Think about the last sponsored ad you saw on social media. You probably saw an ad while scrolling through your Instagram feed, and you probably did just that, scrolled past it the first time you saw it. But maybe the third or fourth time you see the ad, it catches your eye and you finally digest the message and maybe even view whatever product or service is being marketed. This conversion can be considered to be based on frequency.

Now the above example may seem very rudimentary, and that’s because it is. There is an art to digital marketing over time; too frequent and you risk being labeled as spam. Too far apart and you get lost in the sea of marketing that consumers are bombarded with every single day. So how do you take advantage of time in your marketing? 

Implementing Drip Marketing

Drip marketing is a marketing strategy that sends or, “drips,” a set of messages or a marketing campaign to customers or prospects over time.This is usually associated with email marketing but with the rise of other social media, this has expanded greatly in the last couple years. This is usually done with the knowledge that not every customer is converted on their first interaction with your brand. In fact, it may take 3 or 4 times before they actually click on your advertisement. So how do you go about approaching your target market multiple times without alienating them or being too annoying?

Sales is a precise form of art, and in order to succeed you must first know your customer. After all, one sales approach may not be effective on all types of customers. In the digital marketing world, this leads to segmenting, which we touched on in a previous blog entry here. 

You’ve spent weeks with the design team and the copywriters and have the green light to start pushing that ad your team has worked so hard on that you just know is going to kill it with your target market. However, you find your campaign is falling short of expectations. This is where retargeting and repurposing can come in, as well as simply giving it a little bit longer of a time period before you deem your campaign a failure. Many times this will depend heavily on your target market and on the industry you operate in. Knowing your customer’s average purchase cycle and profile will help you immensely with this! 

As an example of the above, if you are a clothing company, your customers may be comfortable in receiving 2-3 emails a week about new products, deals, or sales. If, however, you are running a software company, your email list may not be so receptive towards multiple emails a week for something that doesn’t require frequent updates. Use your discretion when determining the frequency of your advertising based on your products, services, brand, and industry.

When To Use Drip Marketing

Drip marketing is good to use when you have already captured your target market’s attention, whether through an engagement on an Instagram ad or a signup for your email distribution list. This signals that even though your potential customer may not yet have purchased anything, they already have a preliminary interest in your product or service.

Common indicators that you can act on when utilizing drip marketing are, as stated above, ones that indicate interest. These can range from things such as an abandoned cart to a booking confirmation, an automatic renewal charge, or even an incentive for someone who has recently subscribed. These indicators allow you to know that this particular customer is engaging with your brand in some manner and will recognize and hopefully respond to your drip marketing.

Common Mistakes of Drip Marketing

• Using a no-reply email address – People respond better when companies come across as personable. This includes sending emails with an actual human behind it or a reply service enabled. 
• Lack of personalization – Along the same vein, if your emails seem generic and boring, it won’t matter how many times you send them. These types of emails have much lower response rates, and eventually your consumers will learn to not even open your emails! Try segmenting or targeting specific traits about your customer base for better results.
• Weak Call To Action (CTA) – Your emails should have a call to action somewhere in them in order to make the most of your emails; giving your customers a little subliminal push can go a long way.

Drip Marketing Summary

This has been an introductory piece to drip marketing in which we scratch the surface of the methodology and techniques. Part two will cover the basic strategies more in depth, as well as introduce some more complex strategies.

If you have any questions on setting up your own drip marketing campaign don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We would be more than happy to point you in the right direction and even set one up for you!