the leading ISPs as legitimate mailings. If you choose a product that cannot make these claims, then you run the risk of your messages not being delivered to your customers, leaving you right back at square one -- and out a couple hundred bucks as well.
If you do any kind of internet selling, then email marketing software is an invaluable tool that will greatly enhance your ability to communicate with customers. Put some time into choosing the right software, and watch your repeat business go through the roof!
