Email continues to be a strong generator of website traffic and revenue, according to Email Market Study: Email Acquisition and Engagement Tactics, a study conducted by Experian Marketing Services last month. The study also demonstrates that because email communications have the ability to connect websites, mobile sites, social media channels and in-store channels, it continues to be the medium and driving force in cross-channel integration.

Cross-Channel Integration via Email Communication

The opportunities for cross-channel integration are endless. More than half of the companies surveyed currently optimize or plan to optimize emails for mobile viewers. And many companies are encouraging email recipients to connect with them on social media channels. While Facebook and Twitter are promoted in email communication most prominently, 98 percent and 91 percent respectively, YouTube (45 percent), Google+ (12 percent) and Pinterest (32 percent) are growing. Plus, if you are not promoting your blog in your email communications, like only 17 percent of companies surveyed are doing, you are missing a real opportunity for cross-channel integration.

As you can see, the proven value of email marketing makes email address acquisition a leading strategy for high return on investment. A fast and effective way to increase the size of your email database and benefit from cross-channel integration is to enlist the help of an email append service provider.

Grow Your Email List with Append Service

An email append service is fast and easy: simply provide a file of your customers’ names and postal addresses you have collected over time to your service provider of choice. The file is then matched to an opt-in database to obtain email addresses for the list you have provided. An introductory email message is sent to the matched customers requesting permission to receive email from your company, and, finally, matches and unsubscribes are collected and delivered to you.

With email append, you can build your own email list as opposed to renting a list of people who are unfamiliar with your product or service. You can also grow your email list in days rather than months, catapulting your ROI.

Ensure Correct Emails with Email Validation

However, businesses should still go about collecting emails in as many ways as possible, from inbound marketing tactics online to in-store acquisition. In fact, 78 percent of brands that operate at least one brick-and-mortar location use sales associates to collect email addresses, according to the Experian study. Surprisingly, 36 percent of brands still collect email addresses on paper or ask employees to enter them into customer relationship management (CRM) systems. These practices expose brands to a higher potential of bad email addresses and input errors.

You can reduce the risks of bad data by enlisting email validation and email correction services to fix data entry errors and keep your list clean. A good service can repair up to 15 percent of the syntax and spelling errors introduced by manual data collection, resulting in fewer lost leads, higher sales and reduced costs.

To learn more about email append or email validation services or receive a free trial, contact TowerData.

Photo Credit: TK Carsites