7 Reasons to Create an Email Marketing Strategy
Find out how to use email newsletters to strengthen and grow your business
If you’re after a simple, effective and relatively low-cost way to connect with your target market and ultimately grow your business, it’s worth spending time on an email marketing strategy. Not convinced? Here are seven things you can do with regular email newsletters to market your brand.
2. Get Feedback From Customers
It pays to know what your existing and past clients think about your service or their renovation projects in general, and an email is a good way to obtain this information.
“You can share a survey, which will help you learn what your audience wants from you and enable you to adjust your strategy if needed,” Roux-Michollet says. “People sometimes don’t have time to give feedback over the phone, but might have time to do a quick survey while on a commute, for example.”
You could include more than potential clients on your mailing list, interior designer Yoko Kloeden says. “We also have quite a lot of collaborators on our list. They could be anyone we work with — photographers, journalists or suppliers. We can keep the relationship via our monthly newsletters, and they are often the first ones to congratulate us on new projects or publications, which is very sweet.”
Surefire Ways to Get Clients to Review Your Business
It pays to know what your existing and past clients think about your service or their renovation projects in general, and an email is a good way to obtain this information.
“You can share a survey, which will help you learn what your audience wants from you and enable you to adjust your strategy if needed,” Roux-Michollet says. “People sometimes don’t have time to give feedback over the phone, but might have time to do a quick survey while on a commute, for example.”
You could include more than potential clients on your mailing list, interior designer Yoko Kloeden says. “We also have quite a lot of collaborators on our list. They could be anyone we work with — photographers, journalists or suppliers. We can keep the relationship via our monthly newsletters, and they are often the first ones to congratulate us on new projects or publications, which is very sweet.”
Surefire Ways to Get Clients to Review Your Business
3. Build a Relationship With Potential Clients
A regular email provides an opportunity to communicate with your target audience and grow their trust. You can do this by including content that’s genuinely useful for the recipient, rather than directly advertising your firm.
“I guess the fundamental reason for us to produce a newsletter is to keep us, the lovely homes we design, and our skills and experience in the minds of our recipients,” says Cat Hoad of Absolute Project Management, who sends an email newsletter to past and current clients, friends, suppliers, contacts and collaborators.
“There are loads of different types of content you can use in email marketing,” Roux-Michollet says. “These can include useful industry articles, trends, business information, short videos or photos from past projects. Sometimes the easiest is the simplest.”
How to Produce a Compelling Newsletter for Your Business
A regular email provides an opportunity to communicate with your target audience and grow their trust. You can do this by including content that’s genuinely useful for the recipient, rather than directly advertising your firm.
“I guess the fundamental reason for us to produce a newsletter is to keep us, the lovely homes we design, and our skills and experience in the minds of our recipients,” says Cat Hoad of Absolute Project Management, who sends an email newsletter to past and current clients, friends, suppliers, contacts and collaborators.
“There are loads of different types of content you can use in email marketing,” Roux-Michollet says. “These can include useful industry articles, trends, business information, short videos or photos from past projects. Sometimes the easiest is the simplest.”
How to Produce a Compelling Newsletter for Your Business
4. Generate Traffic to Your Website or Houzz Profile
Your online profile is where potential clients can find information about your service, prices, past projects and contact details, and an email marketing campaign is a valuable channel for directing clients there.
“If you want your audience to visit your website or Houzz profile, then make sure you link to the URL in your email campaign,” Roux-Michollet says. “You’ll also be able to see data about these visits in your website metrics.”
If you create your email newsletters through the Houzz Pro email marketing tool, you can easily track their performance on your dashboard.
Learn about Houzz Pro software
Your online profile is where potential clients can find information about your service, prices, past projects and contact details, and an email marketing campaign is a valuable channel for directing clients there.
“If you want your audience to visit your website or Houzz profile, then make sure you link to the URL in your email campaign,” Roux-Michollet says. “You’ll also be able to see data about these visits in your website metrics.”
If you create your email newsletters through the Houzz Pro email marketing tool, you can easily track their performance on your dashboard.
Learn about Houzz Pro software
5. Increase Leads
You can use email marketing to increase your bank of potential leads by encouraging people to sign up to your newsletter. They might not convert into clients immediately, but by communicating regularly, you’ll build a relationship for when they do need to hire someone for their renovation project.
“Word of mouth is still very significant in the design and renovation industry, so treat all your clients in the knowledge they could talk about your services to at least three people,” Roux-Michollet says. “Clients can refer their peers, friends or family, so if these people can sign up to your newsletter, this will increase your leads and potentially your future clients’ list.”
“I’m not sure it’s been a direct route for converting leads,” Hoad says, “but I’m sure recipients are reminded of who we are, so if they want some renovation or interior design advice, or have friends or colleagues who do, we are ‘front of mind.’”
“Some people sign up on our email list before they purchase their homes and contact us once they’re ready,” Kloeden says. “Quite often, this can take more than a year and, during that time, we can keep the relationship going and keep us fresh in their minds with our news and updates.”
5 of the Best Tips for Turning Leads Into Clients
You can use email marketing to increase your bank of potential leads by encouraging people to sign up to your newsletter. They might not convert into clients immediately, but by communicating regularly, you’ll build a relationship for when they do need to hire someone for their renovation project.
“Word of mouth is still very significant in the design and renovation industry, so treat all your clients in the knowledge they could talk about your services to at least three people,” Roux-Michollet says. “Clients can refer their peers, friends or family, so if these people can sign up to your newsletter, this will increase your leads and potentially your future clients’ list.”
“I’m not sure it’s been a direct route for converting leads,” Hoad says, “but I’m sure recipients are reminded of who we are, so if they want some renovation or interior design advice, or have friends or colleagues who do, we are ‘front of mind.’”
“Some people sign up on our email list before they purchase their homes and contact us once they’re ready,” Kloeden says. “Quite often, this can take more than a year and, during that time, we can keep the relationship going and keep us fresh in their minds with our news and updates.”
5 of the Best Tips for Turning Leads Into Clients
6. Reduce Marketing Costs
The time you spend on your email marketing will save on other forms of advertising. “You don’t need to use paper promotion or advertise in magazines anymore,” Roux-Michollet says. “Everything can be done through email and online without spending money on ads. You can use email marketing to advertise your services and offers, present your projects with photos and videos, and include testimonials.”
“It’s a fair amount of work to put together but surprisingly satisfying and heartening to have a summary of what we’ve done,” Hoad says. “It’s a reminder of all we’ve achieved, as sometimes it’s so busy, we don’t actually focus on what we’ve done, just what we’re doing.”
3 Marketing Tasks to Spend Time On — and 3 to Ditch
The time you spend on your email marketing will save on other forms of advertising. “You don’t need to use paper promotion or advertise in magazines anymore,” Roux-Michollet says. “Everything can be done through email and online without spending money on ads. You can use email marketing to advertise your services and offers, present your projects with photos and videos, and include testimonials.”
“It’s a fair amount of work to put together but surprisingly satisfying and heartening to have a summary of what we’ve done,” Hoad says. “It’s a reminder of all we’ve achieved, as sometimes it’s so busy, we don’t actually focus on what we’ve done, just what we’re doing.”
3 Marketing Tasks to Spend Time On — and 3 to Ditch
7. Educate Your Audience on Your Work, Pricing and Services
Use your email marketing campaigns to inform your prospects about your business — how much they’ll pay and what your work involves, for example. The key here, however, is to provide this information as a complement to the useful, informative content in the email, as that’s what you’ll be using to engage and build trust with your audience.
“Generally, we have people sign up through our social media or by ticking an opt-in box in the contact form on our website,” Kloeden says. “People who contact us through our website are already ready and emails are an efficient way to introduce them to our services and case studies. It’s definitely working for us.”
Tell us: Do you have an email marketing strategy, or are you planning to start one? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
More for Pros on Houzz
Read more stories for pros
Browse millions of photos for inspiration
Learn about Houzz Pro software
Talk with your peers in the Houzz Pro Forum
Use your email marketing campaigns to inform your prospects about your business — how much they’ll pay and what your work involves, for example. The key here, however, is to provide this information as a complement to the useful, informative content in the email, as that’s what you’ll be using to engage and build trust with your audience.
“Generally, we have people sign up through our social media or by ticking an opt-in box in the contact form on our website,” Kloeden says. “People who contact us through our website are already ready and emails are an efficient way to introduce them to our services and case studies. It’s definitely working for us.”
Tell us: Do you have an email marketing strategy, or are you planning to start one? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
More for Pros on Houzz
Read more stories for pros
Browse millions of photos for inspiration
Learn about Houzz Pro software
Talk with your peers in the Houzz Pro Forum
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Email marketing is a great way to communicate with a specific part of your target market, says Houzz senior lifecycle marketing manager Camille Roux-Michollet. “For example, if some clients are reluctant to start a project, send them an email with a time-limited offer, or photos of past projects with testimonials.”
“Another example could be to target clients that you’ve just met during a trade show,” Roux-Michollet says. “Send a follow-up email — people care about receiving something personalized.
“You could also target your audience based on their geographic localization or target them based on their needs, such as if they’re planning a bathroom or kitchen renovation,” she says. “Having a specific ‘audience group’ that we call a ‘segment’ can boost your personalization, your engagement and, ultimately, your conversion.”
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