Everyone has one. Some have many. Email addresses are a type of currency. They cost nothing to give out, but their value to the recipient is “priceless”… well not quite, but very valuable. In fact, after your existing customers, getting emails from prospective future customers is your most valuable asset.
Why discuss email marketing at all? There are so many other marketing subjects of interest i.e. Loyalty clubs, social media, mobile marketing, winery PR. Year end planning is a good time to get back to the basics, and email is one of the primary branches of the content tree, leading to many other points of connection with consumers. I still meet people who are just getting started with social media, mobile devices and other tech, but I know for a fact that just about everyone has an email address.
The value of email is to facilitate communications and build brand loyalty. It is likely that some form of social media will replace email communications in the future. Evidence of this is generational. My mother who is in her 80’s doesn’t have email and can’t be bothered. My niece who is 15 may have an email address, but has only given me her phone number for texting.
All of this brings me to the point of this article. Email Marketing is a proven driver of actions you want your current and prospective customers to take. It’s inexpensive and you can segment and target your audience specific to their interests and track the results. If your winery has a tasting room, this is what you’ll want to promote and where you’ll want to connect with people. If you don’t, you’ll communicate by driving them to your website and hope to transact business there. If you are one of my email subscribers and read this article in my next newsletter, I’ll suggest that you “click here to read more”, which takes you out to this blog post where the balance of this article resides. I want you to read the conclusion of this article on my website, which is my point here. You can’t sell wine (or consulting) with newsletters and social media, but you can create calls to action that take your customers where you can sell wine, either in person or on your website.
Content has become as important as the media through which it is conveyed. And targeted content even more so. Segment your email lists and deliver content relevant to specific group interests. Shipping promos for out of state subscribers, and local events for those in state are good examples.
Newsletters are just one of many ways you can build customers and followers. It is critically important that your newsletter is integrated with your advertising, and social media and displays well on mobile devices and is easy to share. Conversely, you can create integration and build your emails lists with signup forms on your website and your social networks.
I see so many newsletters with content that seems very noisy and spammy with lots of pitches and sales promos. I get that, but your newsletter needs to appear educational. Use the 80/20 rule (Educate/Promote) and you’ll be fine. People will appreciate it, and when you do offer special deals they’ll take notice. Newsletter marketing can boost sales and the effect is immediate.