In the simplest term, email marketing is the mode of digital marketing that involves using emails for promoting a business. In most cases, email marketing is also used for establishing relationships with potential customers and nurturing relationships with existing ones.
A typical email marketing material will include news, coupons, deals, and updates about a brand. With that said, have you ever wondered how to make money with email marketing? Is it really something that is worth trying out? Let’s see.
Is Email Marketing Worth Your Time?
When it comes to marketing channels, email marketing has the highest rate of conversion. According to a report from the Data & Marketing Association in 2013, almost 66% of online consumers made a new purchase after checking an email marketing post. This is much higher than both social and direct emails.
Another report from McKinsey and Company holds a similar view, suggesting that the transactions from email marketing posts generate much more revenue than the ones from social media posts.
How to Make Money with Email Marketing
Contrary to what most believe, email marketing is not dead. Even as we speak, it continues to drive businesses into becoming the money-making machine that their owners dreamed them to be. Here are things you can do to use email marketing to your advantage:
Start Selling Something
Since this first step is for beginners, you can avoid it if you already have something to sell. If, however, you don’t yet have a product or service, this is the step you need to follow. Unless you have a product that can be promoted, it’ll be practically impossible to make money from this marketing channel.
You can sell anything from eBooks, training manuals, virtual coaching sessions, online workshops, or courses. Regardless of your chosen product, you need to be passionate about selling it.
Sell Affiliate Products
If you don’t have any product to sell and you don’t want to get one either, start selling affiliate products. By being an affiliate for leading businesses, you can get commissions every time you generate traffic for the said business.
Here’s a simple instance of affiliate connections: You are a virtual coach who offers guidelines and training on online marketing. To make the most of your suggestions, you recommend a range of affiliate tools like web hosting solutions or web design services. As you do this, you end up serving the marketing needs of your clients.
Almost every leading brand has an affiliate program. So, check your available options and pick something that works with your requirements.
However, before opting for an affiliate program, ensure that you have a solid relationship with your customers. Unless you have a great relationship, you won’t be able to suggest products that perfectly align with their requirements.
Try Cross-Selling Similar Products
Every time a customer purchases from your site, it offers you some ideas about their interests and preferences. Luckily, you can use this information to your advantage by cross-selling similar products to them.
We are quite sure that you’ve come across an email with the tagline, “Because you made this purchase, we think you’re interested in this new product”. The idea here is to target customers based on their previous shopping decisions. If you target them the right way, they will most likely purchase a new product.
Here’s a short example of an excellent cross-sell: Say, for instance, you’re a digital marketer who offers an online course about Facebook marketing. Once your customer completes this course, you can pitch in another email cross-selling a new course about video marketing on Facebook.
Ideally, you should send automated emails with these cross-selling pitches at least once to thrice a week after your customer’s first purchase. This is an excellent way to generate more profits.
Get Your Customers to Repeat Their Purchase
Just like cross-selling, you might have a certain product or service that can be repeatedly purchased at certain intervals. At times, a friendly email reminder is a great way to generate a steady stream of revenues.
This method of monetizing email marketing works especially well for those businesses that depend on recurring or seasonal goods and services. For example, if you have a window cleaning company, you can remind your existing clients about scheduling their next appointments by the end of every season.
Bonus Tip: Offer coupons. Giving a 15 to 20 percent discount on your next service might offer your customers the much-needed boost for using your service the following season.
Down-sell When Needed
Just like upselling and pitching in bonus offers, it is also important to down-sell in the right instances. When an existing or potential client tries to back out of buying your product, you can offer them a cheaper alternative with similar features.
Down-selling is a great way to retain existing clients and tap into new ones.
Have a Solid Plan for Users Who Leave Their Cart
Cart abandonment is one of the major issues of almost every online business. A possible customer is just about to make a purchase, and they decide to ditch their plan at the very last second. This can be because of a sudden, unexpected cost, a better offer from a competitor, the long process, or your site’s complex navigation.
Alternatively, it can also be because the customer was just casually browsing your platform. Either way, the situation can be easily salvaged with a simple trick: a cart abandonment plan. Get an email autoresponder for targeting customers who’ve ditched their shopping carts in the middle of their shopping spree.
Use Referral Emails
This is one of the oldest answers to the question: how to make money with email marketing. Since nothing works better than real testimonials, encourage your customers to spread the love.
You can use referral bonuses to lure them into recommending your products and services to their friends and loved ones. If you’ve been offering good services and have a loyal customer base, this will easily drive great results.
Come up With a Paid Subscription Model
If you have the necessary expertise in your field, you can always come up with some premium content for your customers. Develop a monthly, yearly, or one-time membership plans where users can have exclusive access to their preferred content.
Bottom Line
Once you use these tried and tested tips, making money from email marketing will be easier than ever! Nevertheless, always remember to be patient throughout the process and constantly update yourself with the best strategies. In this way, you always have some strategy to try when all else fails.
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