Email Marketing Is More Important Than Ever

By ELIZABETH JACOBI | Special to the Palisadian-Post

The best part of frequenting businesses in Pacific Palisades—or really any small town, for that matter—is the one-to-one interaction you have with business owners and employees.

Customers love when you remember their name, the friendly hug, the call about a sale or just entering to say hello when out for a morning walk. After all, everyone wants to visit their “Cheers,” where everyone knows your name.

Local businesses often rely on that human connection for customer retention. Today, these connections are less frequent and are being done behind masks at six feet.

No marketing in the world will ever replace the in-person relationship. However, email marketing is a close second for connecting and retaining

customers. Today, email marketing is more important than ever for small local businesses.

Email marketing is the only digital marketing channel with a guaranteed way to reach your customers. It is a real, one-to-one relationship.

It is often said that for every dollar a business spends on email marketing, there is a $38 return. It is also the most cost-effective marketing tool.

For those in the e-commerce space, you can directly attribute sales to the email click and better tailor future emails based on what subscribers want. For those who have a shop or a restaurant, you can measure success by tying it to your point of sale or reservation system.

Email marketing subscribers expect personalized emails. Email marketing ensures that you can quickly communicate with customers about your daily specials, sales, private shopping or virtual events.

You also know precisely which of your customers you were able to reach. The same is not true of social media.

Suppose you are an e-commerce business that utilizes email. In that case, you know what products your customers buy or are interested in buying. Sending an email with the items that are of most interest often results in a sale.

For businesses that historically had more foot traffic, email is a great way to engage with customers now. So many small businesses that didn’t utilize online shopping have needed to pivot to that today. Even bakeries and coffee places encourage online ordering for contactless payment, and email is the best way to communicate this to your customers.

For restaurants, email marketing not only allows you to advertise your weekly specials, but may also inform your best customers about last-minute reservations. You may have a store that is now open, but you also offer virtual shopping or private shopping appointments. Maybe your business is classes or events, and now you are going virtual.

And, of course, don’t forget to thank people for supporting you. There is nothing better than leaving a shop or restaurant and getting a “thank you” email. Again, it is all about that one-to-one connection.

Tips for getting started with email marketing:

Mailchimp has a free plan. You will get more from the paid version, but you have to start somewhere.

Communication is more important than ever today, so build a solid communications strategy.

Start collecting emails: You don’t need to do it the pen and paper way, as there are many contactless ways.

Learn online: We have a couple of on-demand classes that are free for Palisades businesses.

Lastly, make sure you are sending emails frequently for your business. Everyone wants to support small businesses today; communication is vital.

If you are a customer, sign up for the emails from the businesses you frequent.

Elizabeth grew up in the Palisades and is the owner of MochaBear Marketing. She can be reached at elizabeth@mochabearmarketing.com.