:

 

"My clients don't read e-mails!"

 

I recently heard this statement from a prospect after suggesting he start a permission-based e-mail campaign to complement his search engine optimization efforts on his website.

 

The prospect's response caught me by surprise because his website was supposedly a source for numerous leads. Since many clients discovered his company while searching the Internet, I figured the chances of them using e-mail as a communication tool were pretty good.

 

Seems logical, right?

 

Well, eventually the prospect acknowledged his clients' indifference toward e-mail was never verified. Instead, he assumed they didn't read e-mails because he didn't like reading e-mails.

 

These types of unwarranted beliefs result in many missed marketing opportunities. How often have you heard statements similar to these ...

 

Direct mail doesn't work anymore.

 

You must spend big bucks to get your website at the top of the search engines.

 

If you e-mail too often, people will label you a "spammer."

 

Social media is a fad only popular with teens and twenty-somethings.

 

Because each marketing situation is unique, the only way you can make an accurate statement about any strategy is to test it yourself. Also, keep in mind, if your first attempt isn't as successful as you imagined, that doesn't mean the strategy won't work.

 

For example, let's go back to e-mail as a marketing tool, since it's a common target for naysayers. One way you can get started in e-mail marketing is to buy a list and then blast out an announcement. You could also send that same announcement to a list you developed yourself using a permission-based approach.

 

Both tactics include elements of e-mail marketing. But one would likely get a much better response than the other.

 

In June, ExactTarget, a provider of software for e-mail communication, published its 2009 Channel Preferences Survey. One finding worth noting is that Internet users' fondness for e-mail is rising.

 

In fact, consumers choose e-mail at a rate of 3-to-1 over any other channel for marketing communications, including text messaging, phone, instant messaging, social media and direct mail.

 

The key, however, is getting permission. One-half of consumers said unsolicited messages were unacceptable, even from companies they did business with regularly -- an increase of 26% over 2008.

 

Please feel free to share this e-mail with the people in your network.

 

Sincerely,

Tom Trush

 

Get more free articles, videos and expert interviews at http://www.writewaysolutions.com/blog. Also, if you have a copywriting or marketing question you need answered, just click reply and your message will come directly to my personal inbox.

 

P.S. You can get a copy of ExactTarget's 2009 Channel Preferences Survey here: http://pages.exacttarget.com/channel.