By Jennifer Henderson
This week, Higher Logic, a cloud-based community engagement software company, announced that it has acquired two marketing automation companies–Real Magnet and Informz. We use the Real Magnet platform at Clear Message Media for our own email marketing campaigns and for our clients’ campaigns.
According to the Higher Logic announcement, combining the two marketing automation solutions with Higher Logic’s engagement and community platform “will result in more effective, targeted marketing and better customer interactions. ”
I found the acquisition news interesting because just a few weeks ago Carole and I attended the Real Magnet Conference in Washington, DC, and targeted marketing and engaging customers were major themes. Throughout the conference, Real Magnet stressed the importance of creating better customer interactions through email and social media marketing. We both walked away inspired with a sense that we could do more with our marketing efforts.
Here are five key takeaways from the Real Magnet conference.
- Email is the linchpin of marketing.
In his opening remarks, Real Magnet Co-founder Mitchell Eisen emphasized the importance of email and how it drives conversions. Social media is better for branding and email is better for conversions. Eisen stated that email has a median ROI of 122% –more than four times higher than other marketing formats, including social media, direct mail and paid search. Email is a key medium that can be used to personalize experiences and engage users. - The march to mobile dominance continues.
Mobile email opens have grown by 180% in the last three years. Average smartphone conversion rates are up 64% compared to the average desktop conversion rates. So, it’s very important to think about your mobile marketing strategy and leverage it to the hilt. Make sure that your social media and email messages are mobile optimized. - Content marketing is critical.
Personalizing experiences and getting people content they are interested in is more important than ever as people are bombarded with so much information each day. People are different and they want to be treated differently. Email is a key medium because we can personalize messages for individuals by taking a closer look at customer data, building customer personas, and segmenting audiences. - Want to obtain/retain millennials? Engage them.
Associations, especially, struggle with attracting millennials. One way to attract millennials is by engaging them. Don’t just use social media as another tool for promotions, but use it as a tool for interacting. Build a community and ask direct questions. Use a conversational tone to engage followers and include fun marketing strategies such as filters. - Short, visual content is what works.
Longer blog posts and newsletters are more likely to be just scanned and not read. Digital marketers need to make better use of infographics, images, and video to capture people’s attention. Infographics do much better than any other downloadable assets. And there are many sites to go to now for professional quality images, such as Unsplash and Pexels.
How do you engage customers and potential consumers? What specific strategies do you use? We’d love to hear about them in the comments section below.
Not sure where to start with engaging your customers or members? Contact us at Clear Message Media. We’ll be happy to discuss your business or company goals and get you started with a strategy that works for you and your budget.
