posted on May 21, 2006 08:24:00 PM
I have a number of people signed up for my store emails, but have never tried a campaign. Has anyone tried this? Is it worth the effort?
posted on May 21, 2006 08:55:28 PM
Another term for email marketing is spam. Even with an opt-in list, there is nothing to prevent one of these people from reporting you to Ebay and your ISP for spam in the future. I would weigh the risk against the benefits.
If Murphy's law is correct, everything East of the San Andreas Fault will slide into the Atlantic
posted on May 21, 2006 09:13:35 PM
I've done it with people who have opted-in and requested to receive such emails. I've not experienced great results, but it has led to a few sales here and there. For myself, I would say that it wasn't something I would devote a large amount of time and energy to, but I do like to keep in touch with interested customers from time to time. It's a good opportunity to keep them posted about the latest new widget, sales & specials, or just to nudge them into your store to have a look around (and hopefully make a purchase or two).
Of course, my experiences may not mirror those of others. It may vary quite a lot depending upon the type of items that you sell.
posted on May 22, 2006 08:28:46 AM
I think you are referring to the E-Mail Marketing program within your EBay Store. This is not considered spam by EBay as it is one of their programs.
I have had people sign up to receive EMails and have done about one per Season.
The interesting thing is that after they have been sent then you can see how many have been opened and how many Store clicks have been done and also how many purchases as a result.
I sent one last week and have found that the last two I sent only 50% of people opened them and none have resulted in sales.
You may want to do one and check the results to see if it works for you.
I am not going to waste time on doing it any more.
posted on May 22, 2006 10:20:50 AM
It depends upon what you consider successful. Telemarketers claim that 2% is successful when calling or sending mass mailings. If you send out a mass e-mail of 1000 adresses, that would be 20 hits. Now it all depends upon your e-mail client. I know if you have hotmail, you are limited to 50 addresses at a time. I know at work, we can do at least 2500 at once through outlook (We have about 2500 in our address book) so it would matter what you consider your time to be worth.
posted on May 22, 2006 10:42:26 AM
stonecold...you are absolutely right. The response on mass marketing does require a large number of contacts and a very low percentage is considered successful
I was using the EBay email marketing system which allows you to put in some of your listings automatically and I added one of my other email addresses to the list so I could see what it looed like when received.
On all occassions the pictures have been distorted.
I am blessed with a great memory and if I am about to list something that I know would work for a past client then I just email them directly with a personal note and that works well for me and almost always results in a bid.
Of course, I am not a HUGE seller so it makes it easier for me and I have always preferred the personal touch.
posted on May 22, 2006 11:15:49 AM
Email marketing is the BEST! and its none of FEEbay's business since you conduct it through your personal email or a email service company such as Constant Contact - Ebay has NO LEGAL JURISDICTION OVER YOUR EMAIL! If you use their forwarding system to contact customers you can get the boot but as long as you go through your email or service its legit. I rarely ever respond to a customer thru the ebay email system. I have had fantastic results from email marketing but I use a targeted list only - a list that I complied from my Ebay sales - I have been building my list for a year and I now have 1,500 names on it and growing. Its not true that the list has to be huge to get results. It is also not considered "malcious spam" if the people on the list have purchased from you in the past or voluntarily signed up for your list. I use CONSTANT CONTACT and they are fantastic. Email marketing is fantastic.
[ edited by orleansgallery on May 22, 2006 11:18 AM ]
[ edited by orleansgallery on May 22, 2006 11:19 AM ]
