If you've ever wondered if email marketing is capable of generating high-quality leads, rest assured that the answer is an emphatic "yes." Regardless of the popularity of other platforms, people seem to always return to good ol' faithful email at the end of the day.
But why does email marketing work, and how can you master the art of email lead generation? Here, we'll explain everything you need to know to leverage your email campaigns for more leads and higher revenue.
With social media marketing taking up so much of the spotlight (TikTok challenges, Twitter trends, and Instagram updates, oh my!), it can be easy to forget about the power of email marketing. After all, the first email ever was sent in 1971 — it isn't exactly a new and exciting technology.
But despite that, it continues to be a widely used technology that plays an integral role in many people's daily lives. In 2020, the number of global email users broke the 4 billion mark, or over half of the world population. By 2025, that number is expected to increase to a total of 4.5 billion:
Email is even more prevalent in the U.S. specifically, with over 90 percent of Americans using email and consumers reportedly spending around five hours checking email per day.
Therein lies the source of email marketing's strength: While it may not be new or cutting-edge, the majority of your potential customers are using it multiple times per day.
So if it's new leads you're looking for (and who isn't?), then you can't afford to ignore email's nearly unparalleled reach.
It's time to get down to business — here's how you can use email marketing to generate new leads.
The first step to any successful email marketing campaign is encouraging people to actually sign up for your email list in the first place. One of the best ways to do this is with an attractive, easy-to-use opt-in form.
When creating or improving yours:
If you want your email open rates to be as high as possible, then you need your subject lines to be exceptional.
You can ensure they are by:
In order for an email list subscriber to become a qualified lead, they'll need to take action. That's where a polished call to action (CTA) comes in.
By making it clear what recipients can do to solve their problem, learn more information, or gain access to gated content, you'll increase their chances of clicking on your CTA.
For instance, an effective CTA for your email might be something like:
But remember, it's always better to use A/B testing to determine the best CTA for your unique audience than to simply go with your gut.
Even if recipients don't feel like clicking on your CTA, they may be more inclined to follow your Twitter account or give your brand's Facebook page a "like."
So, you'd be wise to promote your social channels within your marketing emails. Nothing too over-the-top — a few well-placed social buttons should do the trick.
Hint: If your emails contain quotable bits of text, you can even include a subtle "Tweet this" button wherever it makes sense to do so.
Your email list subscribers have given you something valuable in the form of their name, email address, and (potential) business, so you need to return the favor by providing them with something genuinely valuable in return.
That means no fluff and no half-hearted content. Instead:
Does growing your email list, generating more high-quality leads, and making more sales sound good? We thought so. In that case, you'll want to try incentivizing email referrals.
It works like this: Your existing subscribers tell their friends to sign up for your email lists. When their friends do so, both your existing subscribers and the people they've referred get something in return.
Not sure what that something should be? Foolproof choices include:
No matter what the offer is, your recipients will surely be more willing to refer friends if there's an enticing reward on the table.
And remember, there's no such thing as the perfect email marketing campaign — your recipients' tastes will inevitably change over time, so your tactics will need to change with them.
But as long as you're consistently offering value, high-quality content, and tempting incentives, you can turn your email marketing efforts into fresh new leads.