In case you’ve spent the last few years exploring Mars and haven’t already heard, social media is really popular right now. And because it’s still relatively new and fresh out of the box, social media often makes email marketing seem old and stale. But email and social media can work together in so many meaningful ways that if you’re using one and dismissing the other, you’re missing a lot of opportunities.
If you need further proof that email isn’t dead and is still definitely worth your time, consider this: Projected spending on email marketing is expected to rise to $2.5 billion by 2016. Why? Because email marketing still converts better than social media, according to a recent study by Monetate.
Marketing communications should be an integrated effort. Your social media strategy should work with your email strategy which should work with your content strategy, etc. It’s about finding the right mix of each ingredient.
Why Integrate Your Email Marketing and Social Media?
- People who opt in to receive your emails are more likely to act on the content — whether it’s liking your Facebook page, following you on Twitter or connecting on LinkedIn. (By the way, you can find us here, here, and here.)
- Social media content often disappears within minutes while email content sticks around for much longer.
- Social media can be used to engage prospects and get them to sign up for email campaigns. Email marketing can then drive traffic and generate sales.
- Social media can amplify your email marketing message. Adding social buttons into your emails makes them very easy to share.
- As social media is a young medium, accurately measuring its impact and reach is still a moving target. Email provides hard numbers so you can see who you’re reaching, and it allows you to tailor your message to reach your target audience.
Now that you’re convinced, how do you go about getting your social media and email marketing to work together?
The first, and easiest, step is to simply include your social icons in emails. People can click and be taken directly to your Facebook, Twitter, G+, LinkedIn or other social pages. Just as easy is adding a social sharing button (such as “Tweet this”) to the entire email or each piece of content within it. Be sure to make the social media icons prominent enough for users to notice and click.
The second step is to ask. Asking people to share and connect can help you build a community around your messaging.
Finally, give people an incentive and demonstrate what’s in it for them. The SmartBrief network recently offered readers the opportunity to curate their daily e-newsletter and include a brief feature highlighting themselves or their business. Readers simply had to interact with the organization via Twitter.
