The Importance of Building an Email List and Nurturing Subscribers

Email marketing is something that a lot of business owners undervalue. The sheer amount of daily emails that flood our inboxes makes you think it's not even worth creating email sequences and adding subscribers, but that's wrong. When set up correctly, email marketing can be a massive benefit to your brand. 

You own the Data

Perhaps the most compelling advantage of email marketing is data, unlike social media networks, which can revoke your access tomorrow. On social media, you can also not download the data and export it to utilize it for other marketing strategies, but your subscriber list remains an asset you possess.  

Remarketing 

As mentioned before, since you can download your subscriber's contact information (name, email, phone number, etc.) depending on what information you collect at the beginning, it's a gateway to personalized remarketing opportunities.

What does that mean?

You can set up ads on Facebook and upload your custom data to the platform. Based on the contact information (name, phone number, email) you asked for when the subscriber subscribed to your email, Facebook, for instance, and also put in layman's terms, will find those users on their platforms to show them your ads. You are not only sending them emails but also directing your ads specifically to individuals who've already shown interest in your brand and product, thereby increasing the likelihood of engagement.

Especially nowadays, where cookies and tracking are becoming more challenging, having access to first-party data can help increase your ROI. 

Increasing brand recall 

Consistency is key in the digital world. Regularly delivering value-filled emails ensures your brand remains a familiar and welcomed presence in your subscribers' inboxes. This isn't about bombarding them but about providing content that resonates, informs, or entertains.

Email Automation 

When it comes to email marketing, automation is going to be your friend. The last thing you want to do is sit on your computer every day typing emails. No. You want to create different email sequences based on your audience's behavior. A new subscriber might be greeted with a warm 'welcome sequence,' gradually introducing them to your brand. Their interactions with these emails can then determine their journey through subsequent sequences. It's about nurturing a relationship, not just sending messages. 

If someone buys one of your products online, this could place the subscriber in a different workflow to upsell them another product.

Segmentation

The beauty of email marketing is that you can be as granular as you want. You can segment your email subscribers into distinct categories – age, location, or buying behavior. Segmenting your subscribers will enable you to craft hyper-targeted content. This isn't just about addressing them by their first name; it's about resonating with their unique needs, interests, and pain points. By serving content that aligns with individual subscriber profiles, you're not just marketing; you're building rapport.

Direct Line of Communication

Unlike the nature of social media posts that might be buried under a mountain of new content within minutes, emails reside in a subscriber's inbox. According to a study online, 99% of email users check their email every day, some as much as 20 times a day! It's often the first thing people do online; 58% of users check their email before they check out social media or the news. This provides a direct, often uninterrupted line of communication between your brand and your audience.

Tip: You have to stand out in a crowded inbox, and you can achieve this by crafting subject lines that evoke an emotion or speak to someone's pain points. An effective technique is to prefix your subject lines with "RE:" implying "regarding" or "response to ."For example, you can say "RE: Your recent purchase" or "RE: Vacation booking". While it suggests familiarity, the reality is that these customers did not purchase anything from you, but you want to make it seem they did. This can encourage the receiver to open your email and engage with the content. Word of caution: use this tactic thoughtfully to ensure genuine engagement without compromising credibility.

Cost-Effective Marketing Tool

Email marketing often has a higher ROI compared to other digital marketing strategies because it's relatively low cost, especially when considering the potential reach and the granularity of targeting, it offers significant bang for the buck.

Cultivating Trust and Brand Loyalty

Nurturing subscribers through consistent, valuable content fosters trust. You know I am all about building credibility and positioning yourself as an expert in your niche. Over time, this trust translates into brand loyalty, turning subscribers into long-term customers and even brand advocates.

Higher Conversion Rates

Emails, especially those tailored to the recipient's behaviors and preferences, typically have higher conversion rates than cold outreach methods. The personalized touch makes the recipient feel valued and understood.

Especially cart abandoned emails are super helpful in increasing conversion rates because they are triggered when someone leaves something in their shopping basket but does not check out. A friendly "looks like you forgot something" reminder in your customer's inbox can go a long way. 

Ability to Test and Tweak

Email marketing platforms offer robust analytics. You can track open rates, click-through rates, and conversion rates, allowing you to test different approaches (like subject lines, copy, creatives, or call-to-action placements) and refine your strategy based on real data.

Fostering a Sense of Community

Regular newsletters or updates can help create a community feel around your brand. Special offers, behind-the-scenes peeks, or subscriber-only content can make subscribers feel like they're part of an exclusive club.

Reducing Dependency on Third-party Platforms

Over-reliance on any single platform is risky. Algorithm changes, platform policies, or even unexpected shutdowns can drastically affect visibility and reach. Creating your own email list reduces this dependency, ensuring that you always have a direct way to reach your core audience.