Digital Content Marketing: Why Email Is Your Secret Weapon for Content Amplification

You’ve done the hard work of creating a fantastic piece of digital content marketing, but now you may be wondering: Why is nobody reading it?

As content marketers, we’ve all experienced that frustration when your audience simply isn’t finding that meaty eBook or blog that you know they’ll love. But disheartenment is just the tip of the iceberg—when expensive and time-consuming content campaigns don’t generate the traffic and engagement you expected, it can jeopardize your future content budgets. (Not to mention put you in a tricky spot with higher-ups).

Here’s the good news—your distribution strategy can change all that, starting with strategic digital content marketing with email.

Content Campaigns + Email Marketing = Perfect Match

“Wait, don’t we all hate email?” you may ask. Contrary to how you may feel about your overflowing inbox, research has shown that email marketing remains one of the most effective tactics in marketers’ arsenals—in fact, you can expect an impressive $36 ROI for every $1 spent.

When you amplify your digital content marketing efforts with email, you benefit from the following:

• Greater engagement from your existing audience. Email lets you nurture a personal connection with an audience who has willingly opted to have your content delivered straight to their inboxes. Your content has an opportunity to unlock higher engagement rates and increased brand visibility, as well as maximize the likelihood of conversions.
• New valuable insights. Thanks to email tracking and analytics capabilities, you can gain valuable insights into your audience’s behavior and preferences, ultimately empowering you to refine your content strategy.
• An extended content lifespan. By amplifying your content with email, you’re essentially making your content work harder for longer. In other words, you may have spent the same amount of time and resources on content creation, but now you’re getting more traffic and engagement.

Amplify Digital Content Marketing With Email: 5 Tactics for Beginners

Pat yourself on the back—creating the content is half the battle. But now comes the real challenge: Turning your big rock digital content marketing into bite-sized, email-friendly teasers.

These five tactics are designed to not only keep your subscribers interested in your content but also help build a stronger relationship with them.

1. Send newsletters teasing new content.

Email newsletters are one of the best ways to share snippets of your latest content and encourage subscribers to visit your site for more. But with so many email newsletters bombarding our inboxes, it can be tricky to stand out from the crowd. Make sure to:

• Use a catchy subject line that balances urgency with value to entice subscribers to open the email.
• Add eye-catching visuals, especially if you’re highlighting data. Graphics, charts, and images make your newsletter more visually appealing and help convey the value of the content.
• Don’t neglect your call to action. Whether it’s “Read More,” “Get Exclusive Access,” or “Download Now,” your CTA should be clear and prominent.
• Create a sense of exclusivity by offering exclusive sneak peeks or early access to new content.

Here’s an example of how you may pique your audience’s interest with teaser content:

2. Create roundups of top performers.

Another way to revive your oldies but goodies is by curating email roundups. Simply choose a theme (e.g., “digital content marketing guides for beginners” or “our top blogs in 2023 you may have missed”), then select a handful of relevant content links to include in the list.

3. Send webinar follow-ups.

After wrapping up a webinar, take the opportunity to connect with your leads post-event. Follow up with attendees and no-shows by sending an email with bonus content (e.g., a downloadable resource) that complements what they’ve just learned.

This is a great way to amplify your digital content marketing campaigns while making webinar attendees feel appreciated for their time.

4. Create an email series.

If you have a hefty eBook or blog post, consider dividing the high-level takeaways into different components of an email series.

By breaking down the content into more digestible pieces, you keep your audience engaged over time and allow them to consume the content at their own pace. Each email should offer valuable insights, encourage subscribers to check out more on your site, and remind them to tune in the next day for more.

5. Nurture leads with content.

Encouraging leads to move down the sales funnel doesn’t have to be a snooze-fest or a neverending sales pitch—in fact, nobody wants to read an email nurture that reads like a corporate drone’s memo.

Instead, try to infuse these emails with content so that they genuinely educate and entertain. By providing value-driven content, you can build a relationship of trust and credibility with your leads, making them more likely to become loyal customers in the long run.

Even better, segment your leads so you can deliver content tailored to their needs, wants, and interests.

From Inbox Zero to Content Hero

Despite the high ROI that email offers, average email open rates hover at around 21.5%—which means your biggest challenge revolves around ensuring that your unopened emails don’t end up in the junk or trash folder.

So, take the time to A/B test your subject lines. They should be engaging, creative, and concise enough to inspire a click. Also, explore different email types to determine which successfully grabs your audience’s attention and encourages them to explore more of your content.

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