News: Email Marketers Increase Efforts in 2003

Arial Software, publishers of permission marketing software, recently surveyed 120 of their customers about their plans for email marketing this year. Results included the following:

• 76% are planning to increase their email marketing volume for this year, whereas 12% are planning a decrease.
• 56% of companies personalize their email marketing messages.
• 76% use multipart email messages, that is, messages that are sent out in both text and HTML format.
• Respondents surveyed are sending out an average of 45,000 emails a month.

You can download a copy of Arial's "Email Trends 2003" study at:

http://www.arialsoftware.com/release16.htm

Views: It's All in the Numbers

This confirms our observations at EmailResults.com (http://market.emailresults.com), where we are in touch with many companies using permission email as a marketing tool. More and more companies are exploring the use of email and many are finding a positive return-on-investment.

That said, we continue to encourage an experimental approach for newcomers to the email game, especially those with limited budgets. Use small-scale tests to determine benchmarks for response and conversion and to identify the most responsive lists. Also, focus your efforts on building your own email list. A rented list is always an expense, whereas your own list is an asset and gives you a vehicle to get in front of your audience on a regular basis at low cost.