Social media has become much more than just a place for individuals to hang out and share their latest stories and pictures. Today, businesses are more involved than ever, and many companies have doubled down on social media, abandoning their traditional websites and email address for a Facebook page and a Twitter account.
However, despite the shift in trends, email combined with a traditional web presence still has a place in business and, if leveraged correctly, can still be a very powerful tool for your business.
The Benefits of Email
No matter what the latest social craze is or how “sexy” a business wants to appear to their potential markets, the benefits of email are still tangible and cannot be denied. Everyone today has at least one email address, and everyone knows how to read and send email. This creates a large market potential for companies looking to expand. Email is also brand-able. Every address is unique, and your company’s public email address can be yet another way for people to instantly recognize who you are and what you do. Email marketing has risen to become one of the most powerful sources of income for many companies and currently shows no signs of slowing down, making it a resource you shouldn’t ignore.
There Are Drawbacks
Despite all these benefits, there are some drawbacks to using email for your business. Spam has become a huge problem worldwide with companies investing millions to try and sift through the hundreds upon thousands of emails that come in. Users are increasingly having to be careful about what email to open and what to ignore as emails can contain harmful content such as viruses and malware. For companies looking to craft great, compelling emails, they must learn how to create HTML email that looks good across a wide range of browsers if they hope to be effective.
Email Is Not Dead Yet
Even with Facebook and other social media outlets creating new messaging formats that are quickly picking up steam, email is still a big part of the world. So much so that even Facebook and Google+ understand this as they try to incorporate email as part of their own messaging systems. Email has also become a great way to send out information such as newsletters that customers want to read but don’t want or need to respond to in any way. While it’s true that email use has declined over the years, it is still something that is, at the very least, checked on a regular basis by all users online.
Today, email is still a vital part of every business and is both a tool for communication and a tool for marketing to customers. It is important to remember, however, that the conversation with our customers doesn’t end when you click the send button. You must seek out these consumers where they hang out online and use the combined power of social media and email to create a healthy and thriving customer base.
