Study Shows 38% of US Consumers Take Action Based on Email January 08, 2020, | Posted by erin

When it comes to setting your marketing budget, you want to allocate your resources most heavily to what’s going to give you the best return. A recent study released by Campaign Monitor illustrates that, dollar for dollar, email marketing still provides the leading ROI when it comes to digital channels, and in fact it’s even beginning to overtake “traditional” media like radio, direct mail, and TV. Site Impact, of course, is always looking at the numbers and keeping track of the industry as a whole, so the finding that 38% of consumers in the US take action based on email is an important fact--and one we’re going to dig into today with a little more detail.

Is 38% a lot?

On paper, without context, a figure like 38% doesn’t necessarily seem like it’s a huge percentage--but when you take into consideration all the channels used to market to consumers, the fact that email drives more than a third of conversions is no small accomplishment. Engagement grew in 2019, fueled by more personalized campaigns, better planning, and stronger strategies across the industry. 38% of consumers taking action based on email says a lot about the level of trust that consumers have for email marketing messages--and it bears out what surveys have found about which channels consumers prefer.

What this means for marketing budgets

Marketing budgets are all about efficiency; brands know that you have to spend some money to make money--but cutting costs is about cutting what isn’t working. The good news revealed by this particular study is that email marketing does work, and consistently has improved in performance over the years. For brands that are interested in getting the word out to prospects, email is where it is at: consent-based email programs that reach out to customers who are already interested bring results that social media ads, banners, and other mass-targeting efforts just can’t touch, and they accomplish that for far less money. For each dollar spent on email, the average return is almost $45 dollars! Of course, the individual returns are going to vary--by industry and other factors--but that’s nothing to sneeze at.

As we get into 2020, brands of all sizes are evaluating their marketing efforts from the last year and looking to see what that will mean for their efforts this year. The research shows that email marketing is a valuable format for any brand of any size; consumers respond to it well, and B2B email efforts have also shown an uptick in engagement as more businesses in that niche embrace the strategies and tactics that have worked so well in the B2C world. As the recent Campaign Monitor report shows, more than a third of consumers are taking action and converting based on email in particular, so it only makes sense to continue keeping that as a valued centerpiece of your marketing strategy--no matter who you are or how big your business is. Contact Site Impact to learn how we can help you to make the most of your email efforts in 2020.