A new Silverpop study has found that 39 percent of e-mail marketers’ biggest challenge is list turnover.
The study, titled “The 2006 Email List Growth Survey,” also shows that many e-mail marketers are planning to implement list growth tactics that others have said do not work well. For example, while 24 percent of respondents said they plan to implement a viral marketing campaign, only 10 percent said such actions were very successful.
“List growth is like a leaky bucket,” said Elaine O’Gorman, vice president of strategy at Silverpop. “And the hole is getting bigger and bigger.”
Surveys about list growth were completed by a select group of 321 companies around the world. The survey asked what methods marketers use to grow their lists and which methods were most successful. Marketers were also asked which methods they plan to implement in the next 12 months.
The study also found that fewer marketers are challenged by analyzing campaign results, with just 25 percent saying it was difficult, compared to 32 percent last year.
“The No. 1 thing that marketers need to do when it comes to their e-mail list is monitor the list activity,” O’Gorman added. “Who is active and how often? Also, what portion is active? If the same 40 percent is opening e-mails and buying from you, you need to start thinking about how to get that other 60 percent engaged.”
