Email marketing: win hearts, minds + wallets

Whether it’s clients or audience members, when people ask me the best way to build a robust strategic plan for their marketing… it doesn't matter if you’re a beginner or an advanced B2B marketer, my answer is an emphatic:

Email marketing + Content matrix.

#1. Let’s start with email marketing.

In the world of digital marketing, it can seem that strategies evolve at lightning speed, but the reality is that even after two decades, email marketing remains the cornerstone for communicating directly with customers.

It’s the undisputed king of communication, especially for business.

All things being equal, I would take 100 email subscribers over 1000 social media followers any day of the week.

Email is an asset you own (and you’re not at the mercy of social media algorithms). People spend more time checking and replying to email than they spend on social media.

#2. When people ask me which email platform I recommend, it’s Intuit Mailchimp

It’s robust, easy to use, and cost effective.

Mailchimp is like a lifelong friend you can always count on, and who gets better with age.

The good thing about Mailchimp is that it comes with automation tools that let you build out what I’m about to outline for you.

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#3. Now that we’ve sorted out the marketing channel (email!) and the platform (Mailchimp), let’s dive into what to say.

Content Matrix (Share, Show, Teach, Offer framework) This strategic content matrix allows you to nurture relationships AND boosts conversion rates.

When you follow this simple ‘Share, Show, Teach, Offer’ framework, it transforms your email campaigns into a compelling journey that captivates your audience's attention and earns their trust and ultimately leads to new business.

With your email marketing, strike the balance of creating content from each of the 4 quadrants of the matrix.

Let’s dive in.

SHARE: Cultivating personal connection

Personal connection is the bedrock of effective email marketing. 'Share' content should provide insights into the human elements of your brand or company. Share your challenges, victories, and insights in a way that resonates with your audience’s daily experiences. It's essential to let your audience get to know you through personal stories, philosophies, or behind-the-scenes glimpses. The goal is to form a connection because people prefer doing business with those they like and share a wavelength with. Sharing doesn't have to be mundane or deeply personal; it can include lessons learned or insights that foster connection.

This quadrant is about making your emails a mirror in which your customers see their aspirations reflected. They should also feel their values in alignment with yours.

It’s important to balance ‘Share’ with other types of content to demonstrate substance behind the personality.

SHOW: Demonstrating Credibility, Effectiveness & Results Email marketing thrives on credibility. Use 'Show' content to demonstrate the tangible benefits of your products or services. This can be through detailed case studies, insightful analytics, or user testimonials that highlight concrete examples of success. It can also include accolades, awards, praise, or press coverage.

It's crucial to share proof of your effectiveness as it helps build trust and credibility with potential clients.

When you do this, you reassure your audience that they are making the right choice by trusting your brand or your company.

Remember it's important to balance ‘Show’ content with other types of content to avoid coming across as a show-off.

TEACH: Educating and Adding Value The 'Teach' content quadrant is where your expertise shines. It is where many marketers feel most comfortable because you are providing lessons, how-to guides, actionable advice, advanced tips or informative articles.

It's essential to balance ‘teaching’ with the other quadrants to avoid being ‘just another free source of information.

OFFER: Calls to Action & Invitations to take next steps Finally, 'Offer' content should directly invite taking action. This can range from signing up for exclusive workshops to downloading guides or booking a demo or sales call.

Each email with ‘offer content’ should guide the audience towards further engagement or a deeper relationship with your business.

The goal is to invite people to act, whether it's scheduling a discussion, joining an event or making a purchase.

It's important to balance ‘offers’ with other types of content to avoid coming across as salesy, pushy or spammy.

Once you’ve created email marketing content from the 4 quadrants, advanced email marketers can then use Mailchimp’s automation tools to map out a welcome email sequence that follows the Share, Show, Teach, Offer framework.

Advanced marketers will probably want to leverage it into a broader communication plan where you could:

• Identify Other Channels: Determine where your email marketing content will be re-published and repurposed, such as blogs, social media and video channels.
• Define Content Types: Choose the types of content to create like graphics, videos, infographics, or lead magnets to ensure a good mix.
• Align with Audience: Know your buyer personas and create specific content types that resonate with them and addresses their fears and desires.
• Content Distribution: Plan how and where to distribute your content to reach your intended audience effectively.
• Establish a Calendar: Create a content calendar to plan your distribution schedule, ensuring timely communication around key dates or events.

For the seasoned email marketer (and even the aspiring beginner) when you combine the power of Mailchimp’s email marketing and apply the Share, Show, Teach, Offer framework you’ve got a strategic blueprint to transform standard email communications into a powerful system of engagement and conversion. Remember, the goal of email marketing is to nurture relationships and drive commercial outcomes.

Start a free trial of Mailchimp, download my Content Matrix Template and get going!

This has been a sponsored collaboration with Intuit Mailchimp #ad.

Cheers,

Ads

Adam Franklin

Marketing Coach & Speaker

Founder Bluewire Media

Author of Web Marketing That Works

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PS. When you’re ready, here are 6 ways I can help you grow:

1. Download the Web Strategy Planning Template (PDF). Our flagship 1-page tool we co-created with David Meerman Scott. It’s been downloaded over one million times and featured on Forbes.

2. Read a free chapter from our book: Web Marketing That Works — — an Amazon #1 best seller.

3. Join the private group on Facebook. Access free training resources, and hang out with 2,200+ peers.

4. Discover your marketing score. Take the 40 point Marketing Scorecard (in < 6mins) and get a customised report.

5. DIY with the ChatGPT Prompt Stack. 20 page Google Doc of custom marketing prompts to ‘stack’ together to create your content assets.

6. Let’s brainstorm. ” Book a 20 min slot to talk on Zoom.