Email marketing messages enhanced with social features increase click-through rates

While many companies think of social media and emailmarketing as separate platforms, a recent survey from GetResponse indicates businesses may benefit from integrating the two channels.

A common way that some companies do this is by including sharing options for social networking sites. Among email messages that had a single sharing icon, click-through rates of 8.7 percent were observed. Emails that had more than three sharing options saw a 40 percent boost in clicks over those with no social media links, measured at 11.2 percent. Meanwhile, emails with no sharing options had click-through rates of 7.2 percent.

Of all the social media platforms, Twitter most effectively maximized click-throughs, with 10 percent of customers sharing email content through the site. Facebook and MySpace followed closely, at 9.1 and 8.7 percent. While less pronounced, LinkedIn and Digg sharing options saw 7.2 and 5.3 percent click-through rates.

Most businesses find social media is an integral part of a digital marketing campaign. Recently, eMarketer reported that social media fans were worth an average of $136. This number accounts for fans' purchases, brand loyalty and word-of-mouth recommendations.