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Marketing Basics: How To Employ Marketing Channels to Increase your Website Visitors and Affiliate Earnings
How can an affiliate website let people know about their launch or listing of a new product or addition of a new product category? Questions like these are abundantly responsible for the development of the entire marketing field and are still one of the most crucial challenges for marketers and website owners.
While the marketing landscape is dynamic, some strategies have been around longer than others. Outbound marketing aims to begin a conversation about websites or new products by spreading its existence rapidly through a number of conventional and new marketing methods. While most of the websites now solely focus on inbound marketing to bring in more visitors and revenue, outbound marketing can further assist the marketing endeavours to deliver better results. Right from emails, bulk messages, to even modern tools like WhatsApp, there are many different ways in which affiliate websites can increase visits to their website and improve their earnings with the help of outbound marketing.
In this article, you’ll learn:
While the marketing landscape is dynamic, some strategies have been around longer than others. Outbound marketing aims to begin a conversation about websites or new products by spreading its existence rapidly through a number of conventional and new marketing methods. While most of the websites now solely focus on inbound marketing to bring in more visitors and revenue, outbound marketing can further assist the marketing endeavours to deliver better results. Right from emails, bulk messages, to even modern tools like WhatsApp, there are many different ways in which affiliate websites can increase visits to their website and improve their earnings with the help of outbound marketing.
In this article, you’ll learn:
- How is outbound marketing different from inbound marketing
- Email marketing- How to improve email marketing, dos and don’ts of email marketing
- How to benefit from WhatsApp marketing, pros, and cons of using WhatsApp for marketing
- Bulk message marketing and how to improve SMS marketing
- Other popular outbound marketing channels
- Importance of tracking marketing endeavours and how to track
Let us start with understanding the difference between inbound and outbound marketing...
When it comes to affiliate websites, inbound marketing can be in the form of social media marketing, content marketing, branding, and SEO. In simple words, inbound marketing relies on the web and helps position a website in a way that people can easily find it on the internet.
But unless people trust or know a website, inbound marketing won’t quite make much of a difference. Thus in a way, inbound marketing is more like a strategy that can help improve your existing relationship with the customers.
But the relationship cannot exist in the first place unless there is no initial introduction. It is with the help of outbound marketing that one can significantly increase the chances of having that first contact with the customers after which they can try to develop the relationship.
But unless people trust or know a website, inbound marketing won’t quite make much of a difference. Thus in a way, inbound marketing is more like a strategy that can help improve your existing relationship with the customers.
But the relationship cannot exist in the first place unless there is no initial introduction. It is with the help of outbound marketing that one can significantly increase the chances of having that first contact with the customers after which they can try to develop the relationship.
Popular Outbound Marketing Channels
1. Email Marketing
As per a survey by the Direct Marketing Association, emails offer an average ROI of 122% which is almost 4x higher than other marketing channels like paid search and social media. Affiliate websites can use targeted email campaigns to generate more revenue. However, email marketing is a lot more than just sending a few emails every day.
Tips for Affiliate Marketers on Email Marketing
Tips for Affiliate Marketers on Email Marketing
- Build High-quality Email List- For an email marketing campaign to succeed, it is crucial first to build a high-quality email list. When creating the list, you should try to ensure that the list contains email addresses of targeted consumers who are already interested in what is being offered on the website. Most of the websites do this by encouraging website visitors to sign up for the emails voluntarily.
- Avoid Overselling- A lot of affiliate website owners oversell their products with email marketing. While it is great to have a list of people interested in the products, you should not just focus on selling alone. Offer great content to your customers to keep them engaged. A lot of successful marketing campaigns prefer a split of around 80/20 which means four emails offering great content and then one email to sell the products
- Prefer using Autoresponder Sequence- Email autoresponder sequence can be very beneficial for email marketing campaigns. With the help of autoresponders, website owners can contact the subscribers with affiliate offers through emails multiple times. Set the autoresponder once, and it’ll keep sending emails for weeks and months
- Subscribe for Email Marketing Software- Email Marketing platforms are not only to send bulk emails, but they also help in keeping track of your emails and analyse the data which can help you improve your email marketing strategy.
The Secret Behind Click Worthy Emails
When you are sending out emails to divert traffic to your website, there are two significant goals you should want to accomplish.
a) Maximum Opens on Your Email
b) Maximum click-throughs to your affiliate blog/website
To achieve this, there are a few points you should consider as an affiliate marketer. Let’s take a look at both of these objectives and find out how you can achieve them.
a) Openable Emails: The first milestone that you would want to achieve is to get maximum opens on your email. To ensure this, there are few points that you must consider.
b) Send Time Optimization: The time of the day you send your mail plays a crucial role in getting maximum opens on your email. This would depend on a couple of factors such as your target audience, their time zone, your content, etc. Test a couple of strategies and figure out the best time to send emails to your readers.
c) Find the Right Day: Another important factor that determines the open rate on your emails is the day of the week you choose to send out emails. Unless your type of business requires you to send emails every day, choosing the right day is as important as choosing the right time of the day. Again, it would depend on your target audience and the content. Does weekend work better for you or the middle of the week or Monday?
d) The Clickworthy Subject Line: A Subject line plays a critical role in increasing the open rate of your emails. A good subject line is informative, short, crispy, and most importantly, catchy. Again, no one strategy can work here. Know your audience and come up with a compelling subject line. However, there are a few things that you should avoid when creating a subject title for your email.
a) Maximum Opens on Your Email
b) Maximum click-throughs to your affiliate blog/website
To achieve this, there are a few points you should consider as an affiliate marketer. Let’s take a look at both of these objectives and find out how you can achieve them.
a) Openable Emails: The first milestone that you would want to achieve is to get maximum opens on your email. To ensure this, there are few points that you must consider.
b) Send Time Optimization: The time of the day you send your mail plays a crucial role in getting maximum opens on your email. This would depend on a couple of factors such as your target audience, their time zone, your content, etc. Test a couple of strategies and figure out the best time to send emails to your readers.
c) Find the Right Day: Another important factor that determines the open rate on your emails is the day of the week you choose to send out emails. Unless your type of business requires you to send emails every day, choosing the right day is as important as choosing the right time of the day. Again, it would depend on your target audience and the content. Does weekend work better for you or the middle of the week or Monday?
d) The Clickworthy Subject Line: A Subject line plays a critical role in increasing the open rate of your emails. A good subject line is informative, short, crispy, and most importantly, catchy. Again, no one strategy can work here. Know your audience and come up with a compelling subject line. However, there are a few things that you should avoid when creating a subject title for your email.
- It may okay to be provocative but never mislead
- Don’t make your subject lines too long
- Avoid using Capital Letters unless you are very sure
e) Maximize your Click-through Rate: What’s the point of sending a beautiful mail that does not divert traffic to your desired web page or blog? The content of your email plays a critical role in increasing the click-through rate. Here are few points that you can consider to increase the chances of landing more visitors to your website from your email:
- Adjustable to all Screen Sizes: Make sure the content you send adjusts to different screen sizes. Be it a mobile phone, computer, tablet, or a laptop. Content should be viewable clearly and explicitly.
- Clear Call to Action: What’s the point of sending an email that does not have a clear call to action. An effectual call to action tells the receiver what they need to do as a follow-up action. It may be reading a particular blog on your website or subscribing to your email list
- Make it Shareable: Putting shareable buttons such as of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. allow the recipients to seamlessly forward your mail to their friends and family. It increases your scope, which in turn, could lead to increased sales on your affiliate websites
A Few Don’ts
When sending an email, there are also some don’ts to ensure you have an effective email marketing strategy.
Do not send direct Amazon links in the emails: Amazon does not allow you to send product links directly from your emails. Ensure you follow this to save yourself from being banned from the program.
Avoid Spam Trigger Words: If you are wondering why are your emails going to the spam folder, there could be a couple of reasons for it. One important reason is that your content or subject line includes spam trigger words. This may vary depending on your industry, niche, and audience. Research for spam trigger words according to your target location, industry, and audience, and avoid using them. For instance words like Buy Now, Big Discount, Affordable, Cheap, etc. are some of the words which you should try and avoid using.
Don’t Hide the Unsubscribe Button: Giving a clear unsubscribe button in the email reduces the chances of your mail being marked as spam. If your emails are regularly labelled as spam by people, it affects your reputation negatively, which in turn leads to your emails being sent to the spam folder.
Do not send direct Amazon links in the emails: Amazon does not allow you to send product links directly from your emails. Ensure you follow this to save yourself from being banned from the program.
Avoid Spam Trigger Words: If you are wondering why are your emails going to the spam folder, there could be a couple of reasons for it. One important reason is that your content or subject line includes spam trigger words. This may vary depending on your industry, niche, and audience. Research for spam trigger words according to your target location, industry, and audience, and avoid using them. For instance words like Buy Now, Big Discount, Affordable, Cheap, etc. are some of the words which you should try and avoid using.
Don’t Hide the Unsubscribe Button: Giving a clear unsubscribe button in the email reduces the chances of your mail being marked as spam. If your emails are regularly labelled as spam by people, it affects your reputation negatively, which in turn leads to your emails being sent to the spam folder.
2. WhatsApp Marketing
While WhatsApp marketing is not a traditional outbound marketing channel, with a monthly user base of more than 1.5 billion people, it can surely play a significant role in the success of your affiliate website.
Be it marketing the products offered on the website, communicating with the customers, announcing offers, conducting market surveys, or provide customer support; there are many different ways in which websites can use WhatsApp.
How to Take Advantage of WhatsApp in Outbound Marketing?
Be it marketing the products offered on the website, communicating with the customers, announcing offers, conducting market surveys, or provide customer support; there are many different ways in which websites can use WhatsApp.
How to Take Advantage of WhatsApp in Outbound Marketing?
- Offer Customer Service in Real Time- WhatsApp offers text-based chatting, video calls, and voice calls. All these different channels can be used by websites to provide customer support in real time and improve their service quality and prove their loyalty to the customers.
- Create WhatsApp Groups- WhatsApp allows users to create groups with up to 256 members. With the help of this feature, websites can create a collective chat to interact with the customers and also let customers talk to each other. The groups can be used to inform customers about products, new posts on the website, surveys, and more while creating a community.
- Use Multimedia- To keep the customers interested, websites can also use multimedia like images, videos and even emojis on WhatsApp. However, websites should never send direct Amazon links on WhatsApp as it is against Amazon Associates Program Policies
Pros and Cons of WhatsApp Marketing for Affiliate Websites
Pros:
+ Personal communication with the customers
+ Higher chances of customers opening the message
+ WhatsApp Business exclusively for small businesses
+ Web client for desktop chatting
+ Automated away messages with WhatsApp Business
Cons:
- Only one WhatsApp account per device
- No protection against data loss
- Lack of enterprise administration
- Mobile should also be connected to the internet to use the web client
- Broadcast list limited to 256 users
+ Personal communication with the customers
+ Higher chances of customers opening the message
+ WhatsApp Business exclusively for small businesses
+ Web client for desktop chatting
+ Automated away messages with WhatsApp Business
Cons:
- Only one WhatsApp account per device
- No protection against data loss
- Lack of enterprise administration
- Mobile should also be connected to the internet to use the web client
- Broadcast list limited to 256 users
3. Bulk Message Marketing
With the world going digital and the number of mobile owners across the globe consistently rising every year, mobile marketing now cannot be ignored by websites. Among all the different ways to promote affiliate websites through mobile phones, one of the most popular is bulk message marketing.
More than 7 billion text messages are sent every year, and more than 90% of the messages are read within the first 3 minutes as per research by The State of SMS.
Apart from being result-oriented, bulk messaging is also highly cost-efficient as compared to other mobile marketing methods. Just like WhatsApp marketing, bulk messages too can be used in many different ways. They can be used for promoting products, send coupons and offers, collect user feedback, and more.
Tips to Optimize Bulk Message Marketing:
More than 7 billion text messages are sent every year, and more than 90% of the messages are read within the first 3 minutes as per research by The State of SMS.
Apart from being result-oriented, bulk messaging is also highly cost-efficient as compared to other mobile marketing methods. Just like WhatsApp marketing, bulk messages too can be used in many different ways. They can be used for promoting products, send coupons and offers, collect user feedback, and more.
Tips to Optimize Bulk Message Marketing:
- Add a Clear Call-to-action
- Keep it Short and Crisp
- Know the Message Frequency
Tracking Outbound Marketing Endeavours
No matter if an affiliate website is using emails, WhatsApp, bulk messages, or any other channel for marketing, it is essential to track the marketing endeavours to iterate and improve them. By tracking the right metrics, one can understand the strategies working for the website and the ones that are not.
All the different marketing channels have their own metrics which should be regularly tracked to improve the campaigns further. For instance, in case of email marketing, metrics like open rate, click-through rate, list grow rate, bounce rate, conversion rate, and overall ROI are vital.
How to Track Visitors coming from Different Outbound Channels?
There are now several tools and software to track marketing endeavours. Many of them are completely free and offer excellent insights into the campaigns. Google Analytics is one of the most widely used analytics tools.
The tool offers tracking parameters known as UTM parameters which can be used by website owners to track the traffic coming from all the different outbound marketing channels.
Wrapping it Up
While outbound marketing is not as popular as it used to be a few years ago due to the different inbound marketing channels now available, it is still used very effectively by a lot of websites. As an affiliate website owner, you should focus on creating a dynamic blend of inbound and outbound marketing to let the website benefit from all the different channels.
While it is not possible to master the outbound channels mentioned here in a day or two, educate yourself as much as possible and understand what will work best for your website. Try all the different channels and then pick ones that deliver the best results. Improve them further, and over time, your website can receive a much higher number of visitors and much better affiliate earnings.
All the different marketing channels have their own metrics which should be regularly tracked to improve the campaigns further. For instance, in case of email marketing, metrics like open rate, click-through rate, list grow rate, bounce rate, conversion rate, and overall ROI are vital.
How to Track Visitors coming from Different Outbound Channels?
There are now several tools and software to track marketing endeavours. Many of them are completely free and offer excellent insights into the campaigns. Google Analytics is one of the most widely used analytics tools.
The tool offers tracking parameters known as UTM parameters which can be used by website owners to track the traffic coming from all the different outbound marketing channels.
Wrapping it Up
While outbound marketing is not as popular as it used to be a few years ago due to the different inbound marketing channels now available, it is still used very effectively by a lot of websites. As an affiliate website owner, you should focus on creating a dynamic blend of inbound and outbound marketing to let the website benefit from all the different channels.
While it is not possible to master the outbound channels mentioned here in a day or two, educate yourself as much as possible and understand what will work best for your website. Try all the different channels and then pick ones that deliver the best results. Improve them further, and over time, your website can receive a much higher number of visitors and much better affiliate earnings.