E-mail marketing is often seen as a competitor to social media marketing. But the truth is, the two offer unique marketing options to your customers. And if you combine both, you are likely to build stronger relationships with your customers and ensure return clients to your business.
But first here's a quick a roundup of the differences in what each marketing type has to offer.
 
What is social media marketing?
As the name suggests, it is a type of marketing done by using social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube. Social media allows you to connect and engage directly with your customers. They can even send you private messages for inquiries or purchases.
Offering content for social media can be a bit diverse. Some may even view it as a downside because with social media marketing you have to tailor the content to each platform you are using.
For example, to market your brand on Instagram, you need to use attractive visuals and videos with limited text and many hashtags, whereas on Twitter you have a character count but can use links.
On YouTube, you need high-quality video that shows users what you are offering and what their benefit is. On the other hand, LinkedIn comes with a more formal and professional tone. Its posts are longer and can include links and hashtags as well.
Brands can even use trending hashtags to drive sales or engagement on their posts and products.
In September 2019, computer manufacturer Dell used the hashtag #NationalCoffeeDay to advertise its new laptops. Many brands use seasonal hashtags like #Halloween and #ChristmasDay to announce discounts and special offers.

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What is E-mail marketing?
E-mail marketing, on the other hand, involves reaching out to your customers via e-mail. With many users now starting their day by checking their e-mail accounts, this type of marketing has grown significantly in recent years.
E-mail marketing is also measurable and allows you to track where your customer is in the sales funnel. Are they just opening your e-mails but not clicking to see the offer? Or aren't they opening your e-mails at all?
People regularly signup for newsletters because they enjoy the content provided, are seeking help (like with coaching or online courses), or simply to be aware of the latest offers and products.
Depending on the brand, e-mail marketing will provide personalized content on a daily, weekly, or even monthly basis. By sending an email, a brand leads a prospective customer down its sales funnel. They open the e-mail, read through, click the link or offer, and are taken to an external page where they redeem points, make a purchase, get the latest news, or even answer a survey.
According to research by OptinMonster.com, around 3.8 billion people check their e-mail each morning and around 60% of that number prefer to get marketing messages and promotions via email.
In terms of figures, it is estimated that e-mail marketing has a return on investment (ROI) of 4400%. That means for every $1 a brand spends on e-mail marketing it can get around $44 in revenue.
 
So is it possible to combine both sides of marketing?
The answer is Yes!

MixSocial Media with E-mail Marketing
At the moment, the ROI, along with the click-through-rate (CTR) from e-mail marketing appears to be higher than social media.

 

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While social media marketing allows you to attract new customers and engage with old ones, e-mail marketing allows you to provide personalized content and offerings to loyal customers. It also allows you to turn your customers into loyal and return clients.
By combining your social media marketing strategy with your e-mail marketing strategy you are now able to mix the formal with the informal, you are able to reach out to your customers across several platforms and entice them to convert through e-mail.
In your e-mail marketing, don't forget to include your social media links so that your customers can connect with you on multiple channels.