The result of this study may not answer all the pressing email marketing questions, but it will help us go multiple yards closer to creating the ultimate e-mail marketing message. The study was conducted by taking a sample size of more than 1100 email marketers. Let’s go direct to the results and see what you should do to make your email messages convert better.

81% of the respondents said that they collect and use personal name of the subscribers, whereas another 17% said that they do collect subscribers’ names but do not use it. Personalizing mail by greeting subscribers by their first name appears to be the most important tactics.

Expert email marketers also use data like lead source, company name, subscribers’ role in the company, etc., to make the e-mail message more relevant. See image below for the complete data.

So what are you planning to include? Let me know what tactics you use for personalization of email messages? I am waiting eagerly to hear from you.

How is email marketing perceived at the time of budget? And does maturity phase have anything to do with the perception a company has about email marketing?

These are the questions many online marketers are struggling with, as this knowledge will help them grow their business. To answer this question, MarketingSherpa has conducted a study titled MarketingSherpa Email Marketing Benchmark Survey by taking a sample size of more than 1,100 marketers.

The study result showed that only 38% have said that the company seemed in favor of increasing the email marketing budget in the strategic phase, as they see value in it. But this enthusiasm was not seen in transition and trail phase.

The percentage of marketers who showed reluctance to increase the budget (yet did so) in maturity phase was 38%, in trial phase this percentage shoots up to 41, and in transition phase this percentage was highest (43%).

Total percentage of marketers who refused to invest in email marketing in maturity phase was 24%, and 38% refused to give any money in transition phase, whereas, 40% reflected negative vibes in trial phase (see image).

As per the study, the decision makers seemed to be divided in their views on email marketing expenditure, but the data suggested that more and more people are willing to embrace it. It’s a piece of good news for the industry.

Q. Does your organization have a separate line item for email marketing in the budget?

The answer to this has unearthed the place of email marketing in a budget document. Finding it was important to see if email marketing is given due weight or not.

47% of total respondents said that e-mail marketing is not listed separately in the budget, whereas, 32% said that it is explicitly mentioned as a line within interactive marketing budget. 13% said that it is mentioned within CRM, or customer services heading, while 9% said it is mentioned under lead generation heading. (See image).

What all these mean?

Finding it was important because the place of email marketing in the budget document suggests how a company perceives it, and how much budget is going to be appropriated to it. For example, a company may invest more in email marketing if it sees it as a lead generation tool, but the company may pump in less cash, if it is seen as just another marketing channel. In this case, the company may decide to cut on some other channel to fuel email marketing, or vice versa.

This knowledge was therefore important. It was not mere of academic interest.

Thankfully MarketingSherpa, a leading online marketing agency has come up with a survey report that more or less provides an authoritative answer to this question, both for B2C (business to consumer) and B2B (business to business) environment.

The survey titled MarketingSherpa’s Email Marketing Benchmark Survey revealed that 25% recipients in B2C segment open e-mail newsletter, 14% of the total recipients click on the link given inside it, and 4% of them act upon them.

The scene does not look much different in B2B setting as well. Newsletter open-rate in B2B setting is 23%, which is mere 2% less than that of B2C segment; newsletter clickthrough –rate is 11%, which is 3% less than that of B2C segment; and 3% of the total recipients in B2b market works upon it, which is mere 1% less than B2C segment. (See image).

If we compare the conversion rate of email newsletter with that of direct mailers, which is at best 1-2%, then we will see how effective the medium is.

In this article, I am going to share some “too-obvious-to-notice” e-mail marketing tips that will help you maximize your ROI.

3 E-mail marketing ROI maximization tip

Do not sell what you don’t trust

Selling crap is the fastest way to push audience towards the “Unsubscribe” link. You should not push the products to your list that you have not used, or you have not seen other using it. If you are not sure about the success of a product then do not push it.

Alternatively, you can do a research to find out how the product has worked for the people who have used it. If you are still not sure, but want to push the product as it is backed by some big shot then write so in the mail. Tell your users that you have not used it, but you think it is good, and provide the reason why you think so.

Be honest

We have been told many times in our schools that honesty is the best policy, but seeing the world around, we found it hard to believe. It is time now to believe that maxim, and even to adopt it. In fact, there is no other way to make a killing through e-mail campaign than being honest with your list. Start selling lie, and soon you will have a list of absolute zero subscriber.

Build expectation and stand true to it

At the time of subscribing, or before they get the first mail, your subscribers should know about the frequency of the mails they will receive. You can also talk about the quality of the mails. Building expectation does not end here. It continues to build up with the mails you sent out in the first week. Afterward it is about meeting that expectation.

These are the things that you must care about should you wish to increase ROI of your e-mail campaign. An e-mail campaign, when done right, will significantly boost your profit.