In the digital era, communicating with your clients has never been easier. As Social Distancing is utilized to overcome the global pandemic, online marketing tools are a must for any business. Whether via social media, direct emailing and text messages or even phone calls and print, the options for auctioneers and galleries are endless.
The challenge, however, is to grasp your clients’ attention and increase engagement. How do you stand out, time and again, with thoughtfully crafted messages that lead to actual business? How do you leverage new technology to drive marketing impact? Highly personalized communication is the solution.
From a behavioral standpoint, your audience needs to Open, Read and then Take Action. Each phase is influenced by a myriad of factors that can be debated for days. As the leader of a Fine Arts and Collectibles business, focusing on the factors that make a difference will save you time and allow you to focus on the art and relationships that you are passionate about.
Our experts at Artbrain have put together a review of the latest knowledge in email marketing communication designed to revive dormant buyers and generate new ones. Focus on 3 things first: Brand Trust, Personalized Content and Effective Calls to Action. Next, and to keep you on your toes, review our take on 5 additional factors worth considering.
Brand Trust! Your Reputation Precedes You
Whether a potential buyer opens your email is the first step in getting them to an event or sale, be it online or in person. Average global Open Rates are 17.8% and we believe that familiarity and trust in your brand is the leading factor that influences this.
Crossing the attention threshold is the defining moment. When a client receives an email from your brand it needs to be a quality communication. According to a recent study, over 53% of recipients defined the sender as the key factor influencing if they even open an email.
Our Top Tips for Trust
Send relevant personalized content that your audience wants to receive — save them the time of looking through hundreds of items in a catalog and present them with top items chosen especially for them.
Use crafted design with smartly selected exquisite images.
Don’t Spam — Look out for our upcoming article on the latest email spam legislation.
Allow Opt-In with very clear consent, and allow clear ways to Opt-Out.
Forward-thinking leaders are using smart technology to enhance these tips even more.
Content — Art and Soul
Engagement with your clients occurs primarily through your content. This is where they meet you and this will directly influence your Open Rates. While most galleries and auctioneers have developed a distinguished style and professional expertise, the finesse is frequently lost when the time comes to send out an email.
Data shows that 55% of recipients want short crafted messages that are relevant directly to them. Inform them of unmissable events, news and item sales that they will be interested in. How can you promote the right item to the right collector or buyer? This is the science in art.
Today, Artbrain’s newest technology can personally tailor thousands of direct messages. We are not just talking a “Good Morning John”, which is also important, but specifically selecting the items promoted on each email and designing the layout to fit the recipient’s artistic preferences and personal taste.
Call to Auction
In email communication jargon, Click Through Rate (CTR) is probably the most sought-after Key Performance Metric. The global average CTR across industries is 2.6%, with a 3% CTR for Design related sectors. Artbrain customers get a 5 x higher CTR than industry standard.
What leads a reader to click and how can you get them to do it more often?
Your content will ultimately be what drives readers to take the action you want. In Art and Collectibles, imagery is definitely worth a thousand words, even with rare books and notables. Choosing the right handful of items to promote from a sale of 300 is critical.
Artbrain develops the latest Artificial Intelligence technology to smartly select the items that will fit the taste of each individual buyer you reach out to in your marketing campaigns.
Another top influencer on CTR is a Call to Action (CTA) on critical information. Emails containing password resets, purchase receipts, shipping notifications, etc. can be cleverly used to funnel clients to the next sale. Be sure to brand transactional emails as carefully as your marketing content.
Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff
A few factors have been agonized over by email marketing gurus over the years and methods have been employed to tweak the minutia. While the following are important to keep in mind, remember to focus on the core of your business.
Frequency — Spamming is not just junk email and in this case — less is definitely more. Too frequent unpersonalized communications will soon turn to unsubscribe requests. Make sure you collect data and track each user’s engagement. Improve every time you make contact.
Shape, Location, Copy and Color of your Link Button — If the sale is relevant, your audience will be interested. Invest once in designing a clear and consistent style suited to your brand, then move on. Designers can work closely with you to set up a visual communication strategy.
Subject line — important, but not critical. Make sure to keep it short and specific.
Time of day — If they are really interested, it won’t matter.
Offers and Promotions — in the fine arts, this may undermine the exclusivity and standard you have spent years building. However, some extremely rare and special items have been known to sell at rare opportunity. Promote the opportunity, not price.
Key Takeaway
Your audience is smart and busy. The same care and respect you invest in the privacy of your clients and the security of their artwork — is relevant to their inboxes.
Build Brand Trust — Be concise, precise, and don’t spam.
Personalization — Curate your email content, just as you curate your collection. Reach out to every customer with a personally tailored offer based on their individual preferences.
Call to Action — provide a clear next step that feels natural to the reader.
Don’t sweat the small stuff— let experts and technology do that.
