How Employee Email Emerged as a Content Distribution Channel in 2016
In today’s marketing landscape, an effective content distribution channel has become just as important as content creation. Some 88 percent of B2B marketers in North America already rely on some form of content marketing, and audiences have been struck by a sort of content shock. They’ve become numb to the mountains of mediocre content that corners them at every click. People today are more empowered than ever to simply ignore the pieces they have no interest in.
Content quality is, of course, the foundation of earning your audience’s attention. But even if you’ve created the Mona Lisa of ebooks, no one is going to care if they can’t find it. If you don’t know how to distribute it, your content isn’t going to be seen, clicked, read, watched or shared. That’s why an intelligent content distribution channel is so important. And that’s why a record number of users signed on to use Sigstr in 2016.
Last year was a record-smashing year for the Sigstr team. We grew our user base by a staggering 470 percent. And we powered more than 100 million signature impressions across our customer base with our email signature marketing platform.
This kind of new targeted connectivity through the employee email signature has promoted campaigns like HubSpot’s INBOUND 2016 event and became a foundation in creating unique partnerships with companies, like HubSpot.
The team at Bounce Exchange, Inc. 500s fastest growing software company, is using email signature marketing for content distribution to attract and recruit more talent. And NBA teams, like the Indiana Pacers are putting tangible benefits to corporate sponsorships using the owned marketing channel.
Why do we care so much about your content distribution channel?
Because simply creating good content isn’t enough anymore. Sure, your SEO strategy and best practices will help drive relevant traffic to your content, but it shouldn’t be the only tool in your content toolbox. You can’t build a house with just a hammer, can you?
Paid channels, like LinkedIn or Google AdWords can give you a boost if you’re willing to shell out the time and money for it. But 90 percent of all social clicks go to organic content. And on Google, organic content commands 80 percent of the clicks.
The people who find your content through organic search will likely be an audience to find your content helpful. (Whether or not they’re an ideal buyer is left totally up in the air, though.) But the chance of them returning to your content or sharing it after seeing the information they needed is probably slim.
How we’re targeting your audience
Marketers are looking to decentralize content, according to HubSpot’s State of Inbound 2016 Report. More of our peers are looking to target audiences intentionally and strategically. And that’s where we come in.
By injecting your content into your email signature, you’re hand picking an audience designed for your content. Have a new blog? Maybe it’s an event registration, or ebook you’re promoting. Perhaps you’d like to draw attention to a new product microsite. HubSpot, Bounce Exchange and the Pacers are all using email signature marketing for an efficient content distribution channel. And then they’re able to measure it to see which content resonates and what doesn’t. That kind of insight lets them optimize their content strategy based on data.
You’re distributing content without having to fight for your reader’s attention, because it’s in your email signature. You already own that channel. And you know your contact is a targeted persona. What’s more is, then you’re able to attract your customers to you. And you can educate them along the way. Especially if your product is particularly complex, with a complex set of features, or you have direct competitors who share similar features. It’s a great way to differentiate yourself.
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