Email Marketing is a powerful tool used by event planners worldwide. Amongst several marketing tools available, email marketing is an ideal choice to reach audiences for several reasons, including:
- High ROI: Email has the highest Return on Investment (ROI) of any marketing channel; its average ROI is 28.5%.
- Affordability: When compared to other marketing channels, email marketing is by far the most affordable option. Cost per conversion (CPC) is less than pennies per message and you can reach a large number of potential participants.
- Ease of measuring: Various tools on the internet can help you measure your performance. Total opens, click-through rate, bounce rate and email conversions are the variables that you can measure easily.
In such intense email traffic, it is very difficult to convert your emails to actual event participants. Creating a strong email marketing strategy helps you to reach your potential event audience, and here are a few tips that might just do the trick:
Segment Your Campaign:
Emails are more powerful when they specifically relate to the receiver. Effectively segmenting your email marketing data is key to event marketing success. There are several ways one can segment an email database, and there are major factors event marketers should always keep in mind. Some of these include:
- Industry
- Job Title
- Geographic Region
You will be amazed when you notice how quickly the conversions increase when you have hit the appropriate email in the segment you've specified.
Personalize your Emails:
Personalization is an integral part of a modern marketing approach yet 60% of marketers admit they are challenged to personalize content in real-time. Research from eConsultancy found that only 5% of companies across all industries personalize email extensively. Build customer personas, use the recipient's first name in the subject line, send from a real person and include an email signature. The calculation is simple: The more personalized email you send, the more response you get!
Use an Engaging Video:
Attract a great deal of attention from your recipients with a creative video showcasing the best things to expect from the event. You can show your list of special guests or speakers. The video should be short and interesting so that it can excite your potential participants' attention.
Put Call to Action:
Send your well-designed email with a strong call to action. This method increases your chance of getting more conversions from your email campaign.
Offer Early-Bird Discount:
Early bird discounts are one of the best promotional methods for an event. Incentivize your potential participants with an early-bird discount. Set a clear deadline, and prepare your email. A couple of days before your deadline; send another email with a catchy subject line such as: 'Last Minute Chance!'.
Use Short Subject Lines:
Subject lines need to quickly grab the recipient's attention. According to research, emails with subject lines less than 10 characters long had open rates of 49%.
Be Careful About Timing:
Timing is one of the most important points to consider for your email performance. Decide the starting date of the email campaign, the frequency and the hours that you will send it to your potential participants. Do your research and make sure you're sending out your emails at just the right time.