Some say email marketing is dead thanks to AI. I disagree. Sure I would but hear me out.
Why email marketing is helping small businesses grow
Sure it's been around for decades but is email still working? I say yes. Because people are still saying 'email been our most consistent channel, especially when we moved from blast-style promos to segmented flows based on behavior."
People are burning out left right and center on social media because it's a hungry beast. It encourages you to pay for attention or spend ages online feeding it more content to keep people on platform. Then it will reward you with some visibility.
I'm not saying social media isn't great. It helps provide small business owners opportunities to be seen by customers without paying for ads. That's something that just wasn't possible years back.
Email and social media are buddies too. LinkedIn, YouTube, Pinterest and even Instagram can help you grow your email list. But I digress.
The point is yes email works and here is how it can help service businesses grow:
Let's go into a bit more detail.
Email marketing helps small business owners build relationships
No not romantic ones. To my knowledge. The kind where someone see's you at an event and can say ' Hey Tiffany how's the kids going' because they know about you from your emails.
Email marketing helps you stay visible
Your emails pop up in their inbox and they remember 'that's right' I need to reach out and finally get that coaching session booked in.
Email return on investment myth or reality
Now I'm not going to say everyone is going to get the well known $30-$40 for every subscriber. Because not everyone is willing to do what it takes. Some people, too many, are treating email like a 'tick the box' exercise. It's not admin. Email marketing is a strategic marketing activity for your business growth.
Like any marketing channel it takes time to build trust and connection. Which leads me to...
Email marketing builds trust, connection, authority and business growth
It's not all leads and revenue. To get that people need to know, like and trust you. They need to know their hard-earned money, their mental health and their future are safe in your hands. No matter whether you're a life coach, a marketing agency or a business coach.
Ok so I think you get it now. Email is a great way to grow your small business.
How to grow your small business with email marketing
- Start with strategy
- Setup your welcome sequence
- Grow your list and don't stop
- Build the habit of sending emails consistently
- Add email sequences that connect and convert
- Maintain your email list
- Review your data and adapt
- Experiment to improve
I'll go into that in greater detail in a later post (or I'll update this one). I've also covered a lot of this in other articles like these:
But this also what I do with done-for-you email sequence & strategy services and consultation calls. Before we talk business let's chat and get to know each other either on Zoom or via email
Support your email marketing with other marketing channels as part of a wider marketing system
Growing a small business in New Zealand is never just about one tactic, one channel, one framework... you get the idea. Anyone that tells you the only way to grow is this one way, that they can conveniently help you with, is advancing their own agenda.
Small business support
My ethics and value system don't align with the 'the only way you can grow is if you can work with me'. Here are other ways that can support your email marketing. Because email marketing works best as part of your wider marketing system I've listed a few things that can help.
- Business Mentors: Mentoring for your small business to skip (some) of the mistakes and for guidance.
- The Regional Business Partner program (RBP): Funded training and services like business advisory and marketing strategy
- Digital Boost Alliance: Information and services to help with digital enablement (helping kiwi businesses adopt digital technology and avoiding falling behind with technology).
Growing your small business is not easy, especially in little ol' New Zealand. Many small business owners started in simpler, less techy times, and the rest of us aren't finding it easy either.
If you'd like to book a virtual coffee chat, on Zoom, then you can do that free in my Calendly. The purpose of this chat is to get to know each other. Think of it as 1:1 networking or an opportunity to talk shop with another New Zealand business owner. Minus the pitch and awkward, oh this is a sales call.
My not-so-hidden agenda: I like to have these sessions to understand what's happening in different industries, identify potential referral opportunities or collaborations, and to see if we might be a good fit if you're interested in working together sooner or later.
