Email is so prevalent in American society that most consumers say they’d give up deodorant, coffee, or their significant other for a day rather than go without sending and receiving messages. Email marketing, on the other hand, has its fair share of issues. Chief among them is spam. Unwanted email, pitching everything from mortgages to sexual enhancers to a chance to win the Irish lottery, clogs up in-boxes everywhere. The challenge for email marketers is to avoid the spam label.

Issues aside, email has evolved into one of the most powerful, cost-effective marketing channels. The Direct Marketing Association projects that ROI on email marketing will hit $45.65 for every dollar spent this year, while JupiterResearch reports that email marketing spending will grow to $2.1 billion by 2012, from $1.2 billion in 2007.

There are multiple email marketing formats, the most popular being the e-newsletter. In this mode, marketers create custom content and deliver it via email to customers who request it. Email newsletters are particularly popular with service providers as a way to demonstrate thought leadership. They can also be used to target new customers or maintain a relationship with current customers. A marketer may buy or rent a list of email addresses and send information, often called a blast, hoping to make a connection.

Smart management of this marketing tactic can help build a long-term bond between a company and its customers. With consumers growing increasingly hostile to messages they perceive as spam, it’s important to have a legitimate opt-in practice in place before launching an email marketing campaign. Permission can be secured by having a customer check a box on your Web site. A customer that has already made contact with your company via email might rightfully be considered willing too. Still, companies must be careful not to abuse the relationship. Once tagged as a spammer, it’s hard to lose that label.

Case in Point
Nan Moon, managing partner of the clothing retailer American Joe, uses email in a unique way to give her company a homey, personal feel. Part of her company’s overall marketing strategy revolves around online contests and catalog requests. Whenever a new customer signs up for catalog or enters a contest, Moon sends a personal email thanking the new customer. She sends between 100 and 200 such emails per week, and many customers email her back. “They’re very surprised,” Moon says. “They can’t imagine someone who owns a company would take the time to write them an email. They often want to find out if it’s a scam, an auto-respond or something like that. I have to assure them that I’m a real person and I appreciate their business, and that’s why I’m writing.”

Moon says she doesn’t track how often her email conversations result in sales, but she often receives emails from customers with whom she has corresponded after they’ve purchased an item. “It’s very gratifying,” she notes. One reason Moon continues her email policy is that her target market isn’t what she thought it was. Although her clothing is designed for men ages 25 to 45, she finds that the buyers are often women. “These are women buying for their husbands, their children, their nephews,” Moon points out. “We didn’t realize at first this would be our demographic.” Once it became clear, Moon knew she should keep the email conversation going. “Women do use email to make connections,” she says.

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