Mumbai: Sinch, the Customer Communications Cloud, powers meaningful conversations at scale across messaging, voice, and email to help businesses deliver unified, personalised experiences that truly revolve around their customers — no matter the channels they use.
The government has been coming down very strongly on spam messages and calls. The increase in messaging platforms and the changing regulatory landscape have proven that email is still the most effective marketing channel to deliver relevant, focused, personalised messages directly to audiences.
2022 witnessed the rise of newer email concepts like BIMI, AMP emails, and zero-party data. Between last year’s Apple MPP announcement and next year’s proposed security changes, opens are losing their reliability as a performance metric. Google Chrome will likely stop supporting third-party cookies by 2024. However AI being extensively used by companies, it allows the creation of highly personalised campaigns that are more effective than ever before.
Indiantelevision.com caught up with Sinch India chief business officer Samarth Saxena in a virtual chat on effective marketing channels to deliver relevant, focused, personalised messages directly to audiences.
Edited excerpts
On Sinch as an enabler for technology platforms
Sinch powers meaningful conversations between businesses and their customers through its customer communications cloud. More than 150,000 businesses – including many of the world’s largest tech companies – rely on Sinch and its global super network, the most secure and reliable network for messaging, voice, and email. Sinch has been profitable and fast-growing since it was founded in 2008. It is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, with shares traded at NASDAQ Stockholm: XSTO: SINCH
On email marketing remaining the most effective channel in the long term when it comes to business and other communications
Email marketing as we know it today has outgrown the traditional definition. It is no longer just about shooting bulk emails to a database. It is much more. It has survived the test of time ever since the first mass mail was sent out in 1978. As compared to other channels, email gives the best possible return on investment and that is a huge driver for the channel to thrive.
In the long-term, brands can leverage email to its fullest capability by working on a few fronts now, such as determining an email deliverability budget and using advanced tools such as Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI), wherein the brand’s identity is established by placing a logo next to the subject line in the inbox. This authenticates that the sender is genuine and makes the recipient more likely to click. This addresses security concerns and will help businesses make the most of their email strategy, making it an effective and bankable channel.
Further, email marketing automation is a game-changer as it takes personalisation and context to an entirely new level. Marketers are now segregating audiences based on their behaviour, sentiment, shopping preferences, location, season, climate, income, and many other categories. It only goes on to show that email has the potential to establish a sound footing even in years to come.
On other channels emerging as competitors for email
Email is among the most effective and time-tested mediums. Yet, we cannot discount the power of social media such as Instagram, and Facebook which are some of the newer business marketing channels to reach the mass audience, targeting prospects with respect to their age, gender, demography, geographic location or even interests and job roles. With social media marketing, brands can produce relevant content, and share it with their followers thereby garnering higher reach which can eventually tap new customers. When used as a recruitment tool, it can bring your business a suitable candidate for a job role. That said, email marketing in 2023 is a competitive and complex but advantageous marketing channel that brands must use purposefully and consistently.
On new technologies or trends which have emerged in the recent past and the way forward in terms of technology that will emerge
Email marketing has undergone significant evolution over time, adapting to changing technologies and behaviours. Despite the emergence of new communication channels, email remains a highly effective tool for businesses to connect with their audience. Success in this area depends on a variety of cutting-edge capabilities such as implementing real-time email verification, monitoring IP and domain reputation, using email previews, seeking personalised consultation, and utilising email deliverability suite which are valuable strategies to enhance campaign effectiveness and return on investment.
On chatbots and virtual assistants fitting into email marketing strategies
Using chatbots to help with email and data collection is one of the most efficient uses when it comes to email marketing. For instance, when a customer or prospect is interacting with a chatbot, it can automatically and non-intrusively ask for email addresses.
Any successful email strategy must start with a sizable database of email addresses, but this is frequently the trickiest part of the process. For this reason, any organisation may benefit greatly from the automation of email capture.
Chatbots can handle everything from email capture to segmentation, freeing up human resources to focus on key projects and focus areas. Additionally, if you have a diverse customer base, chatbots can offer valuable multi-language support to help you engage with them more effectively.
On AMP emails and zero-party data can help to deliver a better customer experience in email marketing
Certainly! By combining the power of Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) emails and leveraging zero-party data, businesses can create better email experiences that are engaging, personalised, and relevant. AMP framework allows for interactive and dynamic content in emails, enabling recipients to interact directly without leaving their inboxes. Users can perform important tasks like confirming registrations, making appointments, providing feedback, and completing forms within the email itself, leading to a more immersive experience. And as for Zero party data, it has become essential in digital strategies for it helps organisations adapt to the decline of third-party cookies. By collecting data directly from customers, businesses can personalize their communications without compromising privacy. This approach eliminates any concerns about being invasive, as the information is willingly shared by the customer. It provides clarity for brands seeking to tailor the customer journey effectively.
On privacy concerns when it comes to email marketing
BIMI addresses privacy concerns related to phishing and spamming. The advanced tools it utilises can place a logo next to the subject line in the inbox, which helps verify that the sender is legitimate. This method can increase the chances of the recipient clicking on the email, making it a highly effective way to establish a brand’s identity.
It is important to mention here that, unlike a fly-by-night provider that can be identified by meagre rates and lack of transparency on factors such as data storage and details of the process to be deployed, a credible email marketing solution provider would work transparently and collaboratively. Such service providers often provide smart DIY options wherein the marketers can completely control brand identity, content, and data security and residency.
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