Email Celebrates 40 Years

Can you believe it’s been 40 years since you stopped using snail mail and the office phone to reach a client because it’s way easier to email them?

I bet you don’t remember the last time you sent a document by fax as you can simply attach almost any file type to an email.

Many different aspects of a business have undeniably improved ever since email came to be.

Is Email Still Relevant 40 Years On?

Since it’s constantly evolving to serve other purposes other than transmitting messages that concern mundane office tasks, email has become an indispensable tool on which businesses hinge their success.

In fact, online entrepreneurs rely on email marketing to generate leads, retain customers, and increase sales.

When asked about its significance to the growth of eCommerce businesses, John Hayes, marketing strategist, author, and business consultant at iContact, said:

“Email has been around a hell of a long time, pre-dating the Internet as most of us know it and despite new technologies constantly vying for email’s crown – it isn’t going away anytime soon… In fact, I believe we are entering a golden age of email. Much of this is thanks to new regulations like GDPR – which has cleared most of the junk from our inboxes and refocused marketers’ minds on only delivering targeted, relevant and engaging campaigns.” John Hayes, Marketing Strategist, Author, and Business Consultant at iContact

Keeping Your Emails Relevant

Creating personalised email content which addresses the needs of your subscribers is a surefire way to boost customer engagement.

However, it’s also worth considering how your subscribers would want to receive your emails.

After all, this information is just as important as what you’re sending to them.

Since more than 65% of emails are opened on mobile devices, it pays to have an interactive email design that will prompt the recipient to engage with your content.

Google has taken the initiative on this by bringing Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) to Gmail, allowing users to read and take action on their emails without leaving their inbox.

“Inbox technology is also improving our experiences. Gmail for example is making us more productive and (largely) winning the battle against spam (email’s greatest threat) – and we should remember that spammers will never comply with regulations,” John Hayes

Being labelled a spammer is the worst that could happen to you and your business. To prevent this, see to it that you get permission from your subscribers before sending them any of your email campaigns.

Now, suppose you’ve been doing email marketing for quite some time, but your open and click rates remain low, consider splitting up your mailing list and target the most active among your subscribers.

In this podcast, Hayes says email marketing delivers the highest return on investment if you follow the best practices.

“Yes – email might be getting on a bit – but it’s just entering its prime. Here’s to the next 40 years!”John Hayes

Got any questions or concerns about your email campaign? Let us know in the comments below or in our Facebook Group.

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