Marketing: Deliver value to customers

A. Email marketing is an effective and affordable way to reach customers and prospects—if it's done right. 

Probably the biggest mistake you can make is to send emails to patients that include nothing of perceived value.

Deliver value

Blatant self-promotion, without added perks for your customer, will likely lead to your email being sent to the trash. What's in it for my customer? And, even more importantly, are you providing them a reason to act now?

Show and tell

Incorporate images into your email marketing campaign to highlight the appeal of your offer. The best rule of thumb is 50% text/50% graphics. Oftentimes, graphics won't display when emails are opened, so don't just throw in the image file from your latest in-store flyer.

Make it relevant

Since all patients don't have the same healthcare requirements, your emails need to focus on those products your customers might be interested in. In addition, segment your email marketing lists so that you target the patients specifically interested in receiving emails related to new products.

Provide a call to action

Have you told customers how to take advantage of the offer? Calls to action like “learn more now” empower your customers to do business with you.

Monitor the results

While you may assume your email marketing message was a winner, the proof is in the open and click rates. Check the analytics on every campaign to see how effective your email campaign was and what you might need to change to drive the future success of your email marketing initiatives.

Dennis Olsen is DME program/sales manager at ARI. Reach him at 888-581-9830 or dennis.olsen@arinet.com.