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7 Ways to Combine Social Media With E-mail to Reach the Professional Tradesman

by tradesmeninsights | Apr 20, 2009 | Marketing Tips, Marketing Trends, Social Marketing

email-vs-social-media_id13991621_size485E-mails have been around and we’ve used it to asked tradesmen to forward on valuable information to their peers about our products or programs. It’s not easy and isn’t reliable because you’re asking the customer to do a lot of work on your behalf. E-mail is also a one-way street in that you don’t make it easy to respond back to the original source.

Joint research by Ball State University,Exact Target and e-mail networking association reveals that more than 46% of e-mail marketing campaigns this year will use social media and e-mail in tandem  compared to just 13% in 2008.

E-mail combined with social media offerings like Linked-in, Facebook and Twitter allow you to get your message out quicker to more people and give them an easy way to reply. In other words you’re engaging them and that’s why social media is so important. By clicking a link, you are sharing content with influencers that you might not have had reached.

I read a post recently from Karen Bannan, Combining e-mail with social media,where she shared thoughts from Ryan Duetsch from StrongMail Systems on ways to get the most out of your efforts.

  1. Use ESPs. Most major ESPs (like StrongMail and Sliverpop) and e-mail providers are making it easy to send e-mails directly to your Facebook page for example.
  2. Create your own social network. Create your own community. If you’re targeting professional plumbers for example, the discussions that go on provide great resources for e-newsletters. You know what the hot topics are and can address them as an expert.
  3. Add opt-in links to all your marketing collateral. For example, if you post a new video on Facebook, make sure it contains a link at the end so viewers can opt-in. Once it’s shared, you’ll be reaching thousands of prospects making sure you give them a way to ask for more information.
  4. Use your status to publicize your e-mail newsletter. Facebook, Linkedin and Twitter give users the option to publish information. Take advantage of this and even send out a reminder before you actually send out the e-mail that it’s coming.
  5. Change your layout. If you’re sending people from a social media site to your web site, make sure your opt-in links are very visible.
  6. Use search functions. Follow your company and brand names on Facebook, Linkedin and Twitter to gain market knowledge. Twitter search lets you follow everything that’s mentioned about your company.
  7. Be a Joiner. You need to get involved. You want to become a trusted source, and in order to do that, you need to join Linkedin groups, respond to questions and get involved in discussions.

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Five Ways for Manufacturers to Improve E-mail Marketing to Tradesmen

by tradesmeninsights | Mar 31, 2009 | Marketing Tips

In their marketing to tradesmen, manufacturers are always looking for cost-effective ways to reach out to both existing and potential new customers. E-mail marketing is one tool that can do both.

E-mailManufacturers who sell through a distribution channel have the most difficult challenge in that they sell their product to a middle man, who in turns sells it to the ultimate end user. Distributors for the most part are very protective of their customer list, so the challenge for the manufacturers is to get their names.

One way is to use product warranty or registration forms to develop a database. This also helps you segment your list for addressing specific issues, either on the product or industry application.

Other ways of generating e-mail addresses is to sponsor e-newsletters from trade publications, inquiries from your web site and trade advertising, as well as trade show and distributor open houses and counter day promotions. A note: when having someone fill out a form, make sure somewhere on it you have them OK (opt-in) so you can send them stuff via e-mail.

Research from Datran Media shows e-mail is still important:

  • Driving incremental sales
  • Reinforcing a company’s brand position
  • Improving customer relations

I read an article from GlobalSpec that outlines ways you can improve your e-mail marketing. Here are some highlights from the article:

  1. Manage your list. You need to segment and grow your opt-in list. We talked a little about ways above on how you can do both. The key here is to make sure we have permission to e-mail to them. The last thing you want is to be black-listed because of spam.
  2. Be relevant. Don’t say something for the sake of saying it. We talked above about segmenting your list. One of the reasons is so you can talk specifics about a product or process that is relevant to the reader.
  3. Deliver on your promises. If you say you’re going to put out a monthly newsletter, you’d better deliver. There are no right or wrong answers on frequency other than being consistent. Unless your products or services change often, I’d suggest starting  them quarterly.
  4. Use e-mail to generate leads and sales. Even if you don’t have new products coming out, you can use white papers or case studies to generate interest.
  5. Look beyond your own list. Partner with respected third parties in your industry to expand your reach.

Read the entire article: Five Practical Ways to Improve E-mail Marketing

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