If you are a regular reader of this blog, you know we are firm believers in email marketing. We receive Chop-Shop Customs’ monthly e-newsletter and are reminded each month of the importance of staying in touch with clients. We interviewed Dana Schaeffer of Chop-Shop Customs about her email marketing efforts and learned how you too can get started in this affordable, effective, and efficient marketing practice.

1. Why do you use email as part of your marketing efforts?

Email is an easy way to communicate with large amounts of people in an instant. You are able to track your efforts as well as allow people quick and easy access to your company for questions and comments.

2. What does email do for you?

Email allows us the freedom to market and follow up during non-traditional hours. Many of our clients are in different time zones and we are able to communicate with them and they can respond when it is convenient for them to do so.

3. How long have you been doing email marketing?

Almost 5 years-since the inception of the business.

4. Are you doing it yourself or do you have an outside company help you?

I use a third party email marketing company, IMN (www.imninc.com ) for our monthly newsletter mailings. Other emails are done in house.

5. How did you get started?

I just realized that there was a need to communicate with people all at once.

6. What works well for you?

Sending or monthly newsletter with updates on what’s been going on as well as sending any specials we are offering and directing people back to our website.

7. What have you learned that doesn’t work?

Too many emails can backfire. No more than 2-3 a month works the best.

8. What do you put in your emails?

Specials, information, surveys.

9. How often do you send them?

Usually monthly unless we have a special offer going on, then it is 2 emails that month.

10. How do you add names to your email lists?

People have the ability to forward our newsletter and there is a subscribe area on it where you can sign up as well as a sign up page on our website.

11. Does everyone get the same emails, or do you segment your lists in any way?

Everyone currently receives the same emails unless the email is a follow up mailing for a local event.

12. What should a business think about before starting an email marketing campaign?

Find a good company to work with for a third party. IMN seems to work well for us- they have fabulous reporting and tracking for ROI as well as great support staff. Make sure you have a decent sized mailing list to use before attempting to email and always offer a way to Opt out of your mailings for Can Spam act compliance. If you are going to be doing your mailings in house, test the mailings prior to your ‘live’ send and see if they get caught in spam filters- otherwise you are wasting your time creating the mailing if no one will receive it. Determine what the purpose of your emails is: will it be for sales? Marketing? General info? Events? You don’t just want to send random emails just to send ‘something’.

Chop Shop Customs, located in Woburn, MA, offers a combined experience of over 100 years of automotive restoration, hot rod fabrication and design.

To sign up for the Chop-Shop Customs’ monthly e-newsletter, click here.