In the world of e-commerce, Shopify is the #1 choice among businesses of all sizes. With a free version available for all accounts, it’s the perfect platform for beginners to understand what email marketing is and how it can help grow their business.
What is Email Marketing?
Put yourself in your customer’s shoes for a moment. When you buy a product or service and have it delivered to your home, you’re going to expect an email from the company to confirm that the product was received. For businesses that sell their products and services online, this email is usually the first step in the journey, whether the customer realized it or not.
Email marketing is simply the process of sending emails to potential or existing customers to remind them of your company or product, and encourage them to buy what you sell. Depending on the product or service, this can mean different things.
Why Should You Use Email Marketing?
You should use email marketing because it’s effective. According to HubSpot Blogs Research, email marketing is the #1 digital marketing activity with 89% of marketers using the tool. Why? It works! Whether you’re sending a coupon for a sale, promoting an upcoming event, or staying in touch with customers through a series of small emails, these attempts typically result in a 5% to 7% increase in sales. That’s not bad for the least expensive and most readily available digital marketing tactic.
Email marketing is cheap and easy to do. On average, an email marketing campaign using HubSpot costs around $200 to $500 a month. That’s a lot less money than paying for ads on social media, or paying customers to come back and make a purchase once they’ve heard your pitch in person.
There are other good reasons why you should use email marketing. Some of them include:
- Building credibility
- Creating brand awareness
- Getting in touch with existing customers
- Boosting product sell-through
- Getting product suggestions
- Increasing conversion
- Reducing churn
- Increasing retention
- Determining customer behavior
- Getting feedback
How Do I Choose the Right Shopify Email Marketing App?
As a business owner or entrepreneur, you’re going to be spending a lot of time thinking about building a brand, engaging with customers, and driving sales. It would be best to have everything in one place, which is why we’ve compiled this detailed guide to help you choose the right email marketing app for your business.
We’ll cover everything from pricing to features, ensuring you make the right choice for your business.
Pricing
As we mentioned above, email marketing is cheap and easy to do. However, as your business starts to grow, and you have more customers to keep in touch with, you’ll want to look for an email marketing app that’s affordable and offers enough features to keep your customers engaged.
You want to be sure to compare apples to apples when it comes to cost. Some companies that offer a free version with limited features may try to sell you premium versions that are more expensive but offer more features. It’s a good idea to download the free version and try it out to see if it’s enough to meet your needs. If you like, you can upgrade once you’ve discovered the value it provides.
Features
There are two sides to every product or service. One is the functional side, which is what you would experience if you purchased the product or used the service. The other is the technical side, which is what makes the product or service work the way it does. When you’re selecting an email marketing app, you should make sure to consider both the functional and technical sides. This way, you’ll be sure to choose an app that’s going to meet your needs and the needs of your customers.
Here are some of the things you should consider when choosing an email marketing app.
- Customer support
- Reporting
- Integrations
- A/B testing
- Marketing automation
- Engagement capabilities
- Mobile-friendliness
- Pricing
Do you already use a CMS (content management system)? If so, it would be wise to consider what are your needs and what are your customers needs when choosing a CMS. For example, if you’ve tried WordPress and don’t like it, consider another option like DMS (document management system).
If you’re just getting started or are looking for an easy way to send newsletters, try out HubSpot. With HubSpot, you can create automated email campaigns that include complex variables and track the performance of each campaign to see which one works best. When you’re starting out, HubSpot also provides you with a free tier, so you can try it out without risk.
Security & Compliance
You must be thinking about data security and complying with government regulations when choosing an email marketing app. Companies like Mailchimp regularly publish blog posts about privacy and security, so you can be sure they’re committed to protecting your data. Always consider who has access to your personal information and whether or not you’re complying with the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation). We’re sure you’ll be fine choosing a reputable company, but it’s still good to know what their policies are when it comes to protecting your data.
Nowadays, almost all reputable email marketing apps offer security and compliance features. These features allow you to set strict policies regarding the handling of your customer’s personal information. For example, you might decide you don’t want to receive marketing emails from companies you’ve blocked due to marketing scandals.
Value
Last but not least, we have value. As a business owner, you’re going to be choosing a product or service that has value. Even if you’re not purchasing the product or service yourself, you should consider what it’s worth to your company. What is the ROI (return on investment)? Does the product or service improve your overall business performance? If you can find an answer to these questions with ease, chances are it’s a good choice.
Final Takeaway
Hopefully, this article helped you understand and chose the best Shopify email marketing app for your business. When it comes to email marketing, there are a lot of different apps to choose from, all with their perks and quirks. Hopefully, this article helped you understand what to look out for in terms of pricing and features so you can make the right decision for your business.