Asia trading request

Your monthly newsletter September 2017

Marketing and why it's important for ecommerce

Definition: Newsletter marketing is the practice by which companies send informational and product-focused content via an emailed letter to a subscriber list that comprises potential and existing customers. Online businesses utilize newsletters to keep their brand top-of-mind for consumers, establishing authority in the space and notifying readers of products that may interest them.

Gauging the success of newsletters

Like all marketing initiatives, newsletters need to have a quantifiable impact on the business. The first step is setting measurable goals, which often include:

• Increase recipients, measured in subscribers
• Read the newsletter, measured by open rate
• Fulfill the desired action (typically a visit to the website), measured by click-through rate
• Make a purchase, measured in attributed revenue

These base goals are catered to various sales campaigns or business initiatives the newsletter could reinforce. For example, an online clothing retailer heading into the fall season may want to promote their collection of jackets and other winter clothing. The newsletter could then contain content about winter fashion trends, with tracking links to cold-weather products. Effective newsletters are informational, not sales-driven

Web users of every ilk are regularly bombarded with offers, sales, and promotions. To get customers to open and read an email, the content needs to be genuinely interesting - beyond an attempt to sell them merchandise or services. Users are much more likely to open an email targeted to educating or entertaining them, and this is accomplished in the subject line. But with that expectation comes the necessity to actually follow through on the subject's promise.

Newsletters give online businesses an opportunity to demonstrate authority and expertise on the subject of their products. Tell subscribers why certain materials are better, some styles are popular, or a story about your brand. These give readers a reason to trust you and also tell a story that brings more personality to your brand. Customers with a strong attachment to a particular company spend 23% more than average consumers, and the newsletter is a prime candidate to distinguish a brand from the competition.

One proposed methodology for newsletters is 90/10: 90% information, 10% sales material. With the right balance, less is more and the educational material will lead to more sales than product copy.

Sincerely - Alejandro Perez

---

Resources

Custom Training

Your team is not like any other. You're addressing specific challenges and opportunities with a particular skill set. That's where our bespoke, in-company digital training comes in.