March 6, 2013
Missing out on new opportunities or opting for more effective channels? There are two ways to read into the latest data collated by eCircle looking at the adoption of sophisticated targeted email communications.
Stand out statistics read that:
21% of the top 50 retailers did not have an email sign up present on their homepage
42% didn’t send a single email after subscription
Is that because the larger retailers are favouring their social channels to deliver targeted content?
Possibly, but there is a case to say that the wealth of customer data available to these brands as part of their CRM beyond just “email” (on purchase history, purchase frequency, product types, preferences) could be more valuable than a social media connection. So what could be halting brands from pushing the button on more email campaigns?
Data infrastructure
Do all of these retailers really have the data infrastructure in place and an ability to collate and analyse the data collected? Can they actually effectively segment their audience to offer personalised content?
Cost
Sending non targeted blanket emails is certainly a costly exercise if undertaken regularly, particularly with the size of database amassed over years of email marketing. But right now, more than ever, the content needs to be targeted to cut through the mountain of junk we all receive (refer again to point 1 above).
Fostering real communities for loyalty
Email newsletters and the subscriptions to them, were once upon a time seen as the biggest form of digital loyalty. But in the age of social media, real communities are forming. Take Sephora, and their BeautyTalk hub which has had over 165,000 posts contributed by it’s community. Not only that but the community engages with these posts, provides advice and recommendations all within the confines of the Sephora e-commerce site.
Reach
A well engaged post on Facebook can reach hundreds of thousands (even millions of users). If you multiply this by a the number of posts in a month you are talking about some serious Reach. To achieve this level of reach in email, you would a) be spending quite heavily (see above) and b) pee a lot of people off! The truth is we are more susceptible to receiving regular posts from brands on social media, and the same frequency of emails is quite frankly just SPAM.
Whilst there is clearly still value in email communications, particularly sophisticated personalised messages, you have to ask yourself what some of these stats really mean?
Infographic courtesy of eCircle, A Teradata Company, Top 50 UK retailers (according to Hitwise) failing to take advantage of the benefits of email marketing.