I’ve talked with several small business owners recently, and found out many are sending mass emails directly from their own email accounts. There are a TON of reasons why this isn’t a good idea.
There may be sending limits
Your email provider may limit the number of emails you can send at one time. Depending on the size of your list, you might have to send your email in multiple batches (ugh, more work). There won’t be a limit with a good email marketing provider like ActiveCampaign or ConvertKit. Email away!
There’s no way to unsubscribe
Sending an email from your standard email provider lacks one SUPER important piece — the ability for the recipient to unsubscribe. If they want off your list but can’t unsubscribe, they might mark you as spam which could hurt your sender reputation. Future emails may not reach the intended target and may be sent directly to the spam folder.
Email marketing providers will make sure you comply with the CAN-SPAM Act — a law that sets the rules for commercial email, establishes requirements for commercial messages, gives recipients the right to have you stop emailing them, and spells out tough penalties for violations.
Not only will you have an unsubscribe link in your footer, you’ll get feedback on why people unsubscribe. It’s a win win for everyone.
You have no idea what’s happening
When you send an email using your standard email service provider, there’s a lot you don’t know such as:
- Who has opened your email (and who hasn’t)
- Who has clicked on a link in your email (and who hasn’t)
- How your emails perform over time
- If someone forwarded the email to a friend (and if so, who)
Email marketing software can give you all of those answers, allowing you to craft better emails that get more opens, clicks and forwards.
You can’t tailor the experience
Email marketing is all about delivering the right message at the right time to the right person. Your standard email provider can’t provide you with a tailored user experience like an email marketing provider can.
Scheduled emails and auto-deliver by timezone
As a small business owner, I often work on my own marketing during off hours. I don’t want to send emails during this time (it’s like texting someone in the middle of the night — rude), but I love being able to schedule emails AND to have them auto-deliver by timezone. This ensures that the emails are delivered when my clients are most likely to read them.
Attempt redelivery (auto resend)
If your recipients don’t open your email the first time, you can attempt to redeliver it with many email marketing platforms.
A/B testing
A/B (or split) testing is a method of comparing two emails to see which one performs better. A slight tweak in a subject line, from name or even email content can help your email perform better (get more opens and more clicks). Many email marketing providers will allow you to create A/B tests so you can learn what works best for you and your audience.
Learn more about A/B testing from ActiveCampaign and ConvertKit.
Reengagement emails
If there are people on your list who are never opening your emails, you could try to reengage them. With many email marketing providers, it’s as simple as creating a group or segment (of people who haven’t opened the past 5, 10 or 20 emails) and then sending them a goodbye email.
Upon receiving a goodbye email, they may open and reengage with you. If they don’t, you can unsubscribe them automatically. Both scenarios are good. In the first, they’ve reengaged and may start utilizing your service again. In the second, you’re not wasting time (or money) sending emails to people who aren’t interested in your services.
Want to learn more about how an email marketing platform can help your business grow? Contact me today.
