Way too often we see dealerships handing over databases to vendors to facilitate a mass email campaign to an entire unfiltered list of customers. Vendors certainly have a stake in larger email campaigns since the odds that a dealer obtains business from the campaign increases - due to sheer numbers. A smart dealer will analyze their open rates and have tools set up to track the effectiveness of a campaign. Success can be judged by the amount spent on the campaign compared to the amount of business it brought in. The problem is that while this may be a success in terms of instant gratification, chances are the dealers have cost themselves more than the revenue they actually generated.

I came across a fantastic article that contained one of the best pieces of advice I’ve heard:

“We need to start seeing failed communications as negative not neutral events.”

There are numerous reasons why a massive email blast can hurt your bottom line.  Has this happened to you? You sign up for a loyalty program at a retail or online store with the promise of coupons and specials, only to then find yourself inundated with continuous emails? By itself, this can be annoying, but then add to the equation the fact that chances are good that many of the emails contain nothing of relevance to you in particular. How long would you put up with this? My guess is not for long. According to the article, this type of email program accomplishes five things:

1. It creates a negative brand perception, which will lead to decreased revenue.
2. It decreases interest by the consumer in future communications.
3. It lowers their expectations that future communications will interest them.
4. It decreases engagement between the consumer and the business.
5. It increases the amount of money a business needs to spend to achieve the same results with each and every e-mail blast.

Nurturing customer loyalty is like dancing. When you and your partner are in step with each other, it can be magical. Start stepping on their feet, moving out of tune or messing up the dance steps and you may find your dance partner suddenly loses interest in dancing (or dancing with you, at least).

Data analytics and behavioral marketing can ensure that you (the business) and your dance partner (the consumer) stay in step with each other. This will increase the odds that they’ll want to continue a partnership with you. While sending tens of thousands of emails to your database may seem like it would be the most successful strategy, in all likelihood all you’re accomplishing is stepping on a lot of feet and losing dance partners. Not every one of your customers is ready to do business with you when you have a service special or big sale. Make sure you have a strategy in place to identify which customers are ready to receive your message and then only contact them. You’ll end up with more consumer response, and you won’t have annoyed the ones who weren’t ready to do business at this time.