Mention e-mail marketing to fellow insurance professionals and you may find that many remain hesitant to move away from their tried-and-true snail mail methods. Some, however, are rapidly discovering that e-mail marketing may be one of the most effective means of reaching the end consumer and generating business.

Want proof? When Shop.org surveyed retailers for their State of Retailing Online 2009 report, it found that e-mail was the most-mentioned successful tactic overall. The Ad Effectiveness Survey commissioned by Forbes Media in February-March 2009 placed e-mail marketing second only to SEO for generating conversions. Furthermore, research conducted in 2009 by the Direct Marketing Association demonstrated that e-mail outperforms all other forms of direct marketing.

Why, out of all the thousands of messages consumers are exposed to each day, is e-mail marketing so effective? From our own research, we know e-mail marketing works because it:

1 Has a Broad Reach. It is tough to find anyone who does not have at least one e-mail address these days, which means you can reach out to your entire customer and/or prospect base. Just be sure to get their permission first by asking if you can add them to your mailing list.

2 Is Proactive. Many insurance professionals — especially those running a small office — promote their services by taking out ads in a phone directory, a local community newspaper, or through direct mail pieces. However, your customers and prospects need to happen upon the ads in order to see them. E-mail marketing goes directly to a place they are already looking — their e-mail in-box. Also, unlike paper-based mail or door hangers, e-mail gives them the opportunity to contact you directly and quickly to get a quote or more information with the click of a mouse.

3 Is Targeted. Most forms of advertising are based on the idea that if you hit thousands of people with your message, a few are likely to respond. E-mail marketing is based on the idea of sending the right message directly to the right people based on their preferences, local market conditions and other factors. You can build one master list, then segment it by geographic location, marital status, gender, age, income, seasonality, and the like. It eliminates much of the guesswork that makes other forms of marketing so inefficient. It also allows you to harness the power of your customer data and create very specific offers tailored to specific groups, such as suggesting that parents add their children to an insurance policy — a very topical suggestion today.

4 Provides Data. If you are using an e-mail marketing application or service designed for a small agency, then you can run reports that show which e-mails or messages are working the best so you can improve your next campaign. You can even run split tests, sending one offer or message to half your list and a different one to the other half to give you a feel for exactly what makes customers and prospects buy from you.

5 Allows You to Engage. It is great to get an immediate reaction from a person who sees your e-mail just as he decides to get coverage. However, your real goal is to build a relationship with a broader base of prospects so they think of you whenever it is time for them to reconsider their insurance policy or add new coverage. E-mail marketing allows you to do that by bringing them community and market news, safety checklists to keep claims down, timely tips (like consolidating policies with you for a lower rate), and even seasonal ideas related to their insurance needs. It is a great way to engage people — and keep them engaged.

6 Has a Low Cost of Entry. Most forms of advertising or marketing require a big upfront investment before you see any results. That can get expensive for a broker or agent trying to keep expenses down. E-mail marketing has very little upfront cost, allowing you to market cost-effectively

7 Is Less Intrusive. Unlike other advertising, such as telemarketing, e-mail marketing does not interrupt a prior activity to deliver a message. Opening e-mail is the activity your customers and prospects are engaged in when they see your message. If you have done a good job building that relationship, they will actually look forward to seeing what you have to say.

8 Has a Superior ROI. According to DMA research, e-mail marketing generated a return on investment of $43.62 for every dollar spent on it in 2009.

Wendy Lowe is the director of product marketing for Campaigner (www.campaigner.com), an e-mail marketing solution provided by Protus. She may be reached at wlowe@protus.com.

Special Reports /

Eight Reasons Why E-Mail Marketing Works

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