Robert Wientzen, President and CEO of The DMA, reported that marketers found that e-mails to their existing customers, to be one of the most effective ways to reach customers and Web site visitors over the past year.

According to the 5th Annual "The DMA State of the E-Commerce Industry Report 2001, " 59% of respondents reported increased sales in 2000 as a result of e-mail marketing promotions. Marketers indicated they relied on direct click-throughs (65%) and unique links (54%) to track the effectiveness of such campaigns.

"An e-mail campaign with the proper privacy and permission etiquette will drive traffic to a store or Web site, add to a company's bottom line and increase goodwill among customers." "Done correctly, it can be the most inexpensive and efficient way for a business to reach its customers."

Marketers remain cautious in adopting New Technology
The study revealed that while online advertising continues to evolve, most marketers still rely on regular e-mail (80%) and plain text (73%) messages. Many are beginning to adopt HTML into their e-mail promotions (62%), but respondents indicated few have added new media techniques such as rich/broadband media (12%) and streaming video (8%) to their e-mail marketing campaigns.

"Unfortunately, many consumer PCs still aren't equipped with browsers that support all the bells and whistles marketers are accustomed to using," Wientzen noted. As a result, many marketers continue to send straightforward plain text offers rather than slick e-mail messages that a customer may not be able to read."

E-mail as a relationship-building tool
John Rizzi, CEO of e-Dialog, who has extensive experience in e-mail technologies and direct response marketing says, "Whether it's for an event-driven campaign or distributing a newsletter, marketers must focus on using e-mail as a relationship-building tool."

By moving away from trying to acquire customers through broad-based, loosely targeted messages and focusing instead on the personalisation capabilities and two-way nature of e-mail, marketers can build precise, ongoing communication that generate measurable results.

Looking ahead, as more complex e-mail technologies emerge; e-mail marketing only grows more attractive to marketers as a means of increasing lifetime value of customers. For the channel to support this growth, you should embrace the evolution of marketing with a precision-based approach, ensuring that each customer is delighted to take part in the communication.

With current concerns about online privacy and the use of personal data, it becomes even more important for marketers to use e-mail responsibly. With permission marketing, the industry globally has found an initial way to bring responsibility and accountability to e-mail marketing.

John says: "The next step is to capitalise on the medium's real potential by embracing a precision-based approach that benefits both your customers and your ROI."

Winnifred Knight, email winn@themarketingsite.com or phone 082 575 9922

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