Why Targeted Email Marketing Should be in Your Inbox

Background:  Each year, 7,500 Oklahomans die from a smoking-related illness, according to figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Additionally, smoking costs Oklahoma $1.62 billion in related healthcare costs each year.

Program background:  The Oklahoma Tobacco Helpline (OTH) was created from funds allocated to the Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust (TSET) through the Master Settlement Agreement. Since 2003, OTH has served more than 350,000 Oklahomans. We consider there to be two types of email marketing - organic, cultivated lists, and lead generating. We have utilized the latter for OTH and seen impressive results. With the exponential growth of big data, behavioral, demographic and interest-based data points can now be tied to an email address. Marketers can then purchase a list of email addresses to target a specific group of individuals. For the Helpline, we were able to target smokeless tobacco users in Oklahoma during Through With Chew week, and send resources directly to their inboxes. This helped cut down on waste by knowing the recipients are likely in need of our services. Because an average of 269 billion emails are sent every day (DMR Stats), it is important to be relevant and resourceful in the execution of an email campaign. We utilized clear, actionable subject lines to ensure higher open rates. Our emails have minimal copy and focus on a single call-to-action so that users are clear as to what we’re asking them to do. Because emails are opened on mobile 45% of the time on average (Adestra), we designed the most important information to appear above the scroll line. Email is more successful when executed in a larger strategy. We utilized remarketing through Facebook. This allowed us to reach people with Facebook ads who had clicked on our email. For optimal results, it is important to not use tactics in silos.

Evaluation Methods and Results:  120,000 emails were sent to people identified as smokeless tobacco users. Of those, 15,952 were opened, equating to a 13.29% open rate. This initiative drove 891 sessions to the Helpline’s website. 96% of those sessions came from new users, or people who had not previously visited the Helpline website. Users spent an average of 1:24 on the website and visited an average of 2.19 pages. The email led to 38 conversions (Helpline sign-ups, clicks-to-call and requested calls). That equates to a 4.26% conversion rate, meaning that nearly four and half percent of people who visited the website through the email requested services immediately. The Facebook remarketing drove and additional 293 website sessions, 7 conversions and a 2.39% conversion rate.

Conclusions:  By strategically reaching our target audience where they are with clear and concise messaging, 45 smokeless tobacco users in Oklahoma requested the help they needed to quit. 

Implications for research and/or practice:  When used in a larger, overarching strategy, email marketing can be a highly effective way to reach your audience and drive action.