How can I add more value to my email marketing campaigns?
I'm a portrait photographer, specialising in maternity and newborn, children (and families for repeat clients) and I'm not sure what to do with my email list. How can I add more value to my email campaigns for my clients?
A,
Great question. Glad to hear you have built a database and now thinking about providng value and building automation around all it all. I would suggest the first email is a quick survey to your database asking them exactly that - what is something they would value so you can then craft your email campaign to match.
All the best.
Automating e-mail communications is practical and sometimes effective when dealing with a very large customer/prospect base, as it is virtually impossible to utilise any individual traits in your content other than obvious dates etc.
Considering the intimate and personal nature of your product/service you should consider the highly valuable relationship you have already established with your client base and the potential and irreversible damage you could inflict by any form of obvious automation.
Keeping it personal is the best value strategy you have!
Automated emails can come across as impersonal, so having a good headline to ensure you get opens is vital. Make sure you personalise them too, with the personas name. As for content, think about what your audience needs and wants, what they are going through and what they need help with right now. For your audience it's sleep, schooling, health, childs activities, learning, nutrition etc. Perhaps partner up with other providers who can give you great content, gifts or giveaways and promote their services - childcare, food delivery, babywear, sleep training, recipes for kids... You can use the 30/30/30/10 rule with your content to ensure you are perceived as the go-to specialist: 30% about you, your services, news, case studies etc - no more than that, or even less! 30% news from your industry - anything to do with families, kids, bringing up children etc, not just potography 30% information - how to get kids to sit still for photos, the 4 things to avoid when taking photos of your family, 10 things to ask a photographer before you select them to photograph your kids...give tips away, it's a generous way to promote your expertise. 10% fun and/or inspiration. Hope this helps.
I'd definitely do what Huy suggested and get direct feedback from your subscribers as a first step.
If you do go ahead with automation, make sure you regularly add an interactive element to your email communications, to maintain a high level of connection and engagement with your audience This could be a poll, feedback, competition etc.
Good luck!
I would mention using an automated and / or drip campaign email provider. Essentially you want to send valuable information that is relevant and seems personal. When you add in automation you must do it carefully.
You could create an email drip campaign with 4 successive emails. Each one leading the customer to the next step (such as how to plan and prepare for picture day). This could be an email that is sent everyday successively as long as each previous email has been opened.
You could also have emails sent to clients that haven't recently opened any of your previous emails to try to re-engage them.
Also in the emails encourage them to reply (never ever use an email address like this - noreply@yourcompany.com - it sends the totally wrong message). Use an email address that seems personal and approachable. And when people respond (to your automated emails) be sure to respond to it personally!
I hope you find that information helpful.
The great thing about specialising in maternity, newborns and infants, is that there is an opportunity to capture the little people at the different stages of their life over the coming years.
If you could gather date of birth details from family members, you could then set up your email system to send them (well parents anyway), a personalised milestone message and discount offer for their next reshoot.
On the flipside, email marketing doesn't have to be about marketing at all. If you'd simply like to give back to your customers, you can provide some free information or tips and tricks. Ideas that come to mind are themes around photo care, e.g. how they can protect or extend the life of photos, how best to frame their images, inside vs outside photo shoots. Feel free to also share some of your personal insights as well, how you got into your industry, why you like working with maternity/small children and so forth. Have fun!
Tell stories for one thing, it's all about building and maintaining relationships.
Megan Edwards, Expert Content Marketer + Copywriter at mWords Communications
Very valuable point Huy!