The Long Tail of Email
January 22nd, 2010 | By Anthony Schneider | View Comments
Email has a long, complex life cycle. Email (and email marketing) has a long tail, many heads, and lots of legs. No, it’s not a horror movie monster, but email is a powerful marketing force.
Web Launchpad:
Our inboxes are repositories of information, email addresses and URLs. Emails are powerful open systems: we read an email, then we go to a Web site. We often save emails and go back to them to enter a contest, find a phone number, or order that product.
Brand Builder:
I rarely open emails from L.L. Bean or K&L Wines, but their presence in my inbox should make the marketers happy. Even if I don’t go further than the preview pane, I see their logos and inviting images of fleece slippers or top-rated wines, building brand recognition and strengthening these brands. Email has a “nudge effect” — even if I don’t open the email I may still engage and transact with brands in another channel.
Search Enhancer:
Email builds search. RSS feeds and archives of email newsletters literally provide searchable content and improve SEO, while responsive, specific emails can and should respond to customer needs and searches. Smart marketers use search terms, blog comments and other user feedback to build emails that resonate with their audiences. See Stephanie Miller’s ClickZ article.
Social Starter:
The best way to start social media engagement with your audience is through email. According to a September 2009 Harris Interactive study, 96% of online adults are willing to share email addresses with a brand, while only 12% are willing to share social networking information. And the two aren’t mutually exclusive or cannibalistic. To the contrary, email helps social media and social media helps email. See Zephrin Lasker’s article in iMedia.
Mobile Mover:
We use our smartphones to access applications, check out Facebook… and check email. Email is the lingua franca of the Internet and the bridge between Web and mobile. Marketers are starting to pay attention to mobile social platforms, mobile marketing opportunities, and, of course, mobile-friendly versions of emails.
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Take advantage of email’s long tail to maximize your online marketing investment. It may require minimal work to your emails, and you’ll see long-term benefits. Test and analyze results, and let us know.
Tags: branding, mobile, search, searchmarketing, socialmedia
