What's Old is New Again - Email Marketing Works

Email dates back to the 1960s, yet it is still one of the most reliable and effective means of communicating to diverse audiences. A recent Adobe survey on email usage found adults 18 and over spend 6 hours of day on email (split evenly between work and personal email - see infographic below).

So, if you're thinking about to use email to spread the word about an event or new program, here are a few things to keep in mind.

Purpose

It sounds pretty simple, but it's often the most overlooked part of an email campaign. In marketing lingo, it's your "Call-To-Action." Typically the "CTA" in the email is a link you want the viewer to click on: to your event's website, to an application, to a registration form, etc.

Platform

UTSA Outlook email can be fine for simple email communications. However, 3rd party email vendors (for example, VPSA Media now uses Constant Contact) typically provide data on your email marketing campaign: number of opens, click-throughs, link precedence, etc.

These 3rd party email platforms can help you build a more successful email marketing campaign. For example, you could follow-up your initial email with a 2nd email to only those who didn't open your 1st email, or send a reminder email to those who clicked-through on a particular link in your email, or learn about which links are the most frequently clicked, etc.

Format

You can use either plain text or HTML - the language of the web. HTML emails can contain images and other rich formating. If you use HTML, remember that many email packages automatically hide images and graphic elements, so if all your event information is contained inside an image or graphic, it might not be viewed by your target audience. Instead, consider adding the event name and details in plain text alongside the image or graphic you spent hours crafting.

If you would like assistance with an email marketing campaign, contact VPSA Media and we can help you craft a strategy for your particular need.

Submitted by —
Sean Burns
Senior Associate Director - Digital Marketing
Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs