Email marketing is a tried and tested way of building stronger customer relationships, boosting sales, and building a brand, but when a crisis hits, all of our existing strategies go straight out of the window. In this article, we’re going to look at how you can adapt your current email marketing strategy for the Covid-19 pandemic.
Any type of marketing is challenging when there is a crisis happening. The last thing any brand wants to do is alienate their customers by sending out superficial emails not relevant to their situation. This type of behaviour can irreparably damage a brand’s reputation and could make it harder to bounce back when the pandemic passes, at a time when the brand needs all the customers they can get.
Also See: Best Grammarly Alternative
Focus on the Customer
Marketing should always be about the customer. However, it’s very important to focus even more on the customer during a pandemic like Covid-19. This is not business as usual, so think carefully about what your customers want and need during this crisis.
There are two approaches you can take in your emails. The first is to provide useful information, such as details of your new opening times or order protocols. The second is to offer some light reading designed to take your customer’s minds off their problems.
Think about how you can help the customer. Do you stock products they might need now more than ever? Always try to be helpful if possible, as erroneous emails will most likely be ignored or labelled as spam.
Craft an Appropriate Subject Line for Email Marketing
Since the subject line usually dictates whether a customer opens the email or not, but a lot of care into yours. Be honest. Don’t imply an email contains helpful information when it’s a sales offer. If the email is about one specific topic, make it clear in the subject line. If the message is more general, ditto.
Also See: Best Online Courses Website
Send Fewer Emails
Brands often send several emails a week, some even send daily emails. During a crisis like Covid-19, it’s better to send fewer emails rather than spamming your customers’ inboxes. Only send a marketing email if it’s absolutely necessary. If customers think you are spamming them with junk emails, they’ll block you and ask to unsubscribe. This is exactly what you don’t want to happen.
Use your email marketing as an opportunity to act responsibly and treat your customers with respect. They’ll thank you in the long-run.
If email marketing has been taking a back seat up to now, perhaps it’s time to prioritize it over other forms of marketing. Instead of publishing leaflets and posting them to customers, cut costs and email newsletters instead. There are a number of email marketing software solutions that can make life easier, which is handy when your staff are all working from home during the lockdown. Comparisons like PieSync’s are worth reading if you’re struggling to decide between MailChimp and SendInBlue. Piesync’s blog also has a lot of other useful posts on SEO-related topics.
Email marketing is easy to implement during a crisis, as it can be done from anywhere, but use this tool wisely and remember, how you behave now will dictate how well your brand weathers the storm.