Email marketing in 2022

Email marketing in 2022

The world’s first email was launched in 1970, ushering the world into a new era of communication. It eventually became a part of marketing. Once that happened, the number of email users only grew. Today, email is the mainstay of marketing globally.

 As of 2020, revenue from email marketing was USD $7.5 billion across the world. It is said that by 2023, this will reach the USD 10 billion mark! While it is true that new marketing channels are coming to the forefront, few can match email marketing’s average ROI. Companies can expect to get USD 545 from every $1 they spend on ads. Thus, it is no wonder that this marketing channel has held its ground till now.

 Email marketing metrics, usage and performance

 Email marketing remains one of the most popular digital marketing channels. More than 80% of industry experts used it for marketing strategies in 2020. The CTR (Click-Through-Rate) of marketing emails in 2020 was 14%. The publishing sector claimed the highest share of these clicks. On the other hand, automated messages had more than 50% conversion rate. 

What do viewers think of email marketing?

Email marketing is designed to connect with customers, share information, increase sales, and more. But what do customers feel about this marketing channel themselves?

 Let’s find out!

 When users signed up for mailing lists and newsletters, they showed interest in the company. A survey conducted in 2020 showed that for 46% of all responding mobile users, email had been the preferred business communication channel. It shows that this channel has massive potential in customer targeting and marketing.

 However, studies show that the average time spent reading brand-related emails has dropped from 13 to 10 seconds. Thus, marketers have a much smaller window to engage and influence their audiences.

 Did you know?

Data Percentage
Percentage of marketers using email marketing- 82% 82%
Percentage of marketers using automated email marketing 65%
Percentage of companies using videos in email marketing campaigns 47%

–  Rate of marketers using email marketing- 82%

–  Percentage of marketers using automated email marketing – 65%

–  Share of companies using videos in email marketing campaigns– 47%

What is the trend in 2022 and beyond?

Number of email users worldwide from 2017 to 2025 (in millions)

Email marketing in 2022

Number of sent and received emails per day from 2017 to 2025 (in billions)

Email marketing in 2022

Importance of email marketing

 So far, we have seen how this marketing channel is performing now. We have seen how relevant it will be in the future. It’s now time to know the importance of email marketing.

The growth of email marketing has skyrocketed over the years, and it will only grow in the future. Every brand will try to make the most from it, giving rise to a competitive environment. So, you must focus on email marketing campaigns in 2022 and beyond.

First, we’ll tell you about the value of email marketing. Later, we’ll let you know about its current trends.

 People still use email

People who say that email is dead don’t understand the power of email marketing. 83% of customers say that they still prefer email for getting communications for companies. Email marketing is so important because it works.

If your company follows an email marketing strategy, you can continue using that. To succeed in marketing through this channel, you need to look at future trends and implement those strategies that will ensure success now and beyond.

According to Radicati, it is estimated that 4.25 billion email users will still have 1.86 accounts on average. In 2019, 4.33 billion people had internal[a1]  access, while 3.93 billion people had access to email.

Email strategy is faster to build and implement

You can develop and deploy an email marketing strategy overnight. It may not be easy, but it is undoubtedly more straightforward than other marketing options. By 2022, a business email shall be worth around $200 billion.

There are ample opportunities for you:

      – if you know how to grow your customer base

      – if you know how to use email marketing strategy

That, in brief, is why this marketing channel is still important.

Now let’s look at the email marketing trends.

Email marketing trends for 2022 and beyond

To remain competitive when marketing through this channel, you must know the latest email marketing trends.

Trend 1: User-generated content

You should undoubtedly generate and publish your content on emails, and you should implement user-generated content as well. It is essential for several reasons.

First of all, doing so gives you a chance to integrate multiple perspectives. You can personalize your messages.

Secondly, user-generated content also shows viewers that their satisfaction is a priority for you. For instance, some companies send emails with pictures of happy customers with their products. They may also give built-in social proof showing what benefits one can have by using their products.

Trend 2: Hyper segmentation and personalization

Gone are the days of sending out just one weekly email to your subscriber list. Today, segmentation and personalization are more effective. You need to send the right content to the right user, at the right time and through the right channel.

For instance, if your customers tend to buy around 6 PM, sending emails around this time can be more effective. The more personalized your messages are, the more interested they’ll be. However, segmentation can only go so far. You will also need to gather as much information as possible about your customers. It, however, will be a challenge for marketers this year, primarily due to the end of third-party cookies.

Trend 3: Omnichannel communication

Email is undoubtedly effective, but the effectiveness can multiply when combined with other channels. Such channels include social media, SMS, web-push notifications, and more. With just a few channels, restricting yourself may also limit your growth and reach.

Omnichannel marketing campaigns are more effective than multichannel marketing. You can adjust the messages on every platform to reflect a user’s activity. Thus you can personalize messages, which lead to more leads and sales.

Trend 4: AR and VR

These two are the most exciting emerging developments, crucial for business and personal lives. Different companies are taking baby steps to implement these technologies, but the marketers face challenges in implementing them. Thankfully, AR and VR are becoming more accessible across various devices and systems.

For instance, Apple has integrated AR into their iPads and iPhones. It lets its customers view AR content from their email app and other native apps. Users can send basic 2D images in emails, expanding into 3D AR objects on tapping or clicking.

Before you use AR and VR, know that desktop and Android users can still enjoy such AR content. It goes for VR content as well.

While the use of VR has rapidly increased, it is still used by less than 20% of people in the US.

Trend 5: Interactivity

Interactive content certainly attracts more viewers; they stand out as creative and unique. If you want your emails to stand out, you need to focus on making your content more interactive and engaging.

You can get authentic customer feedback through forms, surveys and polls. You can also emphasise how much you care about their experiences through these.

Gamification is gaining ground. For instance, Neil Patel’s blog had a ‘wheel of fortune’ for viewers to win random gifts.

To sum up

Email marketing is evolving every year, and these changes are due to maturing regulations, new technologies, and a few other factors. To stay ahead of your competitors, you must know the latest email marketing trends and adjust your plans and campaigns accordingly.

Augmented Reality(AR) in the Marketing World

Augmented Reality

The new kid on the block 

In our day-to-day lives, we may overlook the rapid developments of technology. Since the turn of the century, our lives have changed drastically with countless new devices and systems. Even in the world of marketing, modern technology has been implemented and used to significant effect.  

With an ever-growing list of companies vying for your precious attention and, more importantly, your money, marketers have turned to the latest innovations for help. Today, the shiniest tool in a shed is Augmented Reality (AR).

Augmented Reality

AR in marketing

AR in marketing brings endless possibilities and solutions to a wide range of industries. These benefits are countless, especially for creative brands that choose to use this frontier technology in attracting and engaging their target audience. With the ease of application, AR can demonstrate to potential customers how to make full use of specific products and services without spending time on user manuals.

AR technology has been used on particular social media such as Instagram and Pinterest. On those platforms, brands can use the AR filter feature to showcase their product. But when brands want to start their AR campaign on Instagram for example, they need a particular strategy, so they can reach their goal.

Furthermore, AR creates a semblance of ownership of the product for its users before they purchase it. It enables users to see how they would look in a t-shirt or a pair of pants through their smartphone or laptop screen without having to be in the physical store itself. 

This process is already occurring with brands like Ikea enabling AR technology in their app whereby users can place pieces of furniture in their room to gain a better feel for how the product would fit.

With AR now being possible on virtually all web browsers, the entry barriers for users are incredibly low. They do not need to purchase expensive equipment or have the deep technical know-how. All a user requires is their smartphone’s camera, and they are ready to step into the world of AR.

AR in Pizza

The explosive growth in AR-capable devices has revolutionized how companies can promote their customers’ goods and services. The latest example of that would be Pizza Hut’s brand new campaign dubbed “Newstalgia”. Pizza Hut has launched its new brand campaign to bring back nostalgic memories to its customers. 

They partnered with PAC-MAN to offer a limited-edition PAC-MAN box, which features an augmented reality version of the iconic game printed directly on the packaging that fans can play using their smartphones. 

To participate, one must order a large pizza from Pizza Hut. First, they need to scan the QR code on the limited-edition PAC-MAN box and play the retro Augmented Reality (AR) PAC-MAN game. Next, to enter the competition, follow the instructions on their mobile device to share their score with @PizzaHut on Twitter using #PizzaHutARcade #Sweepstakes. Making it all the more tempting, regardless of your high score, you have a chance to win if you shared it.

This is just the latest example of companies employing cutting-edge AR technologies in their marketing campaigns. In 2014, Pepsi installed AR technology in a London bus stop, making it seem like a lion, UFOs, flying saucers, or other objects were headed straight for Londoners.

 This illustrated Pepsi’s playful personality and left the audience with a memorable and fun experience. Through this campaign, Pepsi demonstrated that they thoroughly understood their audience by trusting them to appreciate the demonstration and thus created excitement around the brand.

Where is AR Marketing in Singapore?

Right now, you may be thinking, AR sounds fantastic, but it is not very popular in Singapore. That’s true. Companies in Singapore, albeit creative, have still not completely embraced the use of technology in their advertising and marketing campaigns. Sure, there are countless creative and memorable marketing campaigns like, for example, Shopee Singapore introducing Phua Chu Kang as their brand ambassador in 2020.

 However, we have not yet seen marketing campaigns like that of Pizza Hut’s Newstalgia. Currently, one of the rare uses of AR is at NUS’s Lee Kong Chian Museum, where they have blended this technology into part of their museum where stories are shown through AR. 

That being said, the change could soon be on the horizon. With the implementation of AR growing easier and cheaper day by day, Singaporean companies could soon be joining the bandwagon. 

How you may ask. 

AR technology in marketing tends to be personal and engaging. In Singapore’s case, our companies would probably integrate it into something that’s part of our daily lives. 

With companies doing their best for viral content generation, AR could be a means to this end. Local companies could create an exceptional AR experience for the user that could be easily spread on social media. These experiences are highly personalized by helping users add virtual objects to their faces or environment. Doesn’t that sound like fun? Imagine being able to visualize Bubble Tea falling from the sky when you are stuck at the bus stop waiting for the rain to stop. 

Future of AR

AR technologies in marketing and advertising continue to develop along with technological infrastructure. Companies will continue to adopt AR into their marketing efforts to provide potential customers with an immersive experience and feel of their goods and services. With the potential to dominate in E-Commerce, companies striving to improve their digital marketing will hopefully one day introduce this mode of advertising to Singapore, enabling us to view the world in a new dimension.

 

Email Marketing — the What and the Why

Email Marketing — the What and the Why

We’ve talked plenty about the types of digital marketing there is on our blog. Now it’s time to delve into one such type — email marketing. What exactly is an email marketing campaign and why should you run it for your business?

Email marketing is exactly as it sounds. It’s a series of emails that companies send out to their customers to update them on what’s going on with their brand. These can include events, promotions, news, and many more.

There are plenty of reasons for a business to start an email marketing campaign, of which one is that it is the most effective marketing channel. Emails have been said to offer the highest ROI, of up to 4400%! In fact, research has shown that there has been a huge increase in email engagement just over the past year alone.

Email marketing is also one of the most measurable channels. From click-throughs to conversion rates, it is a lot easier to gauge how your campaign is doing — more so if you’re doing something right.

email marketing image 1.jpg

How to Run Your Own Email Marketing Campaign

Now that we’ve gotten the importance of email marketing out of the way, it’s time for you to actually start your own campaign. Not sure where to begin? Fret not. Here’s our comprehensive guide to creating your own email marketing campaign, step-by-step.

1. Build your subscriber list

Check List Clip Art

Before you can even begin sending out emails, you need recipients to send these emails to. This is where you should build your subscriber list to help you get the ball rolling. There are a few ways to do so.

First off, you could create a signup form on your website where you offer a newsletter or product updates. Consumers who are interested will generally want to sign up for it. However, you might notice that this method does not always work. Alternatively, you can offer something for free (known as a lead magnet or an opt-in bribe) in return for an email address. Make sure your opt-in bribe actually offers value to your visitors, so that they are willing to share their addresses with you.

Next, you need an opt-in form. The most successful areas of a website that generally sees conversions from an opt-in form include the welcome page, the header, footer, as well as the sidebar. You could even have a slider or a lightbox to place your opt-in form. Ultimately, it’s up to you to decide where would be the most aesthetic and engaging place to put it.

Never buy an email list. Most of the time, your emails will get identified as spam and end up being ineffective. Additionally, you are more likely to get higher unsubscribe rates as well. Getting permission is more important if you want your campaign to be successful.

2. Decide what to write

Blogging And Content

Now that you have your email list, you can begin creating content for it. Make sure your content is compelling and captivating, or you’ll see just as many people unsubscribe as quickly as they signed up.

There are a few different types of email marketing campaigns you could run. These can be split into three broad categories — marketing emails, transactional emails, and operational emails.

Marketing emails include anything from newsletters, invitations, press releases, to sales promotions. The main aim of marketing emails is to stay in touch with your consumers and to keep communication flowing. This way, your brand remains present and relevant in their daily lives.

Transactional emails are usually automated and are triggered only after some sort of activity from your consumers. These include registration confirmations, received payments, and order tracking emails. A great way to start your email marketing campaign is via your first follow-up email, which can be a welcome message of sorts. You can engage an email service provider such as Campaign Monitor to create an autoresponder sequence for this.

Lastly, operational emails generally contain important information about your business that goes beyond your products or services. This includes anything that affects your service availability such as maintenance plans. While it may not seem important to keep your consumers updated about such news, it is a great way to remind them of the value you provide.

3. Make it personal

Anu Cliparts Black And White Png Black And White Stock - Black And White Communication Clipart, Transparent Png - kindpng
Segmentation is essential in giving your emails that personal touch. (Source: KindPNG)

Take your email marketing campaign a step further by segmenting your list. This means having more targeted groups to send different emails to — that way, your emails feel more personal.  Research found that marketers who used segmented campaigns observed up to a 76% increase in revenue! This helps in boosting your clickthrough rates while decreasing unsubscribe rates.

Consumers can be segmented into different categories such as preferences, location, open rate, inactivity, and even shopping cart abandonment. Ever received an email when you close a website without checking out? That’s exactly what segmentation is all about.

Through email segmentation, you can reward more active consumers with a special offer, while nudging those who are inactive to take the next step. Even if they end up unsubscribing, this is only going towards keeping your subscriber list fresh and maintaining your bounce rates.

4. Design your emails appropriately

Email Newsletter Design: Structuring The Perfect Newsletter in 2020
Email designs are so important – they are your first impression. (Source: Moosend)

It is not enough to have intriguing and compelling content. The outlook of your emails has to be attractive enough to make your readers want to click through. Having plenty of images in your email always works in your favour (as long as they are not messy and cluttered!). 90% of information processed by the human brain tends to be visual, so the design of your emails are of extreme importance.

Not only that but make sure your subject line stands out so that your emails are being opened in the first place. Did you know that 47% of all emails are being opened based on the subject line alone? Talk about making a good first impression!

More importantly, your emails have to be mobile-friendly. Why? 61.9% of all emails are being opened on mobile. In fact, those that aren’t optimised on mobile devices get deleted by 75% of your readers — or worse still, they will unsubscribe!

Speaking of unsubscribing, you want to make it easy for your subscribers to do just that. Yes — you heard that right. It may seem counterintuitive by giving your readers the chance to opt out, but readers who want to unsubscribe and are unable to do so will mark your emails as spam. This could lead to greater problems for your campaign in the future.

Additionally, if you want to get a higher click-through rate, it is important to always include links and a call-to-action (CTA). Make sure your CTA stands out from the rest of your email — choose a different colour, have clean fonts, and leave white space around your CTA button. Do remember to keep each email limited to only one CTA, or readers won’t know what to click! MailChimp has designed a simple and helpful guide to designing effective emails.

You can even add interactive elements to your emails, upgrading static messages to a whole other level. Details such as animation, hover effects, and more can make your entire email feel like a fun experience. Explore other tools and services such as dark mode or Accelerated Mobile Pages Project (AMP).

5. Establish your sending frequency and goals

WPForms Not Sending Email: How to Fix It
You don’t want to annoy your readers too much, but you still want to be fresh in their minds. (Source: Kaliforms)

Timing is important. You want to know when and how often your emails should be sent to your recipients. Avoid sending too many emails within a short amount of time to keep them out of spam folders!

The time of day which your email lands in your recipients’ inbox also plays a part in improving clickthrough rates. Research has shown that open rates are highest between 10 to 11am, when readers tend to check their emails during breakfast or before starting work. However, this statistic changes on Sunday, where 9pm seems to be the more popular timing.

6. Test and track your data

AB testing icon
A/B testing helps you choose the most favourable and desired result you can get. (Source: Flat Icon)

Companies that A/B test every email in fact see 37% more marketing returns than those who do not. Testing is essential for knowing if your email design, subject lines, or landing pages work. A/B tests allow you to understand what readers prefer and choose the more successful option.

Tracking your email data can also help greatly in your other marketing efforts. Note which emails got more clicks; which subject lines induced more opens. Then, put this knowledge to use in your future content — not just for emails, but for your other content. Watch your marketing KPIs and ROI soar!

Knowing statistics like the number of shares, undelivered emails, or what time of day people opened them will tell you a lot about how it is performing. Sure, finding a generic statistic could help you decide your sending times and frequency at the start, but it would be better to adjust it based on YOUR audience. With sufficient data, you can better tweak step 5 of your campaign. Keep your open rates and click through rates high, and your spam complaints low.

Now you’re ready to launch your own email marketing campaign. If the above steps seem too complicated or they seem like too much work, MIU is here to provide any marketing services you need — including email marketing. In fact, we are starting our own campaign, so keep a lookout for more tips in the future!

With a team of professional marketers at our core, we are equipped to connect your voice to your audience — no matter what channel is being used. Let us do the job for you.

The Complete Breakdown of the Types of Digital Marketing

The Complete Breakdown of the Types of Digital Marketing

Digital marketing has been on the rise in the past couple of years and has become a necessity for brands, particularly in Singapore. With Singapore having the highest digital penetration rate in Southeast Asia, it is easy to see why. As we enter this digital era, the way we consume and process information has changed along with the way we shop. It is therefore important for brands to adjust the way they market themselves, too. 

At this point you might be wondering, what exactly is digital marketing and how is it different from the standard marketing process? There are many aspects to digital marketing, from web development to content marketing, and it can be easy to mix them up.

7 facets of digital marketing in 2020

SEO Agency VS In-House SEO: Why You Need A SEO Agency Now? [2020] - Nexis Novus
SEO refers to the process of boosting your ranking on search engines. (Source: Nexis Novus)

1. Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)

This is the most commonly known form of digital marketing — with over a thousand searches for “SEO agency” on Google each month, businesses are vying to make themselves relevant in this cutthroat world of competition. Knowing SEO is easy. Understanding it takes a lot more work.

To build up SEO on your website in order to rank higher on search engines, you must first understand how search engines work. Beyond just including major keywords with high search volume on your website, it is important to also look at off-page SEO. This includes backlinks — external websites that link to you — which can easily influence the amount of organic traffic coming into your website just as much.

2. Content marketing

How to do Content Marketing for Pharma | BlueNovius
Create, create, create! (Source: BlueNovius)

With the majority of people in Singapore heading online, it is also just as important for a business to have a strong online presence. It is so vital now for a brand to have their own website — the lack of a website actually screams unreliability. According to a survey, 72% of users look at websites when finding information about a brand, with 63% of these users citing it as their third most trusted source of information. More than half of these users will browse the company’s website as well. If this doesn’t indicate to you how important it is for a brand to build their own website, what does?

More often than not, a company blog allows you to showcase your expertise in the industry to potential customers, and generates search traffic for your business as well. Content marketing is often tied in with SEO in order to better market your brand and increase the success of the campaign. If done right, it will lead to traffic growth, increase brand awareness, and even convert website visitors into customers for you.

3. Social media marketing

How to Repurpose Top Content for Social Media Posts
Social media marketing is all the rage now – after all, who doesn’t use it? (Source: Digital Marketing Institute)

Webs aside, it is also just as important for brands to have a presence on social media as well. Just in 2020 alone, an estimated 3.8 billion people are using social media, and this figure is expected to increase to 4.4 billion within the next 5 years (Statista). Indeed, digital penetration is an unstoppable phenomenon. Not only that, 79% of our population in Singapore are on social media as well (Talkwalker).

Just as content marketing does, having a good social media marketing strategy will increase brand awareness, improve traffic, and generate leads for your business.

4. Web design and development

Web Design Best Practices For Your Next Website Project
First impressions are important – and so is your website’s user experience. (Source: Kinsta)

As previously mentioned, the number of online users who look at a company’s website exceed half — meaning that the majority of online users, which are your potential customers, would come across your website! It is therefore essential to make sure your website is not only functional, but user-friendly and visually appealing as well.

A website development agency will help brands improve the layout of their website, making sure it is not only user-friendly, but aesthetic as well. A website with a good user interface will be sure to convert online visitors to customers much more successfully than one without. More often than not, this requires the expertise of a digital marketer with knowledge in the user experience, which a web development agency offers.

5. Pay Per Click (PPC)

What hotels should look for in a pay-per-click program | Hotel Management
Convert clicks into revenue with PPC ads. (Source: Hotel Management)

PPC is a type of advertising that drives traffic to your website through online advertisements, in which the publishers are paid per click. Google Ads are the most common form of PPCs, where you are able to pay to get your link as one of the first results on the search engine. Many other well-known PPCs include paid ads on Facebook, Twitter ad campaigns, and sponsored messages on LinkedIn.

6. Email marketing

Beyond creating content for their website, brands can often reach out to their audience via email marketing campaigns. These usually include newsletters, holiday promotions and other follow-up emails. Email marketing campaigns are good for promoting events, discounts and any other relevant content.

7. Digital Public Relations (PR)

Get to know the best PR agencies in Egypt | Amwal Al Ghad
Maintaining good relations with your audience is essential. (Source: Amwal Al Ghad)

Of course, it is not sufficient to keep your content strictly to your business website — you need a boost from various other sources as well! This is where digital PR comes in — with a PR agency, you would be able to secure online media coverage with other content-based websites such as digital publications or blogs. This can help create backlinks to your website as well, boosting your SEO.

Besides sourcing for media opportunities, PR also includes the handling of customer relations, such as any comments, questions or reviews that might surface online. When customers see that you are actively making an effort to communicate with your customer base to make things as transparent as possible, they are more likely to view your brand in a positive light — which helps to humanise your brand, generate productive conversation, and allows you to deliver impactful messages regarding your brand.

How this changes the way you look at a digital marketing agency

So now that we understand the various types of digital marketing that exists, how do you know which marketing agency you should look for? Well, although there are thousands of digital marketing agencies based in Singapore, you need to find one that complements your needs. After all, the best marketing strategy is to engage in all of them – tastefully.

Knowing that you’re about to embark on a great marketing journey, it is vital to find an agency that makes the experience as comfortable and incredible as possible. Remember, you are building a long-term business relationship with the agency, so make sure you stick with one that works best with you.

At MIU, we guarantee client satisfaction by keeping communication lines open even after each project, so we can always ensure that we are always hitting success with each goal met. Take a look at our portfolio and let our work speak for itself.