If you run a blog, one of the smartest ways to grow your traffic is through email marketing. Collecting and harnessing these contact details can build more fulfilling relationships with visitors. Through proper email marketing, blog performance absolutely soars — it’s game-changing for retention.
With that said, starting an email marketing campaign for your blog takes some initial legwork. Once you set it up, it can become a passive process, but first, you’ll need to learn some vital steps.
In this guide, we’ll show you how to boost your blog growth through email marketing. Get ready for how-tos, marketing content ideas, and even insights into why you should care in the first place.
Give us five minutes, and you’ll have the perfect email marketing strategy for your blog!
Why Do You Need Email Marketing for a Blog?
When running a blog, email marketing can dramatically transform your visitor retention rate. A good email campaign acts as a hook, enticing customers to linger or return when you prompt them with content. In turn, this boosts your overall traffic by guaranteeing repeat visitors or customers.
Looking at the top internet marketing blogs, you’ll see the emphasis on building a community. It’s a bit like offering a restaurant loyalty program. You build a beneficial relationship with your target audience parallel to the actual service you offer.
For instance, offering an email newsletter alongside general access to your blog is a clever way to build rapport. It also increases visitors’ investment in your content.
Apart from the obvious, though (who doesn’t want to rocket their views?), email marketing helps to increase your brand authority.
You can assert your expertise in that field by sending out specialist information like newsletters. It lets you show that you know what you’re on about — which is valuable when curating long-term readership. You get up to 320 characters, and the lengthy body is a primary benefit of email vs. SMS marketing. SMS messages allow just 160.
As you can see, there are plenty of email marketing goals to strive for; it’s a leading strategy. In summary, here are the three main benefits of investing in email marketing efforts for your blog:
- An increase in brand authority
- Improved rapport with readers
- A boost in return (and therefore overall) traffic
To achieve this, you could use any of the following types of email marketing:
- Email newsletter
- New content prompts
- Competitions
- Access to specialist information (e.g., interviews)
Hold fire on Googling ideas for these various email marketing campaigns, though, as we’ve got some detailed inspiration coming up.
3 Steps: How To Do Email Marketing for My Blog
As you may know, the best email marketing blogs showcase slick strategies for using email marketing tools. It can be hard to know what first step to take when starting from the beginning. Luckily, there are three simple ways forward for anyone wondering “How to do email marketing for my blog.”
1. Email Lists
Your first task is building an email list. Now, email contacts don’t pop from thin air, but this is the sort of thing that you learn through experience. How can you appreciate the fine art of building an email list without experience?
The first thing you need to figure out is how you’ll collect email addresses. It could be a subscription invite pop-up when visitors reach your main page. Alternatively, you could have subscribers-only content — for instance, blocking access to the most exclusive interviews.
We recommend keeping subscriptions free to encourage as many visitors to volunteer using their email addresses as possible. You could always launch a membership program later.
Once you collect a few email addresses, it’s time to look for software to launch your campaign.
You should specifically search for an email marketing platform that enables bulk sending. Software supporting blast email marketing is essential when handling medium to large-sized email lists.
Email automation software can be tricky to pick from, so here are a few ideas:
- Mailchimp
- Omnisend
- Hubspot
- GetResponse
These software typically offer a free trial or demo. They then operate on monthly subscriptions in exchange for a set number of emails.
3. Create Engaging Content
With an email list and software, the only next step is to make a start! Note that the emphasis is on making engaging content. There’s no point in creating content your target audience has no interest in. That’s where tactics come in.
Good email marketers understand their targets and what will make them press click. Think about helpful content or exclusive, interesting opportunities for your subscribers to learn or otherwise benefit.
Also, pay attention to your subject line, which is a significant decider on whether or not they’ll actually click open. A great email should have a catchy subject line, a personal address, and an engaging body. Don’t forget to include a strong call to action (CTA).
What Is Shopify Blog Email Marketing?
Shopify blog email marketing is just one example of great software to choose when investing in email marketing blogs. It specifically caters to e-commerce. So, if you are looking for email marketing, blog topics that involve retail are perfect for Shopify.
The platform has templates for you to adapt for quick and easy content. For instance, it has a “Meet this Month’s Best-Seller” template. Here, you can simply add pictures and links to your stock of choice.
There are some key points to consider, though:
- It’s strictly suitable for e-commerce products.
- You have to have a Shopify account to use the email marketing tool.
That said, they offer a free trial, which is always helpful. It’s a good option when searching for an email service provider.
3 Email Marketing Blog Ideas
Now you understand exactly what email marketing for blogs is and how to start, why not delve a little deeper? One of the biggest mistakes in email marketing is not taking the time to brainstorm enough ideas.
You should always pay attention to things like email marketing trends. However, sometimes you need some non-original food for thought to start off. Besides, looking at methods that other people find effective is a great way to ensure immediate success. It removes an element of trial and error.
These are three email marketing blog ideas — feel free to develop or pinch them for your own.
1. A Newsletter With Industry Updates
Industry updates sound a bit dreary, but in reality, they can quickly drive subscription numbers up. One of the biggest email marketing trends at the moment is sending calls for pitches or job openings. Of course, this is massively helpful for job seekers and freelancers. Very quickly, this builds a large number of subscribers.
Think about what value you could offer to your readers. What updates would they most appreciate?
2. A Giveaway or Competition
Everyone loves a giveaway or fun competition. This also applies to collecting email addresses, as you ask for contact details as part of the entry requirements. To make this a more regular affair, you could host a monthly giveaway.
If you’re a restaurant, you could give a mixture of prizes, like a free drink or meal voucher.
3. Early or Exclusive Access to Content
Sending subscribers early or exclusive content is a surefire way to make them feel special. Make sure to highlight it as such with subject lines such as SUBSCRIBERS ONLY or padlock emojis. The more you amp it up, the more anticipated it will be. Just make sure you deliver by providing really valuable content!
FAQ
Where do you think you’re going? Do you not want to learn the most effective way to collect email addresses if you run a physical store? For anyone with an actual business address with foot traffic, hold fire for the next section.
For now, though, quickly glance over these FAQ. Let’s consolidate your understanding before moving on.
What are publications and blogs in email marketing?
Publications and blogs are digital reading materials that businesses often use in Internet marketing campaigns. Publishing information online is a fantastic way to build digital authority and appear in SEO rankings for business queries.
SEO (search engine optimization) is ensuring your site appears higher up for relevant questions, usually through the use of keywords. For instance, if you run an Italian restaurant, you might target queries on making the best authentic Italian dough.
Keywords might include “best Italian dough recipe” or “authentic Italian dough.” Or perhaps you’d try to rank where to try the best pizza in your town or city.
To continue encouraging visitors to your blog, though, it’s wise to invest in email marketing. It’s a bit of chicken and egg — emails drive visitors, and visitors create email lists. The two simultaneously support drive-in business engagement.
Why should I use email marketing for my blog?
Email marketing is valuable for your blog as it drives overall traffic and visitor engagement. Instead of just letting visitors leave with no reason to return, it focuses on building long-term rapport. This increases the retention of otherwise one-time visitors.
Email marketing also boosts your brand authority and helps you build a reputation as an industry expert. Who wouldn’t want that for their branding?
How can I collect email addresses for my blog?
That’s easy. You could invite subscriptions with a pop-up, host competitions, or use a captive portal system on your WiFi. The latter is an excellent idea if you have a physical store location, like a restaurant or shop.
Get creative when collecting customer information and really prioritize targeting people who resonate with your business.
Beambox: WiFi Might Help
A good email strategy cuts through the noise, but if you run a physical store location, WiFi might just accelerate that. Are you ready for our secret weapon in email marketing?
A captive portal network is a total game changer. Everyone knows how sought-after WiFi is. Can you imagine the uproar of arriving in a hotel with no internet? Or even a restaurant without guest WiFi?
Because of how expected free internet has become, chances are you already offer a guest WiFi service to your customers. A captive portal system couples with your existing network, simply creating a temporary barricade when guests click to join. Instead, it takes them to a webpage pop-up, which you can personalize to request the details of your choice.
In this case, you’d request an email address from anyone trying to join your network. Then, when guests comply, they get immediate access to your WiFi, and you get valuable contact information. It’s a win-win. And for blogs for businesses with a physical location, it’s a savvy way to build an email list.
At Beambox, we offer an all-in-one WiFI marketing platform with a captive portal system you can personalize. Now you’ve learned about email marketing, blog growth through WiFi-grown email lists is the next job.
Start your Beambox free trial today and grow your contacts!
