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2020, the year of digital upgrade | |
What an unexpected year it was! We stepped into this new decade with so many expectations but were soon reminded that things don't always go as planned. While we were forced to stay indoors for months, it is the internet that helped us get through. The prediction that digital will become the new normal in coming years became a reality in a matter of months. | |
Looking back at 2020 - the Zoho Campaigns story | |
When we went under lockdown in March, we had no idea how long we'd be away from our respective offices. A month or two maybe? | |
As the situation worldwide worsened, it became clear that we would have to stay indoors for longer than expected. It wasn't easy β the uncertainty and confusion affected us all and caused many businesses to completely reassess their operations. As they looked for ways to cope, they discovered the importance of using emails to stay connected with customers. People used emails to: | |
- Send Covid 19-related information and health guidelines
- Provide necessary information by essential services providers
| | - Check on the well-being of their client and employees.
- NGOs and charities used emails to seek required support
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The approach to email marketing took a new form as its growing importance forced many to be more careful about their content and sending frequency. This inspired Zoho Campaigns to launch our crisis templates for our users to communicate effectively during the testing times. We also came up with an email marketing toolkit to assist email marketers. | |
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We utilized our social media channels β Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagramβto constantly be in touch with our audience and post content to inform, inspire, and spread some cheer. Our partners from around the world joined us in sending positive vibes, reminding us that we are all in this together. | |
Learning series from Zoho Campaigns | |
Though simply getting through each day was a feat in itself, some of us used our extra time to learn, expand our skill sets, and make something useful of the situation we found ourselves in. We at Zoho Campaigns organized a series of interactive online content to help our customers understand email marketing better. | |
We had professionals within Zoho and from around the world talk on topics including crisis communication, email deliverability, holiday campaigns, and more. The podcast featured experts like Jason Rodriguez, Gail Gardner, Anne Tomlin, and others. | | | |
We launched an online training program for our customers in October to make "learning from the comfort of your home" worthwhile. Our instructor-led virtual training program is designed to help email marketers gain the right skills and in-depth knowledge to master the subject. Whether virtual classrooms in a group or customized one-on-one training, our team continues to offer both. | | We absolutely love meeting customers in person. It gives us the opportunity to understand their eco systems and challenges. With the advent of the new normal, we decided to do these interactions online, focusing on regional meetups in the USA, UK, India, Australia, and New Zealand. These sessions were well-received, educational, and a lot of fun. | | | |
What to look forward to in 2021 | |
As we head into 2021, COVID-19 will continue to impact marketing strategies and budgets across industries. Those who study the undercurrents and sail in the right direction will likely come out on top. | |
Here are some expert predictions. | |
We'll see an increasing amount of smaller eCommerce businesses with strong email marketing and MA strategies, some more advanced than larger retailers. This is due to their speed of conception to execution, and the fact that they're more open to new technologies. - Russ Macumber, Impress!ve Digital | | | |
Email Marketing success in 2021 will be dependent on quality, not quantity. In 2020 most companies looked to quantity for email success but in 2021 that will change; quality will be the key to success. List quality will be achieved with a targeted acquisition strategy, solid opt-in permission tactics, and good list hygiene. - Jeanne Jennings, Email Optimization Shop | | | |
Dark mode is all the rage. It will continue to grow in popularity for this year and the next. We'll see more people focusing on how to make their emails dark mode compatible. - Emily McGuire, Flourish & Grit | | | |
Video emails will see greater adoption. Text emails or emails with bold color and creatives that are entertaining and engaging would greatly succeed in 2021. - Samir Kumar Sah, Pritbor
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Email marketers will become more customer-focused, which will affect all areas of their email marketing programmes, including the customer journey β from technology, to strategy, to content, to offers to automated programmes. - Kath Pay, Holistic Email Marketing | | | |
As far as Zoho Campaigns goes, we promise an exciting 2021 with features and updates that will make your email marketing experience both easy and fun.
Regards, Team Zoho Campaigns | Unsubscribe | |