Even in this age of electronic connection, I still enjoy checking the mailbox outside every day. Last week, as I flipped through the stack, curious to see what had arrived, I noticed a small booklet titled, “What to Expect from your Six-Month-Old.” It would have been something of extreme interest seven years ago.
I may have flipped through the material, and certainly clipped the coupon for formula. With three small children in the house, it would have been very relevant.
Now, however, it’s completely irrelevant. So I tossed it in the recycling bin without another thought. The marketer who sent the material didn’t hit the mark. And not hitting the mark doesn’t just mean wasted resources, it means missed opportunities.
As marketers, we must strive to be relevant to our audience. It was easy enough for me to toss the paper mail aside, but it’s even easier to hit the delete button on an email. Email marketing, especially, must be relevant in order to reach our audience.
So how can we ensure that the content we provide is relevant? Start by asking yourself a few basic questions as you create content:
- Does this content provide valuable information?
- Is the content compelling enough that the reader will want to share it?
- Does the content reflect the audience’s purchase history, interest or past preferences?
By paying attention to who your audience is, and tailoring messages to be relevant, you can increase your open rate and return on email investment. Just think–if the manufacturer sending me the formula coupons would send me sports drink coupons instead, they’d surely get my attention!
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