3 Types of Emails You Need to Send

My last blog was all about 1 thing: email = revenue.

While the outcome of effective email marketing is undoubtedly increased income, the purpose of email marketing isn't making more money. The purpose of sending email is to deepen your relationship with your customers (or potential customers). You want to move potential customers from "never heard of them" to "can't live without them," and your existing customers from occasional-business to all-time advocate.

When you place the relationship between you and your customers at the center of your strategy, it provides insight about what type of content you should be sending. In general, most email marketing content falls into 1 of 3 categories:

  1. Promotional – for increasing sales.
  2. Relational – for providing value to subscribers + staying top of mind.
  3. Transactional – for giving info + customer service.

These three types of emails allow you to engage with your customer base and move them further along in their relationship with you.

Promotional Emails

Promotional emails are the type of email that most people think of when they think of email marketing. They quite literally promote a lead magnet, product, or service offered by your company. Examples of promotional emails include: sale announcement, upcoming event ads, new product release, new gated content or lead magnets, and offers (such as for a free trial or upgrade).

When it comes to promotional emails, it is extremely important that you only send them to the right audience. If you're constantly advertising (and only advertising), you're likely to get an unfollow. Here's where segmenting your contact list makes a lot of sense – tag your subscribers according to past purchases and personal information so that you know what types of offers are most likely to interest your customers. Promotional emails are also a great opportunity to upsell your customers. When they have just had a good experience making a purchase from you is the best time to retarget them with other services or events that may interest them!

Relational Emails

Relational emails are the bread-and-butter of email marketing. These emails are primarily for offering value to your subscribers, even when they may not have asked for it. Companies that send relational emails have an average of 50% more sales-ready leads than those who do not (Digital Marketer). Examples of relational emails include: welcome emails, newsletters, blog articles, surveys, announcements, and referral requests.

Relational emails should feel more personal and less transactional. You're emailing them because you value them, and your content should reflect that. When you start the conversation with them, you should always do 3 things: 1) Add value to their lives, 2) Ask them to take a follow-up action, and 3) provide an opportunity for them to take that follow-up action immediately.

Transactional Emails

Transactional emails are the follow-up and customer service emails that you may send primarily through an automated system. These emails confirm an action that someone takes on your website, such as filling out a form or making a purchase. Examples of transactional emails include: order confirmation, shipping notifications, account creation confirmation, and unsubscribe confirmations.

Most businesses consider these types of email to be throwaways – emails you're required to send but that have little to no marketing value. But that's not true! Even transactional emails can be leveraged for growth of the relationship. When you send an order confirmation, why not advertise other related products? When you send an account confirmation, why not include the highlights from your latest newsletter? Even when you send an unsubscribe confirmation, you can remind your lead why they might want to stay in touch with you and give them an opportunity to resubscribe!

There you have it – some guidelines to help get you moving in the right direction with your email marketing! Still feeling lost in the sauce? Contact us! LETSDEVELOP.TV clients see results in their first month of email marketing management!

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