As 2021 draws to a close, it’s time to reflect on what worked well, and what trends we’ll see start to develop in 2022. One significant development already happening is the gradual move away from a reliance on third-party cookies towards alternative marketing strategies—without the shady implications of tracking your customers’ behavior online.
If you’re ahead of the game, you’ll already be transitioning towards alternative channels like email marketing to maintain a connection with your customers through 2022 and beyond. Let’s take a look at why a method that—for at least some marketers—might have been viewed as an old school communication channel is having another moment in the spotlight.
Our prediction is that email marketing—specifically performance email marketing—is going to be the channel of choice for 2022. And there are plenty of reasons to agree with us.
Time’s Up For Cookies
For many years, third-party cookies were the go-to solution for businesses to serve targeted and personalized advertising to their potential customers. With privacy rules changing though—it’s time to chuck that cookie habit for good as 2022 rolls around. Consumers are now starting to realize just how closely their online patterns can be tracked and then used to show them personalized ads. Unsurprisingly, there’s been a bit of a backlash and as a result, the tech giants are starting to integrate tighter laws around consumer privacy.
Firefox and Apple now block third-party cookies by default, and Chrome is set to do the same within the next few years. These changes are going to have a dramatic impact on eCommerce and affiliate marketing—and it’s time to look for alternative solutions.
A Powerful Alternative Approach — Performance Email Marketing
While it’s sometimes tempting to stick with what you know—the start of a new year is the perfect time to make a resolution to step away from the third-party cookies. What’s the best alternative though?
As we’ve already mentioned, we believe performance email marketing is going to become the best way to connect with your customers in a meaningful way—without impinging on their privacy.
Why performance email marketing? Let’s look over the main reasons.
1. A Great Return on Investment
Because performance marketing works on a ‘pay for your results’ model, it’s one of the best ways to make the most of your budget, whatever size that may be. Marketing budgets fell significantly during the pandemic and while they are bouncing back, it’s still important to choose strategies with a high return on investment (ROI). Email marketing offers an ROI of $44 per $1 spent. Compared to the equivalent ROI of $7.50 per $1 for affiliate channels, and $11.50 for display channels, email marketing is definitely your best choice.
2. Direct Connections with New Customers
Email performance marketing harnesses the power of addressability, allowing you to connect directly with potential targeted customers. We’re not just talking about your existing email subscription list, either. Using an established—and exclusive—email platform to create direct connections with new customers is where the power of email marketing really lies.
Acquiring new customers in this way allows you to build your customer base organically and genuinely. And because it’s email performance marketing, you only pay for qualified leads and converted sales. Using a credible performance marketing agency to carry out this strategy for you also carries the added advantage of legal brand reviews, so you can be 100% confident that your strategy is always compliant.
3. True Personalization
The number of emails being sent each day is increasing year-over-year, with no sign of a slow-down. The key, then, is personalizing your emails so that they stand out and people are far more likely to open them than ignore them.
People are 26% more likely to open an email if the subject line is personalized. Personalized email content also delivers six times higher transaction rates, with a 20% increase in sales. If you can demonstrate through your content that you remember your customer’s preferences (and name!), they’re likely to remain loyal and connected to your brand.
4. Old School Creativity
For many years we were told ‘email is dying.’ Well, guess what—it’s just not true. While this might be an old school communication method, that means there’s also something endurable about it. Email isn't going anywhere. SleepAdvisor reports that 17% of Americans check their emails as soon as they wake up, and 55% of Americans check them within the first hour of the day. So what’s the best way to catch your customers’ attention? Connect with them via email.
5. Access High-Converting Customers
Alongside the privacy concerns surrounding third-party cookies, people are also leaving social media in unprecedented numbers. Over the third quarter of 2020, two million users left Facebook. So, that’s two ways of connecting with potential customers looking increasingly depressing.
Get ahead of the curve and move towards a new strategy for making connections with high converting customers. And you guessed it—that strategy is performance email marketing. You can still segment your audience and personalize brand touchpoints along your customer journey. So when that social media advertising fallout comes to pass—and we predict it won’t take long—you can relax in the knowledge you’re already using a far more effective technique.
6. Supercharge Your Brand Visibility
Retargeting ads have a more impressive average click-through rate (CTR) than regular display ads. Their CTR is ten times higher. In the past, this meant that brands would spend a significant chunk of their marketing budget driving traffic to their website and then another considerable piece on ads designed to bring those customers back for more.
The good news is that performance email marketing can also drive significant traffic to your site without investing in those initial ads. This strategy also means you can enjoy faster results because you can start your remarketing campaign immediately. Given that you’re also only going to be paying for qualified actions, leads, or sales — it’s a complete win-win situation in terms of your budget and results.
Supercharge Your Strategy in 2022
Email open rates are increasing—and harnessing the power of an intelligently designed performance email marketing strategy for 2022 can help drive your business forward. Being able to connect directly with your potential customers in a meaningful way can transform how intelligent brands gain a larger market share. What’s not to like about that?
Madrivo is a performance-based marketing agency dedicated to multichannel customer acquisition solutions. Our unique services feature an exclusive network of vetted traffic sources that respect your brand while delivering quality and high-converting consumers.
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