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This post was written in partnership with Constant Contact but all opinions are 100% my own.
Want to up your email marketing game? Find out how Constant Contact helps you stay in touch with your audience, do more business online and build your brand!
If you’re a blogger, you know that there’s a lot more that goes into than just, well, blogging! Writing the blog posts and taking the photos are only part of it.
There aren’t enough hours in the day to keep up with social media, planning editorial calendars, sending regular emails, updating old posts and the rest. The list goes on and on and I’m always looking for ways to get more organized and make these tasks easier.
That’s why I recently made the switch to Constant Contact. I’d already heard good things about them so I knew they were an online marketing company that I could trust. With everything they offer, from email marketing, ecommerce integration and more, it seemed like it would be a great fit.
EMail Marketing
Anyone can tell you that email marketing is a vital part of any online business. For me, it’s how I continue to build my brand and stay in touch with my readers.
I was drawn to the fact that Constant Contact makes email marketing so easy. Not only do they have a ton of helpful tools in one place but they have experts behind the scenes that know marketing inside and out. I had a feeling they’d be able to deliver results.
When the time came to make the switch, it was so much easier than I expected. I just uploaded my email list and was immediately ready to create my next email marketing campaign.
The first order of business was choosing a template. There are hundreds of pre-designed templates to choose from so it didn’t take long to find one I liked.
Once I made my selection, the next step was to customize it. These templates allow you to easily add or delete text boxes and images or create new sections entirely. You can also upload your logo and it’ll show up at the top of all future emails.
Other options included…
- Adding social share buttons
- A share button for readers to share my newsletter with friends
- Video links with image
- The ability to pull in additional content from my blog or social media
- Adding polls and/or surveys
- Inserting a “read more” section to pull from web or social content
- Adding coupons to reward loyal readers
- Including blocks for Shopify, WooCommerce, Eventbrite & more
Once I put together my email plan, I could to move on and create automated welcome emails, optins and landing pages. I could also do the thing I was most excited about, integrating my new Etsy shop.
ECommerce Integration
Besides making regular email easier, another big bonus to using Constant Contact is the ability to integrate my Etsy shop. I’ve only been at it a few months and since I’m new to selling online, I’ve been trying to determine the best way to market it.
Once I connected my shop, I could collect contact information from both new and returning customers. I could also segment my customers based on their interests and purchase histories. From there I customized automated welcome emails and created a variety of landing pages. If all goes according to plan, this will lead to new sales.
I’ve set it up to automatically email customers who have abandoned their carts. Maybe they meant to come back and forgot…sometimes they just need a little nudge.
I’ve just gotten started but I can already see how these tools work together to help me sell more online, both from new and existing customers. I want to keep that cash flowing and inventory moving!
Social Media Marketing
Keeping up with social media can be a full-time job in itself but using Constant Contact can consolidate it to make it more manageable! I’m able to connect my Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn to find a new audience, schedule my content and respond when someone mentions or tags me in a conversation.
I can even use the Constant Contact app to keep up with my social media when I’m not at home. You can usually find me posting to Facebook or Instagram when I’m parked in the carpool lane waiting for the kids to get out of school.
When I’m not posting, I can see how things are going by checking my social analytics and engagement. I’m hoping that the more I use this feature, the more my numbers will grow.
Excellent Support
One of my favorite things about switching to Constant Contact is the awesome support I’ve received. Once I’d signed up for a trial, one of the marketing coaches reached out to me to see if I had questions or needed help getting started.
He was extremely knowledgeable and guided me through the different ways that they could help me to grow my online business.
When I had a question the next day, I was able to call his direct line, without any of the long wait times or computer prompts that I’ve come to expect when calling customer service. Being able to instantly reach a live person when I need help or have questions is worth signing up for Constant Contact alone.
Soon afterwards, I made an appointment to speak with my marketing advisor, Sarah. While there are a lot of benefits to working with Constant Contact, having my own marketing advisor is one of my favorites!
I was still unsure if I was taking advantage of all the tools available to market my Etsy shop. Sarah had so many great suggestions! Because she knows Constant Contact inside and out, she was able to share new ideas and help me implement strategies for using it to grow my business.
In fact, we set another meeting for the following week to build upon these strategies. Learning a new marketing system can be a challenge but it’s a great feeling to know I have someone there to help every step of the way.
Create A New Website
While I’m way too busy to do it during the holiday season, the thought of creating a second site has crossed my mind a lot lately. I’ve been wanting to try a more niched site and when January rolls around, I may just do it.
I’m not all that tech-savvy though and while I’m a creative person, web design is a completely different thing. Constant Contact’s Website Builder makes it easy to create a personalized site that’s also mobile-responsive. This is super important since more people visit sites from their phones than computers these days.
You can use Constant Contact to find a new domain or even create a new logo.
Even if you don’t have a lot of extra time (story of my life), their tools make it simple to set up a site in minutes. Just follow the prompts and if you need help, there are plenty of tutorials to guide you through.
Last time I did this, I paid a designer a lot of money to do it for me. It’s much more budget-friendly this way and I’m looking forward to giving it a try.
User Friendly
While I love that there’s so much you can do with Constant Contact, none of that matters if it’s not user friendly. I’ve been guilty of trying new platforms but then giving up when it gets too complicated. There are only so many hours in the day and I don’t have the extra time (or the patience).
Putting together emails used to be a task that I put off because it took me so long to finish. Now, it’s easy enough I don’t even mind doing it first. I can work on it while I’m having my morning coffee and have it done before my mug is even empty!
The app is as user friendly as the website. Not only do I use it for creating social posts while I wait in the carpool lane at school, but I can also check-in to see how my emails are performing while I watch my girls play at the park.
I’m already getting so much more done and I’m just getting started. It’s a great feeling because I need all the help I can get!
What things are you looking forward to doing with Constant Contact? Check them out online or give them a call to find out how they can help you grow your online presence.
