The changes in technology and communications occur with blinding speed. We’ve seen the rise and fall of Google+ in just a few short years; the rise of real-time mobile video like Meerkat and Periscope has been astonishing to watch.
But throughout all of these changes, there’s still a fundamental communications technology that seems to be gaining ground recently. You know it well because you subscribe to this feed. That’s right–email.
Despite the bold predictions–time and again–that email is dead, it has yet to be buried. In fact, it’s actually 40X more effective than Facebook or Twitter for acquiring new customers, according to McKinsey. And if you put your eggs in the rented platforms (aka social networks), not only are you relying on their existence, but guess what? They all require an email address in order to sign up for an account!
But here’s the thing: Email is becoming much more than email. Future iterations of this Internet original may include things like live updates, ecommerce integrations, and even interactive gaming. The future of email is actually quite exciting.
So it should be no surprise that the New York Times, as it has shaken up its digital strategy, has addressed how its email newsletters are composed and distributed, and as a result as seen an open rate of 70%.
It makes sense. When we’re bombarded by so much content, it helps to have a compact and targeted messaging system that we can count on. When someone else does the curation for us and pushes it directly to us, it becomes indispensable. Add to that regular intervals and a familiar format, and you’ve got yourself a winning formula for getting into the hearts and minds of your cusotmers.
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