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Last month I wrote about my trip to the Atlanta Digital Summit, and how we saw and learned quite a bit in the short time it lasted.

One of the things that struck me was the important part email is playing in digital marketing. 

Every year for at least the past 7 or so, there are critics who come out and say that e-mail is officially dead, and being replaced by (fill in the social media du jure). 

It never happens. And I don’t foresee it happening anytime soon. As a matter of fact, the opposite is actually true.

Email remains one of the most effective tools in your dealership’s arsenal of marketing tools, and a lot of dealers aren’t using it, or are not making the best use of it.

Here are some interesting stats about e-mail:

72% of consumers say that email is their favored conduit of communication with companies they do business with.  -MarketingSherpa

61% say they like to receive promotional emails WEEKLY, and 28% want them even more frequently. -MarketingSherpa 

53% of emails are now opened on mobile devices. -Campaign Monitor

23% of readers who open an email on a mobile device open it again later. -Campaign Monitor

92% of online adults use email, with 61% using it daily. -Pew Research

For every $1 spent, email generates $38 in ROI. -Campaign Monitor

Email marketing drives more conversions than any other marketing channel, including search and social. -Monetate

I could go on a lot longer, but it’s pretty easy to see what I mean. Email marketing is stronger than ever, and can be a pretty amazing way to generate sales and profits if executed properly. 

The challenge is, how do you execute it properly?

At Powersports Marketing, we believe that email marketing works, and we also believe in living what we preach. That means that if you ever hear us telling you that you should be doing something, you can rest assured that we are doing it ourselves.

When it comes to email marketing, we do it. A lot of it. If we have your email address, you already know that. 

We use email marketing because it is a proven winner. It’s a great way to get a direct response marketing message directly to a prospect. According to a Forrester Research study, better than 90% of emails get to an intended recipient’s inbox, vs. 2% in a Facebook feed.

But back to the how…

Frankly, it can be very intimidating. I remember 7 years ago when we made the commitment to consistent email marketing. I’d sit down in front of my computer, looking at a blank screen, trying to come up with something meaningful to say. It was tough.

As time went by, we all got better at it, and it’s turned out to be a really great way to communicate with our regular clients and prospects. We send out emails and the number of replies we get is pretty cool to see. And yes, many of the responses are folks saying they want to participate in campaigns we are running, or sign up for our LWD program. 

I’m being transparent here, but that’s how it’s supposed to work. And it does.

I’m saying that because it can and will work that way for you as a dealer just as well. In a passion based industry, people WANT to hear from you. Let them.

You also have an advantage that we didn’t have when we got started. You have the ability to use Firestorm, the first email program designed specifically for the powersports industry BY industry experts and enthusiasts.

That’s a big deal, because the only thing as bad as staring at a blank screen to try and muster up your mojo, is trying to figure out how to make some generic, somewhat feminine, non-awe-inspiring, lukewarm template look “powersports-ish” AND get some mojo going. Am I right?

The cool thing about Firestorm is that it has totally customizable premade templates designed specifically for the powersports industry that get you inspired just by looking at them.

You won’t have to worry about what to say, because the graphics start the conversation for you. It’s awesome.

Even better news is that Firestorm is currently being offered at no additional charge for LWD clients, so if you are a current client – try it! If you aren’t a current client, now is the perfect time to become one and get one of the greatest marketing tools in our industry at no additional charge.

Do me a favor, add me to your email list when you give it a shot: bcannon@powersportsmarketing.com. I’d love to see what you come up with.

I’d love to hear (and see) your success stories. Another great time to tell me how it works for you is at our Fall Marketing Boot Camp. It’ll be a great time to share with me as well as with other dealers from across the country, and learn more about marketing strategies that work, backed up by real world stories and data.

See you this fall.