When used independently, email marketing is one of the most powerful conversion drivers. Studies have shown that email is an effective method of driving sales, and surveys have consistently shown that customers would rather receive sales messages via email than any other medium.
Simply put, social media marketing is one of the most efficient methods for establishing a two-way dialogue with your target demographic in the digital sphere. This is because it facilitates the development of online communities, the growth of personal connections, and the formation of a solid foundation of brand advocates who will spread the word about your company on social media.
When you combine the two, the potential for advertising is enormous
Incorporating both email and social media into a marketing strategy is not the same thing as integration.
In order to maximise the efficacy of both channels, they must be coordinated in such a way that they complement one another and provide a consistent, positive experience for customers.
You need to stop treating email marketing and social media marketing as separate entities if you want to develop a truly integrated online marketing strategy that makes the most of their combined strengths. Instead, consider them opposite sides of the same coin. There must always be a link between the two parts. Here are some basic strategies to get you started.
Icons for the various social media platforms come first
You should include share buttons in every email you send. This is the most common and straightforward approach to integrating email and social media marketing, and it’s widely used because it yields positive results. If you want to keep in touch with the people who have signed up to receive your emails, you should include links to follow you on all of your social media accounts and regular reminders of where they can find you online.
Share buttons for various social media platforms
As with the previous point, this one requires no thought. You should ask your email recipients to share your messages with their own social media followers after asking them to connect with you.
Make sure the subjects of emails and the titles of Facebook posts are consistent
Your Facebook and email list followers are likely to share similar tastes and preferences. Consequently, success on one platform implies success on the other. Try repurposing an effective email subject line as a Facebook headline, and vice versa if you’ve seen a lot of interaction with a certain Facebook headline.
Add a video to your email
In the realm of email marketing, video is the newest trend that can make a huge impact on click-through rates. Now that more email providers support video attachments, sending links to the videos you’ve uploaded to YouTube can be an effective way to increase views and engagement. Make sure to also include a link to the video for recipients who can’t watch it in your email.
Have your email subscribers engage with you on social media
Consider your email as a way to broadcast what’s happening on social media, and your social media posts as a way to broadcast the content of your email. Not only will sending out emails that feature the best comments, fan images, and conversations happening on your social media networks make for interesting content, but it will also encourage people to join in on the fun themselves.
Showcase a loyal follower each month in your email newsletter
One other great way to boost participation is to zero in on a specific fan. With any luck, that supporter will forward the email to his friends, inspiring more people to engage with your brand on social media in the hopes of being selected.
Let people know that an email is coming by posting about it
Following on from recommendation #5, make use of social media to help get the word out about the information contained in your emails. Provide tantalising previews of upcoming content to entice potential subscribers to sign up.
Spread the word on social media by posting a link to your email newsletters that can be read online
You can get even more mileage out of an email campaign by sharing its contents with your followers on social media. If they find it interesting, they will likely sign up for a subscription and never miss another issue again.
Adapt emails to each subscriber’s preferred social network
Split your email list into subsets based on the social media channels your subscribers frequent, and send them regular digests of the latest happenings on that particular channel. A Facebook Review, Twitter Recap, or Pinterest Board are all viable options.
You should send a separate email specifically inviting people to follow your brand on a social media site. Emails could extol the virtues of Twitter followership or extol the joys of Pinterest membership. Invite your subscribers before anyone else if you want to grow your community on any social media platform.
Let Facebook conversations with fans inform the information you send them via email
You can either keep an eye on what people are talking about on your Facebook page or simply ask them directly what they want to see more of in your emails. Not only will the content of your emails be more relevant to the recipients’ interests, but they will also be more likely to sign up for your mailing list.
Make the exchange request
Get the word out to your email list to “like” your Facebook page. Ask your Facebook followers to sign up for your mailing list on your page. More channels of communication with your target audience are always preferable.