BrightWave's Simms Jenkins argues that -- in spite of all the hype -- when email marketing and blogs are compared, email still comes out on top.
Over the past several years, we have seen the torch passed from email marketing to wireless marketing to search marketing and most recently to the latest and greatest online marketing invention -- blogs. Blogs (short for web logs) are websites that feature content, created by individuals, journalists or corporations written in the style of diaries. After reading yet another article on the growing influence of blogs, (they even recently graced the cover of Business Week), I wanted to analyze their effectiveness as an advertising medium in comparison to email marketing.
While blogs certainly attest to the incredible distribution powers of the World Wide Web and provide an outlet for any aspiring writer or global citizen, the real issue of whether they are a viable business tool has yet to be demonstrated. The fact that many large corporations are using blogs as an additional channel to extend their brands and build loyalty indicates that there may be something to all this hype. But what that is remains to be seen.
Blogs are a great way to add some personality to your company or brand and allow for a more informal communication with your customers. But herein lies the rub: this communication is impersonal and generic. Sure, many blogs are unique in appealing to a specific market segment, but they are not individually personalized the way a one-to-one email communication can be. A blog posting by a consumer brand will be the same for a merely potential buyer as it is for a woman in Des Moines, who may be among the brand's most loyal consumers. That is the fundamental tactical difference between email marketing and blog campaigns.
The bigger issue blogs face is a strategic one, however. Why in the world would a potential customer or even a very loyal one visit a blog to decide on a purchase, learn more about a brand or waste a few minutes of their precious time? Of course, there have been some companies that have launched highly viral blogging but these have been more novelties than true relationship-builders.
If you were considering buying a plasma television, you might browse the main manufacturers’ and retailers’ websites, but would you care to read about how great their products are on their corporate blog? Probably not, but you might sign up for their promotional email newsletter that could provide that final incentive to pull the trigger on that purchase.
When I read an article a few months back titled “Bye Bye Email?” in this same publication, I felt the hype had reached a new zenith. At something called the Blog Business Summit, Chris Pirillo was quoted as saying "email marketing is dead." Um, okay. Wishful thinking, maybe. Although email marketing may have spam as its evil twin, a company with experienced managers that allow only permission-based campaigns and follow best practices will find few obstacles when compared to corporate blogs.
However, despite being in its infancy, the downside of blogs has been well documented. We've all read the same reports about employees being fired over their personal blogs. Even more recently, CNN was accused of, in essence, running a guerrilla marketing smear campaign (according to some reports, even placing detrimental comments about its own programs) on blogs that were critical of its news operation, all in order to generate a buzz about programs.
Bloggers certainly can create a ruckus, but the potential for a company to damage itself when trying to create its own buzz is too severe to invest a great deal of resources in blogging, in my opinion.
While blogs are a nice complimentary marketing tool (my company even features one), they have an uphill battle to entice consumers to engage in online dialogues with them. Just as email marketing should never be a company’s sole marketing and relationship medium, blogs should be seen as something that can enhance their brand and, perhaps, influence some individuals. However, anyone feeling that blogs will transform their bottom line with a build-it-and-they-will-come strategy will be in for a long wait.
Additional resources:
In a recent report, eMarketer agrees that businesses are not yet bloggers.
G. Simms Jenkins is Founder and Principal of BrightWave Marketing, an Atlanta based Email Marketing and Customer Relationship Services firm. He has extensive relationship marketing experience on both the client and agency side. Jenkins has led BrightWave Marketing in establishing a large client list, including marquee clients like GMAC Insurance, CoreNet Global and The Atlanta Journal - Constitution. BrightWave Marketing has become a leader in the Email Marketing outsourcing space by using their expertise in strategy, design, list management, segmenting, delivery and analysis. Jenkins has been recognized by many media outlets as an Email Marketing and CAN-SPAM expert. Prior to BrightWave Marketing, Jenkins was Director of Business Development at two high-tech start-ups and headed the CRM group at Cox Interactive Media, a unit of media giant Cox Enterprises.