Overview
As anyone with an email inbox can tell you, email is still one of the most widely used channels for digital marketing. Statistics indicate that the number of global email users and the number of messages sent annually are still on the rise, reaching into the billions. Email marketing provides your business with multiple ways to communicate with your audience, from newsletters to surveys, discounts, and personalized messages. Even better, many email marketing systems can integrate with your existing Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems, while others offer key CRM features as a bundled package.
What is Email Marketing Software?
Email marketing software can manage your contact lists, help you design and send attractive emails, and track whether they have been opened and read. Options range from text-based template solutions that marketers can quickly customize to more complex HTML or JavaScript templates. The good news is that it doesn’t cost much to get started, and it’s not a heavy burden. Many of the solutions in this review offer free trials and affordable starting plans, with some even providing training services for new customers.
Is Email Marketing Still Effective in 2024?
There is some belief in the market that email is becoming outdated and being replaced by new channels such as social media, chat, SMS, web pages, and even the virtual world. This is somewhat true – and modern multichannel marketing campaigns should undoubtedly leverage this – but it’s no reason to ignore email.
According to market research firm Statista, email usage is still very much prevalent. About 306 billion emails were sent and received daily in 2020, and there were 4 billion email users worldwide – a figure that represents almost half of the world’s population. Furthermore, these numbers are projected to reach 376 billion emails daily and 4.6 billion users by 2025. Based on this market share, it should be clear that email marketing can be not only an effective technique but a critical one.
However, what is changing is how email users access their inboxes. Statista’s figures have shown that the number of emails opened in desktop applications has declined to just 18%. In place of these traditional clients, webmail (39% of openings) and mobile email clients (43% of openings) have emerged. In fact, the iPhone email app was the most popular globally, accounting for 29% of all email openings. With email usage on mobile devices growing, you’ll want to ensure that your email marketing software pays special attention to this channel.
What is the Cost of Email Marketing?
The good news is that the cost of reaching potential customers via email is generally low, while the profit potential is high. Estimates of the typical return on investment (ROI) for email campaigns vary, but most indicate it hovers around $40 for every dollar spent. This is one of the highest rates of return on investment in any form of digital marketing.
Many email marketing plans include unlimited monthly messages and charge fees based on the number of subscribers. If you have a small list, look for a company that offers a free plan or a low-cost plan for several hundred subscribers, or even a pay-as-you-go plan. On the other hand, many of these services offer high-volume plans with 100,000 subscribers or more.
As a result
Therefore, the prices of email marketing competitors we review here vary significantly. They start at around $3 per month for sending 500 emails monthly in Zoho Campaigns, to up to $1250 per month for up to 10,000 contacts in Salesforce Pardot. Sometimes, you may even want to negotiate a custom plan directly with a sales representative.
How to get started with email marketing?
Getting started with an email marketing program isn’t difficult. Generally, you will immediately know if you like the user interface (UI) of the product or not, and most of the competitors we reviewed offer free trials so you can explore them before spending any money. Fortunately, most of these services have modern-looking graphics and uncluttered layouts. These are not the complicated business software interfaces of the past.
Also, make sure to consider how technical support is provided by the vendor, as many vendors do not offer support to the extent we would like to be available. You will find that some offer 24/7 phone support, live chat, and email help, while others leave you reliant on online documentation and limited live support hours. The best services provide a mix of self-service support resources, such as FAQs and articles you can read to find your answers, and direct support via chat or phone when you can’t resolve an issue on your own.
Finally, look at any regulatory compliance issues. For example, if you plan to market to customers in Europe, ensure that your software can assist you in complying with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). On the other hand, the complex healthcare law regulates how you use certain protected health information in your campaigns, while other laws govern how you market to minors under the age of 18. Consult your potential supplier to ensure they can help you with the regulations that apply to your organization.
Does email marketing work on mobile devices?
As mentioned earlier, one of the significant changes in email marketing is the increase in engagement on mobile devices instead of personal computers. Mobile users check their email throughout the day and wherever they are. Thanks to payment services like Apple Pay and Google Pay, smartphones have also evolved into tools for e-commerce. Email on mobile devices can create a seamless shopping experience that allows customers to move from marketing to purchase in one session.
The increasing importance of mobile means you should pay special attention to the email designer and analytics sections of any email marketing service. The designer should provide a preview of how your email will look in a responsive format, meaning HTML properly sizes images and other elements according to the device being used to view them.
You should also be able to segment your audience based on mobile data. Some tools may require you to create custom reports to view this data, meaning you might need to export it to a third-party business intelligence (BI) tool.
In addition to email, direct marketing via text messaging (SMS) is becoming increasingly popular—not least because it leverages a more personal line of communication with customers. According to recent research, SMS achieves a 90% open rate on mobile devices compared to regular email marketing, which ranges from 20-25%. This is a significant difference, and marketers are turning to supported platforms. However, be careful not to over-market via the SMS channel as research indicates that many prefer to keep it for friends and family.
DoesCan email marketing integrate with other programs?
A recent trend in email marketing tools is the integration with other systems, particularly customer relationship management (CRM) systems and e-commerce tools. Some advanced email marketing services have even begun to resemble CRM systems. This makes sense since both types of software deal with managing and communicating with customers.
Incorporating user-generated content (UGC) is one of the tactics that marketers are increasingly using to build more trust in their email messages. For example, an email could include a customer review of a product, such as those found on e-commerce sites like Amazon. User-generated content can also benefit from other channels, including posts and comments on social media, as well as discussions in online forums, including your support forums. According to a study by the digital marketing tool company Tint, 62% of respondents
Source: https://me.pcmag.com/en/old-email-marketing/14974/the-best-email-marketing-software-for-2023
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