Can you connect email and social media marketing?

While social media is a buzzword, most businesses are still using email marketing for a large portion of their online audience, and it is still quite effective. But can you combine the two? While “old school” email marketing is 1-to-many and “new school” social media marketing is 1-to-1, the two can actually work together very well.

The best way to approach this is as an opportunity for you to learn more about your customers and for them to learn more about you and your brand.

Here are several great tips for doing so, from Jason Baer, at Connect and Convert:

1. Collect Profile Data in Subscription Forms

Offer your email subscribers the option of including their Twitter name on your subscription form. Something like:

“We care about our customers. Can we follow you on Twitter?” Please provide your Twitter name, and we’ll follow you ASAP. (We’re at @companyname, by the way)

2. Promote Social Media Outposts in Welcome Messages

When you send your welcome message after initial subscription (you ARE sending welcome messages, aren’t you?), include links to your various social media outposts. Carefully track which links get clicked, as it will give you an indication of which are most popular among your customers.

3. Social Media-Only Offers

If you really want to get a handle on which social media venues your customers prefer, and in what intensity, create an email that includes links to special offers or promotion codes that are shown only on your social media profile pages. Something like: “We’ve got incredible offers available on items we think you’d love. For details and promotion codes, visit us online on Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter”