ARTICLES FOR WEBMASTERS 
 The Pros and Cons of Email Marketing (opinion 2)
By Michelle O'Leary
Essential Marketing Resource
The Internet is an essential resource for businesses these days,
providing an ever expanding variety of marketing niches, from classic
website advertisement to social network campaigns to email marketing
campaigns and more. Each marketing method has its advantages and
disadvantages which should be considered before a business chooses to
utilize that particular marketing platform. Email marketing has been
used very successfully by companies in the past, but before a business
decides to use this marketing strategy, they should consider the pros
and cons.
Pros to Email Marketing
Ease and speed of delivery are at the top of the list of selling points
for email marketing. Emails aren't difficult to produce and a business
can expect their message to be delivered to their target customers
within seconds of send off. Response time is equally swift, as
interested customers can respond either by replying to the email or
through whatever commercial links were provided.
Affordability is also high on the list of advantages for email
marketing campaigns. The cost is typically restricted to having an
Internet connection, which most businesses already have in place for
other uses. In contrast to physical mailings, there are no costs
associated with materials, postage, or handling.
Email campaigns also allow businesses the advantage of reaching a
targeted audience by customizing email offers for customers based on
demographics, interests, and/or geographical locations. Businesses
aren't restricted to sending out the same offer to all customers, and
can streamline their marketing strategy to connect with their most
sought after customers.
Most email marketing services also offer various types of reporting
along with the basic email service. These reports can be invaluable for
businesses looking to understand customer behavior and interest. With
as much ease and speed as sending out the email, a business can get
data on the number of successful deliveries, the number of emails
opened, and the number of click-throughs if links are involved, which
can be correlated to the number of orders and sales made. This
information can help businesses to tweak their email marketing to
improve future deliveries.
Cons to Email Marketing
The biggest obstacle that businesses face with email marketing
campaigns is that the email sent may never actually reach the audience.
Bulk emails that are sent without permission fall under the spam
category, and most email systems today have spam filters and blockers.
Even if customers agree to receive emails, their email systems may
still flag or block a message if the customer doesn't approve the
businesses email address. Because of this disadvantage, email marketing
campaigns usually require large quantity mailings to see even a low
response rate and meaningful sales.
As a related disadvantage, businesses must also comply with the federal
statutes of the CAN-SPAM Act, which outlines rules for email marketing
and prevents marketing strategists from sending out unsolicited
mailings. Included in these rules are the requirement that links be
included to allow customers to unsubscribe or opt-out of a company's
mailings. Additionally, the response time to an unsubscribe request
must be swift, typically in ten days or less. Each state also has
regulations concerning email marketing which must be followed.
The ease and speed of email delivery can have its disadvantages as
well. Though businesses can customize an email to their chosen
audience, email marketing is still considered an impersonal contact and
can give customers a negative impression. Any mistakes in the
production of emails can't be fixed once the email is sent, and these
can also give customers a negative view of a business.
The Choice to Launch
Email marketing campaigns are just one of the Internet's many marketing
possibilities. Past history has shown that email marketing campaigns
can be successful, if a business has the willingness and determination
to persevere. The choice of whether or not to launch an email campaign
should be made by weighing the pros and cons, and deciding what is in
the best interest of a business. If emailing suits the needs of a
business, than an email marketing campaign is a viable, potentially
lucrative option.
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