Advantages of Email Campaigns

• One advantage of email campaigns is that they give companies a platform to speak to customers directly. Ryan McVay/Photodisc/Getty Images

  Email marketing campaigns have largely supplanted the use of direct mail advertising for many firms. Few marketing campaigns are as customizable and cost-effective as email. The practice has become a key tool for companies seeking new customers, establish returning customers and keeping their target market informed of new product developments.

Cost Effective

• Email is considerably less expensive than paper-based direct mail, as it eliminates paper and printing costs. Email marketing campaigns also take far less time to construct than their print counterparts. While the costs of a print run of several hundered mailers can potentially reach into the thousands, email can reach a considerably wider audience for fractions of that cost. Another cost advantage of email is the fact that companies no longer have to endure expensive bulk-mailing rates, effectively delivering their message instantaneously at a minuscule cost.

Target Marketing

• Because customers volunteer to sign up for marketing emails via an "opt-in" on a website or at a store, businesses can effectively eliminate the cost of advertising to individuals who aren't interested in their product or service. This kind of pinpoint target marketing establishes a direct connection between companies and their target market instantly, replacing what used to take several weeks or months of market research to determine.

Data Tracking

• Opt-in or sign-up pages for email marketing campaigns can gauge a bevy of information about your target market with the inclusion of "subscription" information. This allows businesses the ability to track customers average age, gender and geographic location. Information on where your product or service is most sought can aid in the planning of "live" promotional strategies and more direct marketing campaigns like in-store or trade show demonstrations.