When it comes to connecting with customers on a personal level, email is a critical tool for organizations of every size – and it can particularly make or break small businesses. Email marketing allows businesses to share timely messages with customers and support sales funnel growth. Solutions such as MailChimp, which offer list management, campaign creation and reporting features (among others) are designed to help such businesses turn their inboxes into sales powerhouses. However, as email produces greater ROI for companies, email marketing platforms are constantly evolving – and as a result, some longtime users aren’t using solutions like MailChimp to their fullest potential.
We asked our customers: what’s your favorite ROI hack for MailChimp and Insightly? Below are their top responses, and three ways you can start using the integrated solutions to increase your email marketing value today:
- Cut repetition by sharing contacts between MailChimp and your CRM.
When you import your MailChimp subscriber lists to Insightly as new contacts, and export leads from your CRM to MailChimp, you immediately broaden the amount of people you’re reaching on an ongoing basis – and save yourself the hassle of repeating work between platforms. Even better, you can schedule regular imports from MailChimp, and never worry about letting a new lead go cold again.
- Communicate with your qualified leads on an individual level.
Recently, Derrick Duplessy, founder of Scream Club and host of the Purpose Rockstar podcast, realized he needed a creative way to connect with his email subscribers. He sent one simple message – a “gratitude email” – thanking his extended contacts for their engagement and asking what they’d been up to lately. The results floored him – with more than 50 responses, five invitations to connect in person and five new sales on his results list (as well as eight babies born among his contacts), Duplessy realized he’d hit the reader engagement nail on the head.
Using MailChimp and Insightly together, you can segment your contact list to find the perfect readers with which to engage, send emails ranging from gratitude check-ins to any messages in Insightly’s vast library templates, then use your CRM to track responses and results. Not only can your actions lead to sales, they’ll promote loyal customer relationships on a long-term basis. (And, as in Duplessy’s case, you might wind up with more than 500 percent more happiness in your startup life.)
- Analyze data to constantly improve your campaigns.
An email newsletter and outreach program can be the ultimate communication and sales tool for SMBs and B2B organizations alike. According to Bredin, SMBs increasingly prefer engaging with vendors through email newsletters. In one survey, 25 percent of organizations rated email newsletters as a top way to receive business management tips and advice; in another, SMBs rated email third out of 33 different information sources from which they learn about products and services for their business. By updating MailChimp user information with CRM data and leveraging the platform’s in-depth segmentation features, you can ensure that your email newsletters are reaching customers on the devices, schedules and channels they prefer.
Interested in more ways you can use MailChimp and Insightly? Check it out HERE.
At Insightly, we offer a CRM used by small and mid-sized businesses from a variety of verticals. Learn about all of Insightly’s features and plans on our pricing page or sign up for a free trial.
