This guest post was written by Danielle Theisen. To learn more about Danielle, visit her LinkedIn profile.
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As the landscape of digital and online marketing changes, marketers are constantly looking for ways to create an omni-channel presence to reach their customers (and potential customers) in the right place, at the right time, with the correct messaging. One of the easiest ways to do this is to integrate email and social media marketing.
There are a number of ways marketers can integrate these two marketing channels. Taking the time to come up with a cohesive plan as to how these two channels can work together helps promote your brand, drive sales and acquire new customers. Here are 4 simple tips for integrating email and social media marketing, no matter what your company’s size.1. Use social networks to promote email sign-up.
If you have a social following that actively engages with the content your company shares on social media platforms, there’s no harm in also promoting a sign-up form for emails or newsletters. If your social followers are engaging with your content, chances are they’re open to the idea of having your content sent directly to their inbox. Take a look at how we (Milwaukee marketing agency, Accelity Marketing) promote our newsletter on Twitter:
Another way to integrate email and social media is to use the “Sign Up” call-to-action button on your Facebook page. You can then link that button to an email sign-up page on your website to help your social audience stay connected with your brand. If you’re not already using the call-to-action button on your company’s Facebook page, here’s a quick how-to to get you started.
2. Add social buttons to your email templates.
This may seem simple, but including social icons in your email template is an easy way for your email subscribers to view your brand on your social platforms. Email subscribers will be able to stay up-to-date with your brand in real time and have the ability to easily share and promote your content to their social audience. Placement as to where the buttons are in the email and the call to action surrounding them can vary depending on who your target audience is and how familiar they are with your brand.
Some brands, like Discount Ramps, include their social icons at the top of an email, asking their subscribers to “Stay Connected.”
Other brands, like Petco, include their social icons in the footer of their email and suggest that email subscribers “friend & follow” (a fun and playful call-to-action!) them on their social networks.
3. Ask your email audience to promote your email.
Take the social icons in an email one step further by making them “sharing” icons. Give your email subscribers a way to engage with the email content another way besides clicking through to your website. Boot Barn added a Facebook icon and a clear call-to-action for their readers to share email content to their social networks.
4. Align your email and social media marketing calendars.
Maybe your company has one person that manages both email and social media marketing. Maybe it has multiple people that work with each marketing channel. Whatever the case may be, aligning email and social media calendars ensures that there is consistent messaging across both channels.
Have a contest you’re promoting? Great! Promote it not only on your social channels, but also as a content block in your emails. Sending out a newsletter with your latest blog posts? Don’t forget to post the articles on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn as well. Aligning your email and social media marketing calendars allows your audience to be the first to hear about company news, new content, contests or sales and discounts on their channel of choice.
It’s your turn! Are there other ways that you have integrated email and social media marketing? Let us know in the comments below!
