Email marketing is a tough sport. Its the rock climbing of internet marketing.
Getting ahead (of the competition) takes constant learning to stay ahead of the curve, and personalization techniques to differentiate yourself from the competition. For the former, add MarketingResourceIndex to your RSS feed. For the latter—keep reading.
Email marketing surveys have shown that segmentation via personalization and differentiation can increase your click-throughs by up to 50%. So, the best way to get started personalizing your email marketing campaign is by segmenting your email list into different groups. By doing this you create lists that allow for deep personalization, because they have been sorted into like-minded groups and individuals.
So, without further ado–here are 5 segmentation techniques to get you started in personalizing your emails:
Segmentation by Geographic/Regional Area
People love, and are proud of, where they are from. Play to that by segmenting your list by geographic region, and include terminology and location-based information within their zone. This can be done easily be referencing area events, famed community members, weather events, etc. This little bit of personalization goes a long way.
When to segment geographically:
- When hosting/advertising for local or geographic-based events
- When your product has a strong connection to a specific town or state, example: Michigan state-wide lawn care or Cincinnati-area event promotion
- When your company only operates within, or is limited by, certain geographic locations
Segmentation by Industry/Vertical/Role
If you are email marketing B2B then recognizing specific industries, verticals and roles is critical. If your email list doesn’t include different industries and roles then you’re really just throwing spaghetti at the wall and hoping something sticks. To give you an example of the difference between them, for an IT Software Manager, their industry is IT, their vertical is software and their role manager.
- When to segment by industry/vertical/role:
- When your sales pitch varies depending on the role
- When you a pitching multiple products
- When you have different websites or content for specific roles or verticals
Segmentation by Content/Interests
Not everyone will interact with your content and website in the same way. Some people might be more interested in news and events, others in whitepapers, and still others in downloadable content. Keep track of which users are interested in what type of content; this will give you an idea of what updates they will likely click-through from an email blast.
Keeping track of this as time goes on might be a little time consuming but it will make your lead nurturing and progression through the sales cycle much easier. If you don’t have an email marketing or CRM tool to plug this data into then consider getting one ASAP—then integrate your sales department into it. Consider adding a short questionnaire for future people signing up to your email list, asking them what exactly they are interested in.
When to segment by content/interest:
- When your email target has downloaded or showed prior interest in a specific type of content
- If your email recipients signed up for a specific type of content
Segmentation by Behaviour
Not everyone on your list will have the same background on your site/company knowledge; one new visitor may have looked at your entire website, downloaded content, and be interested in new products/services being offered, while another might have only looked at a page or two but still be interested in being sent more information periodically. You don’t want to send emails with website copy to the first group, so you need to keep track of their behaviour on your website. This requires having a reasonably powerful analytical tool in place to determine the browsing behaviour of different groups.
When to segment by behaviour:
- If you have, or will have, an analytical tool in use
- If you have both new visitors and more-seasoned users on your list(s)
Segmentation by Brand Advocacy/Customer Status
Recognizing which users are heavy content users, good customers, and brand advocates is important. Rewarding your best advocates and top customers is crucial to continued success, so make a list of these and send out special benefits email blasts. This can be something exclusive like exclusive content/whitepapers/discounts, a simple thank you, advanced notice of upcoming products or sales, requests for feedback, or any other type of recognition of their work on your behalf.
When to segment by Advocacy Status:
- If your email list includes social media fans who regularly comment, share or spread your content, frequent buyers, customers making recommendations about you to their circle, and non-customers who have made positive mentions of your brand
Personalization through segmentation is sticky business, but the above 5 tips will get you well on your way. If you put in the effort to implement the above, and continue to learn about segmentation, personalization and differentiating tips then your click-through rates will grow steadily.
To keep abreast of new tips, tricks and email marketing developments, bookmark our Email Marketing page.
Robin Wilding is a professionally trained Canadian journalist striving to bring journalistic-era intergity to online media. She has a second degree in Political Science--with a focus on International Relations and the developing world. Currently Robin is a contributor to several technology publications, including Brajeshwar.com, SocialTechnologyReview.com, HostingIndustryWatch.com, AnimationCareerReview.com and CompareBusinessProducts.com. She also works for several web developers; and does ghost writing for several high level executives within the technology sector. Robin's work is showcased in her portfolio: http://shownd.com/robinwilding
