An estimation of about 80% of businesses make use email as their primary communication tool, especially when it comes to external communications. Over the past year, virtually every sector, has found themselves being forced to start making changes and also implement different new technologies in order to adapt to the effects of the current pandemic. And in a response to the recent shift to digital, how companies select the implementation and use of email marketing has become even much more essential to drive revenue.
Yet, despite having the knowledge that the effective email marketing is critical to driving significant value for their business, marketing leaders are still not in touch, with many not having the feeling or the need to understand the details of the email marketing program.
In fact, in a recent study that was carried out from SparkPost nearly half of the marketing leaders (like about 44%) that were interviewed and admitted that their organisation has not yet developed a way that they can estimate the value of an email address. This lack of interest by this set leadership in understanding of the effectiveness of email shows a true disconnection between email practitioners and the organisations that they work for. While there can be countless numbers of reasons for hiccups in the communication at companies, in the case of the email marketing it looks like the fundamental gap in understanding have to start at the data level, from management to the measurement. Marketing leaders must start taking a more active approach to understanding email data so that they can be a better understanding for the needs and also empower those who lead their email programs.
The Data Dilemma
The Data is one of the greatest assets of email marketing, and by the same token that is laid is the foundation for some of the email marketers greatest challenges also. In the SparkPost’s aforementioned study we checked, 46% of practitioners viewed and confirmed data management as their leading issue, specifically the email deliverability (38%). The overwhelming amount of data that is associated with the email marketing it can be a bit hard to make sense and therefore communicate out to the leaders and the key stakeholders that are in marketing departments and beyond. The Dashboards and the reporting tools make it pretty easier for email practitioners to showcase their wins and their concerns to leadership.
No One Size Fits All Approach
It would have been easy trying to suggest an easy fix solution to this email marketing misunderstanding that so many organisations are facing. But, the fact is that, before any real solutions can be put into place the Marketing leaders must be the ones to take the first step in picking interest in email marketing. More than this, in light of the mentioned reasons in this article as well as the on going COVID-19 crisis, leaders must have to view their email marketing teams with an empathetic glass that gives accounts for the burnout they might at the long run feel from doing a little common misunderstood job during one of the moment that was very critical in history. From there, the leaders should adhere to more active role in their understanding of email data management and the measurement.
The disconnect between the email teams and the marketing leaders is one that can be only broached with absolute care, understanding and giving a commitment to the importance of data.