eBook - Silverpop

Email’s Other Role: Adding
Value to the Customer
Relationship
What else should our
Q: email messages do
besides sell?
Email is the most valuable, flexible and
A: successful of all marketing channels.
But its success goes well beyond its ability to
drive conversions and revenue for companies.
Finding that sweet spot remains a challenge
for many email marketers, but some have
discovered email’s power as a retention and
loyalty channel.
Instead of just filling their subscribers’ inboxes
with one “free shipping/10 percent off” offer after
another, they’re adding a slew of emails that surprise,
add value or simply engage the recipient.
Following are a few examples from some marketers
that exemplify this approach:
Air New Zealand: The UK-region marketing
team for the airline has a unique challenge.
With only a few flights a day from the United
Kingdom to Los Angeles and New Zealand, the
airline’s marketing approach must focus more
on brand building and creating word of mouth
than attracting frequent fliers.
Besides the usual added content you find in pretrip
emails after a customer books a flight – local
weather and attractions, travel and security tips,
etc. – the email is personalized with a message
and photo of the actual fight service manager
who will be on your flight.
These emails have been a smashing success
with both passengers and the flight crew. Many
customers print the email and show it to the crew
member. This is my all-time favorite marketing
email.
Peter Glenn: Customers who purchase products
made with Gore-tex from this sporting goods
retailer receive an email with detailed care
instructions.
I never read the instructions that come with things
I’ve purchased. However, an email like this will
always be in my inbox when I need it.
Fabric.com: This online fabrics retailer notifies
customers who have previously requested fabric
swatches that those fabrics could go out of stock
soon. While this drives increased purchases,
the notification can be a very helpful prompt to
someone who forgot or procrastinated about
buying the fabric.
Mud Pie: As a male who tends to forget birthdays,
anniversaries and other occasions my wife deems
important, I appreciate Mud Pie’s easy-to-set-up
reminder emails.
For example, simply enter your spouse’s birthday
and name for the reminder. Then, 21 days before
the event, you receive an email reminder with a
$10 discount coupon.
Not only do the reminder emails provide
significant value to recipients, they also are Mud
Pie’s highest revenue-producing email.
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