First, there was Email Marketing.
Then, there was Social Media marketing.
Then there was the “Email is Dead” debate – which died a quick and quiet death when a Web full of stats proved otherwise.
And now there are business owners everywhere thinking, “Okay, I’m supposed to do digital marketing, I’ve put up a free Facebook page, I’m not sure how the whole Twitter thing works and do I really need to pay for Email Marketing?”
Email and Social are both very effective digital marketing tools with some pretty darn’ impressive branding effects, but their offerings differ.
What you get from Facebook:
We love Facebook like we do chocolaty Easter treats – and so do your customers. Facebook offers what every marketer wants for their brand: Public approval. That, and a vast scope of potential interaction with your fans through links, posts, comments, videos, photos and messages. The entertainment value offers some pretty enthusiastic fan engagement. Users also have a sense of control when “liking” a brand; they know that, should they feel inundated with marketing posts, they can easily hide your infernal updates, or simply unlike.
What you get from Twitter:
More public approval! Twitter has seen a massive rise in usage with the escalation of mobile Internet. (In February 2011 Twitter reported that the number of tweets sent daily had nearly tripled from February 2010 and mobile Twitter use had increased by 182% over the same period.) It’s an easy platform to jump on to quickly proclaim your satisfaction with a brand. It’s also an easy platform to interact on; conversations flow quickly, and hopping in on topical conversations is quick-and-easy brand PR. One of the most distinguishing Twitter pros is the number of influencers present. Get the right people talking about your brand and you’re in.
What you get from Email:
What Email lacks in public endorsement, it makes up for in exclusivity. Subscribers value personalised communication – and by that I don’t just mean a first-name address. When someone let’s you into their inbox, they’re letting you into a personal, trusted sphere. (Or “their personal space” to break it down.)
With ever-present spam concerns internet users are reluctant to hand out their email address to all and sunder. It also takes a little more effort to fill out a subscription form than it does to click on a “follow” button, and so email subscribers tend have given some thought (even if just for 2 seconds) to whether they want to receive communication from your brand. You have their trust and interest.
Stats indicate that users who sign up to email updates are more willing to engage with a brand (read: purchase from and recommend it) than those that engage with them on any other digital communication channel. The number of people who interact with your email newsletter might be lower than that of the social followers who interact, but when subscribers do engage it’s valuable stuff.
The bottom line
All three channels help you gain top-of-mind and familiarity with your target audience. By using these channels in conjunction with each other, you get triple the branding effect. (More loyal brand followers = more product or service recommendations = more money. It ain’t rocket science.)
The ideal is to offer your customers or clients a variety of communication channels so that they can choose their preferred methods of following and staying up-to-date with your brand.
Also check out:
• Our Email Marketing services
Carmia, great article. I'm dumbfounded by the success of the online world, and how it's attracted people like myself into it's all-consuming development. Keep up the posts ... ;-)
Posted by CrannMan on 2011/04/14