How to Make Email Marketing Stand Out

Q: I own a high-end men’s store and have been sending emails featuring my products and events for years. Many on my email list are also on the lists of national retailers and e-tailers and even receive emails from some of the manufacturers I carry. What more can I do to make my emails stand out?

John Fell: The brands you carry and services you provide might be the finest available in your community but unfortunately they are not exclusive to your store.

Your opportunity is branding your value proposition beyond the products and services you provide. Consider Third Place Marketing. The concept of third place was defined by Starbucks to provide their customer with a place to congregate away from home or work. Starbucks embraced this philosophy to fuel its growth for the last 30 years. Historically, independent men’s stores have provided this special place since day one and continue to do so.

Marketing this “special place” is a simple process. Define your store’s personality — the intangible that is a combination of you, your people and your store’s ambiance. Send an occasional email to market your store’s personality and convey to your customers the good feelings that you provide. The call to action is to make the customer smile and remind him why he shops in your store.

Share your content on your blog and social media. Not only will you give your customers the opportunity to share your store with his friends, but posting these emails on Facebook will get the likes and comments necessary to boost your Facebook page impressions.

To see some email examples of stores using email marketing to convey their personality, read our recent blog post.