Email marketing

I'm really excited about this part of the program because email marketing is one of those tools that can just make such a difference when it comes to connecting with clients or students. If you're an educator, growing your business and also keeping your bookings filled now it's also something so many nail techs really aren't leveraging. Everyone spends so much time focusing on social media as their only marketing tool. But I, I'm going to share with you why it is so important to use a mix of marketing inside your business and specifically email marketing. So what exactly is email marketing first of all and why is it so powerful for now businesses? Well, in simple terms, email marketing is a way to send targeted messages directly to your clients inboxes. So think about it. Social media is amazing. But not every post reaches every follower due to each platform's algorithm. So sometimes you can put a post on social media, it might only reach like 10, 20% max of your following. But with email, you've got a direct line to your client's inbox in the order that you send the emails, meaning that you are reaching them in a more personal space. And you know that that email is going to land in the email. It's just a case of whether or not they open it. And there are much higher chances they're actually going to see it on the emails than with social media because there is no set algorithm. Now here are some interesting statistics to go with that. So let's say for example, you have got an Instagram following of 2,500 people. On average, 200 people are viewing your content. And on average three to five of those people will convert to a client or a student or a buyer. On the other hand, if you have an email list of 2500 people, on average 750 of those people, that's 30% are opening and reading your email. Sometimes it's more. And out of that 30%, 10%, which is 75 people, will actually click on the links inside it. Social media platforms are also owned by the platform, not you. So you could wake up any one day and your social media platform could have been removed or deleted. I have actually seen this happen before. All of your work, all of your followers, all of those links to communicate with your audience has just been lost and there is literally nothing you can sometimes do about it. But with an email list, once you have captured that data from those clients, that list is yours. It is owned by you. And if you ever were for any reason to lose access to your social media profiles, you're still able to communicate or sell to your audience. So let's just take a moment to talk about the types of emails that you might already be sending through your booking system. So things like appointment reminders or confirmations. Now these are known as transactional emails and they are important because they are keeping your clients up to date with their appointments. So that information is really important so that they show up. However, they are quite basic and they don't really allow you a lot of creative freedom, which is where a dedicated email platform comes in. So with a platform like mailchimp or Flu Desk, which I will go into, you are able to send much more than just appointment confirmations. These tools open the door to gorgeous branded emails that can really actually engage your clients. Like sharing updates, promoting special offers, or even just sending a message to check in with clients who haven't booked in for a while. And the best part is that email platforms offer different features that make it really easy to do all of this in a way that's professional, streamlined and visually appealing. Now, one of the best benefits of a dedicated email marketing system is segmentation. I love this feature about email marketing. So this means that you can group clients together based on certain factors, like whether or not they're regulars, like based on whether they are occasion clients, whether they are clients who only ever have a particular service. For example, be up clients or nail clients if you offer other treatments. So you can have groups of clients for different things. Now having those groups means you can send messages tailored to each group. So you are making sure that clients receive content that are actually relevant to them, rather than just sending out blank emails that might not really resonate with them. And that is so important for building trust, building engagement, and also to have effective market. And it's important that you're sending the right message to the right person. Now another huge plus is automation. So platforms like mailchimp and Flodesk actually allow you to create automated email sequence. So for example, you can set up a welcome email that goes out automatically to new clients, or re engagement emails that reach out to clients who haven't booked in a certain amount of time. Now can we just imagine these emails going out automatically without you even having to do anything? So if a client hasn't visited for a few months, they get an automatic email without you having to keep tabs on that. Now these kinds of emails help keep your business on the radar of the client without you actually having to spend time doing that. And after you've initially set it up, now these platforms Also track really important metrics, so they can track things like how many clients opened your email, how many people clicked on a link, or even booked an appointment from that email. So all of that just helps you to see what resonates with your audience and what might need a little tweaking. So if you've automated an email that has a high click percentage, for example, and off the back of that a high book and rate you, you know that you can create more emails like this one because it actually works. Now let's also talk about the two platforms that I've recommended. So mailchimp and flodesk. Now both of these are fantastic. I've seen both of them run amazingly, but they do each have their own unique strengths. So I'll break that down and then you can decide what is best for you. Now, first of all, you've got mailchimp. So mailchimp is one of the most popular email platforms out there, and that's for good reason, I would say. So it's known for having a balance between creativity and a more advanced functionality. So with mailchimp you get access to an in depth analytics section. So you've got a wide variety of things like templates and the ability to create really detailed target campaigns to segmented audiences. Mailchimp also integrates with loads of different booking systems, so if you want to sync your client data seamlessly, then this is going to be an amazing option. Plus, mailchimp has flexible pricing, so it includes a free plan for those of you just getting started. Or if you have an existing client base, then it might start to charge you depending on how many people you've got on your list. Now, flodesk. Flodesk is a newer platform and it's designed with creatives in mind, so it makes it a popular choice for me beauty professionals for this reason, what really sets flodesk apart, I feel, is the way it's got really modern templates and you'll see that if you go on and research it. So it's quite stylish, it's quite clean and it's easy to customize. I would actually say it works a little bit like Canva. So the platform itself is really user friendly. It's got a simple like drag and drop editor that makes it just easy to create professional looking emails without any considerate design experience, let's say. So Flu Desk has got a flat rate pricing model as well. So you just pay one fee and you can send unlimited emails without having to worry about the size of your client list. And growing your client list. Sorry. Is something that you will want to do because the more clients you have on your list, the more clients you're going to have sat in your seat. But the last thing you want to do is worry about growing that client list because your email marketing platform is going to start charging you a fortune. This one won't do that. So to sum it up, if you want a user friendly platform with really stunning templates that make your emails look effortlessly professional, then Flodesk is a fantastic choice. But on the other hand, if you're looking for something that is maybe a little bit more advanced, with more advanced features like detailed report and integration, then maybe mailchimp is the better fit for you. In the end, both options can, to be honest, work really well. So I guess it's just about finding the one that feels right for you and aligns best with your business. Also, by integrating a dedicated email platform with your booking system, you're going to be creating a direct channel to reach your clients consistently. So not only are you going to be keeping clients engaged, but you're also going to help to build your brand's reputation, you're going to create trust, and you're going to encourage repeat bookings. Email marketing is such a powerful tool, so I'm excited to guide you through getting set up and using it to its full potential.