Why conduct email marketing - what can email marketing be used for?

Email marketing is a fantastic tool for connecting with your existing clients in a more personal way. It gives you an opportunity to update them with news and announcements, remind them of upcoming deadlines, and cross-sell other products and services. All this can directly strengthen your relationship with existing clients, providing them with relevant content as part of your overall service.

Email marketing can also be used for new client acquisition, allowing you to target specific businesses or individuals and tell them about your offering. With GDPR compliant data you can communicate with prospects and invite them to learn more about your products and services, tailoring the content to suit their needs.

Automation is a great way to free up time and resources for more important tasks. Email service providers enable you to automate certain messages, such as consultation booking confirmations, so that your team can put their energy elsewhere. You might also use emails to find out more about your clients or conduct research that will inform an article or press release. The results of these activities can then be used to improve your offering or provide more value to your audience.

Here are some key benefits of incorporating email marketing into your overall digital strategy:

New Customer Acquisition

By utilising newsletter signups, or purchasing GDPR compliant data sets, you can reach a wider audience and attract new clients tailored to their needs and interests.

Routine Newsletters and Ad Hoc Announcements

Keep your existing clients informed about industry updates, regulatory changes, and other relevant news through regular newsletters and timely announcements.

Improve Client Retention

Foster stronger relationships with your clients by delivering personalized and valuable content directly to their inbox, ensuring they stay engaged and satisfied with your services.

Upsell to Existing Customers

Promote additional services or offerings to your existing clients, increasing their lifetime value and driving revenue growth for your accounting firm.

Marketing Automation to Free up Time and Resources

Automate repetitive tasks such as sending welcome emails, follow-ups, and appointment reminders, annual returns notifications etc. allowing you to focus on core business activities while maintaining personalized communication.

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What are the core benefits of email marketing?

Email marketing offers a host of benefits to accounting firms, including:

  • Low cost

    Email is a cost-effective marketing strategy, enabling you to reach large, targeted audiences for a fraction of the cost compared to some other marketing methods such as PPC.

  • Consistent comms

    Emails can be repeated regularly to ensure consistent communication with clients.

  • Automation

    Automated emails can be sent when an action is completed on your website, freeing up time and resources within your team, whilst still maintaining that touch-point with the client.

  • Opportunities

    Email marketing offers opportunities to upsell and cross-sell directly to existing customers, as well as acquire new business.

  • Highly targeted

    Messages can be tailored to very specific groups, ensuring communications are always relevant.

  • Personalisation

    Communications can be set up to automatically insert your client’s name for a more personal feel.

  • Complements other forms of digital marketing

    Emails sit alongside other digital marketing tactics to create a more rounded strategy.

  • Advance scheduling

    Emails can be scheduled in advance, so if you know you have a busy period coming up you can prepare and ensure you still communicate with clients.

  • Easy analysis

    Mailouts are easy to analyse, offering insight into which content was successful and what your clients are interested in.

What kind of content messages should be uses in email marketing?

You can use a wide variety of content in your email marketing, but always ensure it’s relevant to your target audience. For example, you wouldn’t typically talk to a private client about mergers and acquisitions or business startup services, so it’s important to ensure they’re only emailed content that is useful to them.

There are several forms of content, ranging from entertainment pieces that appeal to consumers’ emotional side to educational content that engages rational thought. As an accounting practice, you’re more likely to be delivering educational content designed to inform clients, raise awareness of your services and drive conversions.

Your email content can include links to articles and blog posts on your website, recent case studies and success stories, trend reports, and guides. Your content should be in short, digestible snippets that link off to your website, where clients can find out more. It’s therefore crucial to make copy enticing with snappy headlines and compelling text.

To create engaging email content, we utilise a content matrix approach that covers various types of messages to cater to the diverse needs of your audience. Some examples of content types include:

Educational Content

Share valuable insights, industry updates, and expert advice to position your accounting firm as a thought leader in the field.

Sales-Based Messages

Promote your accounting services, special offers, and unique selling points to encourage conversions and drive business growth.

Case Studies and Success Stories

Highlight successful client engagements, showcasing the positive impact your accounting firm has had on businesses, thereby building trust and credibility.

Testimonials and Reviews

Feature client testimonials and positive reviews to reinforce your reputation and provide social proof of your expertise and exceptional service.

Event Invitations and Webinars

Inform your clients about upcoming events, webinars, or workshops that offer opportunities for networking, learning, and staying updated on industry trends.

Email marketing services available from Whitefish Marketing

Here at Whitefish Marketing, we offer a range of email marketing services for accountancy firms. Through us, you can obtain GDPR compliant data for B2B email marketing, which can be filtered by variables such as SIC code, geographic region, turnover, number of employees, and more. We can then use this to email prospects about your products and services with the aim of growing your client base.

We will provide as much or as little support with your email marketing as you like. Whether you simply want us to acquire data or you’d like the whole process managed on your behalf - from email design and copywriting to analysis - we can help. We work with trusted email marketing software to communicate to large audiences with relevant messaging and compelling calls to action, and will provide content suggestions where necessary to help you achieve your goals.

We will also monitor your campaigns and report on key metrics, determining which content is most successful and refining messaging accordingly.

  • GDPR-Compliant B2B Data

    We can source GDPR-compliant data for targeted B2B email marketing campaigns. Our extensive records can be filtered by variables such as SIC code, geographic region, turnover, and number of employees, ensuring you reach the right audience.

  • Email Marketing Software

    We provide the necessary software to facilitate mass communications, allowing you to streamline your email campaigns and track their performance effectively. (You can’t/shouldn’t email from your everyday email account – read our FAQs below to learn the reasons why not!)

  • Aesthetic Email Design

    Our team of skilled designers will create visually appealing and professional email templates that align with your brand identity, ensuring your messages stand out and make a lasting impression..

  • Content Creation

    Our experienced writers can craft compelling email content, whether it's educational in nature or sales-oriented, to engage your audience and drive the desired actions.

  • Turnkey Service

    We offer a complete turnkey solution, from hosting your email campaigns to delivering them to the recipients' inboxes, and providing detailed reports on key metrics such as open rates, click-through rates, and conversions.

Why choose us for your email marketing campaigns?

As a specialist in digital marketing for accountants, we at Whitefish Marketing know the industry inside out, and have the skills required to make you competitive online.  Whether your goal is to grow your client base or communicate more effectively and efficiently with your existing customers, we offer bespoke services to meet your needs.

With over 10 years’ experience in digital marketing for accounting firms, we have helped a range of practices to achieve their goals. From independent accountants to firms on the Accountancy Age Top 100 list, no client is too large or small. Our approach and strategy are tailored to your organisation, and with highly-targeted content, we can ensure your messaging is pertinent and your email communications align with the other elements of your marketing strategy.

We pride ourselves on our proactive approach, and will make suggestions and recommendations that we feel will enhance your marketing efforts. We will also monitor your campaigns, helping you find the best content for your emails and the subjects that interest your clients most.

Remember, every business is unique, so it's essential to adapt email marketing strategies to fit your specific objectives, target audience, and brand voice.

Contact us today to arrange a consultation or to find out more about our email marketing services for accountancy practices.

Email Marketing FAQs

Using email marketing software has a number of advantages over using your everyday system. For example, you can create eye-catching, professional-looking designs that are customised to suit your branding, and utilise segmentation functions to send clients highly targeted content. The software is also designed to be mobile friendly, has built-in design and spam testing, and enables you to track the performance of your campaigns.   Another serious reason is to do with the servers that the email campaigns reside on - they are separate from your own day-to-day work servers.  This is important when taking into account things like bounce rates, unsubscribes, and spam notifications – all of which could impact the server.

There’s no definitive length for an email campaign - it really depends on your audience and the type of email you’re sending. If you’re creating a newsletter, this is an opportunity to share a range of relevant content from recent blog posts to announcements or deadline reminders. However, if you’re looking to cross-sell a product or service to a particular group, you’ll want to make the email short and to the point to encourage conversions.

You want to email clients regularly enough that you remain front of mind without overloading their inboxes. We recommend sending newsletters monthly, with additional ad hoc campaigns when required, such as if you’re launching a new product or service, or new regulations impact a certain segment of your database.

At Whitefish Marketing, we measure the success of your campaigns using a number of key metrics. Open rates tell us how many clients are looking at your email content, while click through rates show how many are going to your website for further information or to fill in a contact form. We’ll also track the number of conversions on your site that occur as a direct result of the mailout.

Each business is different, and your open and click through rates will depend on factors such as how large your audience is, whether you’re emailing business or private clients, or whether you’re sending an acquisition or retention email.

To give you an idea of whether your campaign was successful in the wider context of the industry, in April 2023 the average open rate for financial services emails was 27.76%, with an average click through rate of 1.01%.

Email segmentation is the act of splitting up your email marketing database into smaller groups in order to deliver highly targeted content. You might, for example, segment your database into SMEs, large businesses and private clients, then send tailored content to each segment.

This really depends on your audience. Email marketing software provides options to schedule emails and track performance, helping you to find the optimum day and time to email your clients.

To improve deliverability, follow email best practices such as using a reputable email service provider, avoiding spam-triggering words or phrases, personalizing your emails, segmenting your audience, and regularly cleaning your email list. It's also important to obtain proper consent from recipients and provide clear unsubscribe options.

Several strategies can help improve your email open rates. These include crafting compelling subject lines, personalising emails, segmenting your audience for targeted content, optimising the preview text, and sending emails at the right time when your recipients are most likely to engage.

To enhance email engagement, focus on providing valuable and relevant content. Use clear and concise messaging, include compelling visuals, incorporate a strong call-to-action, and make your emails mobile-friendly. A/B testing different elements, such as subject lines, layouts, and content formats, can also help you optimise for better results.

There are various ways to grow your email subscriber list. Offer valuable incentives such as exclusive content, discounts, or perhaps free resources in exchange for email sign-ups (e.g. a Whitepaper download). Promote your newsletter or gated content through your website, social media channels, blog, and networking events. Collaborate with relevant partners or industry influencers to expand your reach.

 

So what's stopping you?

Call today on 01303 720 288 or fill out our enquiry form below.