There’s no disputing that email remains one of the best tools for prospect outreach and marketing. What is often debated, however, is the difference between cold email vs email marketing. Is there a difference? Could you simply use the two interchangeably, or are there nuances that differentiate them?
Many people simply switch one out for another. They shouldn’t. There are definite differences between the two. In this article, we’ll explore those differences. You’ll learn why cold email vs. email marketing has become an issue. Plus, you’ll discover how to use both effectively in your business.
- The different definitions of cold email and email marketing.
- Advantages and limitations of both methods.
- How can you use both methods successfully?
Definitions and Key Characteristics
The first step in understanding the differences between the two methods of email is to look at the definitions of both.
Cold Email
Businesses send cold emails as a form of direct outreach. The outreach email is sent to prospects that have had zero interaction with the business before. Cold emails come in many different forms, and their content varies depending on the goal. Some simply introduce the company and aim to build a relationship. Others are more pitch-based.
Cold email success relies heavily on grabbing the reader’s attention. It also requires captivating them with a unique value proposition. These emails also find success when they are personalized to the recipient.
Email Marketing
Where cold emails are sent to prospects who don’t know about the brand or business, email marketing relies on a list of subscribers. These subscribers have chosen to hear from the brand and are willing to accept marketing materials.
An email marketing campaign seeks to nurture a relationship with a follower or previous customer. They may send additional value, build customer loyalty, or aim to drive additional sales.
Businesses must get prior consent for email marketing to comply with regulations like CAN-SPAM and GDPR. The benefit of prior consent is that you know more about the user. You can tailor your content specifically to them and, therefore, deliver more relevant value. That’s even more powerful when combined with audience segmentation and personalization.
The Advantages of Cold Email and Email Marketing
There are reasons why you should undertake both methods of email. This shouldn’t be seen as an either-or situation. Instead, consider how you can integrate both cold email and email marketing into your business to maximize impact.
Advantages of Cold Email
Cold email allows you to connect with people and businesses that you haven’t yet had the opportunity to. Each response and conversation that you have is an expansion of your network.
It is particularly effective when used on an individual basis. Personalized, individual emails have a relatively high chance of lead generation. At a comparatively low cost, too.
Advantages of Email Marketing
Email marketing is one of the best ways of keeping a line of communication open with your subscribed audience. That makes it a great method to encourage customer loyalty and reinforce the perception of your brand.
Both cold email and email marketing are even more powerful when paired with analytical data and tracking. Email marketing provides a plethora of valuable insights. After a few emails are sent, you can interrogate the data to discover customer behavior and the effectiveness of your campaign. That data can then influence future campaigns and take your next emails to a higher level.
Challenges and Limitations
Both methods sound great and can have incredible results. They are not, however, without their limitations and challenges.
Cold Email Challenges
The main barrier to success in cold email campaigns is the response rate. Cold emails are rarely responded to. There have been multiple studies on cold email response rate, but most agree that around 1% is to be expected. Some suggest as high as 8%. Either way, the response rate is low, and without responses, the campaign doesn’t achieve much success. Most of the time, response and open rates are low because people see cold emails as unwelcome, intrusive interruptions.
The best way to overcome this is to focus on delivering value that resonates. Ensure that there is mutual benefit in your cold email rather than just trying to sell products or services.
Email Marketing Challenges
As your audience grows, a major challenge is relevance. You’ll quickly find that your audience is diverse and might be using your product or services for different reasons. It’s your job to segment the audience so that your campaigns are as relevant as possible.
Another challenge is keeping the audience engaged. The solution is the same as above. That does mean sending creative content regularly. That takes considerable work.
Whatever email you send, it’s crucial you adhere to compliance as mentioned above. Even if you forget to and are sending legitimate emails in a non-compliant way, you can face serious penalties and fines.
The key to success with both is to be strategic in your execution and planning phase. Use cold emailing as a way of introducing yourself and your business. Begin a relationship with the prospect and then build engagement through email marketing.
Key Takeaways
If you’re debating cold email vs email marketing, you’re going after an argument that doesn’t need to happen. An effective business will employ both methods to achieve its business growth goals.
- Both cold email and email marketing have the best results when combined with personalization.
- Any businesses engaging in cold email or email marketing need to understand compliance regulations.
- Engage with analytical data harvested from campaigns so that you can improve future ones.
If you’re planning to send cold emails at scale or email your thousands of subscribers, you need a tool that can help. Instantly is your best choice. It offers extensive email marketing tools. Plus, you can launch cold email campaigns confidently after a successful account warm-up process. Start today.
