How to integrate social and email campaigns

Social networking may not have reached the tipping point quite yet, but it is nearly there. With so many consumers logging on to social networks, is there a way to coordinate social and email campaigns for a greater campaign ROI? There are several possible ways to integrate these campaigns.

by Kristina Knight

Fist, the statistics. According to a recent report from MarketTools, about 70% of adults in the US are familiar with social networks. Many of these consumers are visiting blogs and online communities.

The first way that social and email campaigns can be integrated, then, is through the blog and community space. Nothing is stronger than a friend's recommendation for a new product. Social net workers are blogging about their favorite products and offering their insights for unique uses for some of them. By opening a branded blog or a community network around a product, marketers can use the positive comments and ideas that consumers write about in a newsletter or campaign email.

Also, invite consumers to share email and give them incentives for doing so. Email is a viral component in the online marketing world. Consumers forward emails and share information; by providing consumers incentives to do something they are already likely doing, it encourages them to return to the site to shop and share more often.