Want a great way to grow your events? Of all marketing channels, email delivers the highest return on investment (ROI). On average, it drives an ROI of $36 for every $1 spent (Source: Litmus).
Chances are you've heard organizers and rights holders say sending emails manually takes too much time. And using third-party Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems is a huge expense.
But stay with me. Because email marketing can be a super-efficient and cost-effective way to grow your events. The key is having the right tools and strategies to break through the noise fast.
And in this article, we'll show you how to do just that.
When you finish reading it, you'll have nine proven event email marketing strategies to save time, reduce costs, and increase participation. They'll enrich the experience, so participants return and tell others about your exceptional events.
What is email marketing?
Let's start with the basics. Email marketing involves using email to promote products and services. It's hands down the best way to stay in touch with customers.
That's because when you use other types of promotion like social media, you hope your prospects will get your information. Email marketing, on the other hand, lets you easily connect directly with your customers and best prospects.
Use the nine strategies below to ace email marketing and grow your events.
1. Save time with all-in-one sports management software
No need to invest in a pricey CRM system. Or bounce back and forth between platforms that don't always work well together.
Some all-in-one sports management platforms feature robust communication software. These solutions streamline the process of capturing leads and sending emails and texts to coaches, players, and parents.
How do they do it?
When parents register players, software like Playbook captures names, email addresses, phone numbers, and athletes' ages. Stop chasing parents and coaches down for contact details. All the data you need to connect with customers is stored automatically in the platform.
2. Segment your lists
If email drives event success, segmentation is one of your most powerful plays.
Why is segmentation important in email marketing?
This strategy allows you to send the right message to the right people. Instead of blasting general emails to everyone on your list, tailor messages to specific groups and gain credibility and higher open rates.
Segmented emails enjoy 30% more opens and 50% more clickthroughs than unsegmented ones. Remarkable, right? (Source: HubSpot)
Pro Tip: Target different segments by using filters like these below:
- Event type (tournaments, tryouts, camps, competitions)
- Sport (basketball, baseball, cheer, track, soccer, etc.)
- Role (players, parents, coaches, admins volunteers)
- Demographics and Divisions (athletes' age, gender, location)
- Team performance (rankings, win-loss record)
- Registration type (early bird, regular, waitlist)
- Location (local vs. out-of-town teams)
- Housing status for stay-to-play teams (goal not met, not started, exempt)
3. Scenarios for email segmentation
Uncertain how to segment your email list? You can slice and dice many ways to boost opens, clicks, and registrations. For example:
- Segment by role: Let's say you're organizing a youth basketball tournament. Customize content to ensure people only get relevant info. Coaches could receive detailed schedules, while parents get info on hotels and restaurants near the sports complex.
- Segment by sport: Maybe your facility is known mainly for baseball. Segment your list and market other sports such as flag football, to fill your facility year-round with events.
- Segment by reservation status: With platforms like Playbook365, you can track reservations for stay-to-play teams. Batch-message reminders to registrants who still need to book hotels. And improve housing performance with just a few clicks.
3. Make it personal
Ever wonder why you receive so many emails bearing your name? It's because personalization works. Marketers report an incredible 760% surge in email revenue from personalized and segmented campaigns (Source: Mailmodo).
So, include your recipient's name and their child's sport in your emails. Effective communication software provides plenty of custom fields. You can quickly personalize emails to connect and convert.
Another important consideration is who your email is from. A significant 68% of adults in the U.S. say they look at the "from" name when deciding whether to open an email (Source: Campaign Monitor).
On the other hand, many people delete emails from names they don't recognize. So, make sure your "from" name matches the one recipients saw when they signed up for your list.
4. Fast-track with templates
Email templates are game changers for busy organizers and rights holders.
The challenge: Crafting unique emails for every tournament announcement, registration reminder, and schedule update can eat up a lot of time. Templates overcome this hurdle by providing a consistent, professional framework you can tailor for different messages.
For example, Playbook communication software provides customizable templates and drag-and-drop capabilities for professional-looking email and text messages.
You save hours of work with pre-made templates that you can use
again and again.
5. Stand out with great branding
Branding is how parents, coaches, and players instantly recognize your email in a crowded inbox.
On average, a person receives approximately 121 emails daily (Source: Venngage). Without prominent branding, emails can get lost in the pile. You run the risk of teams overlooking them and missing critical updates.
Make your messages stand out in your customers’ inboxes:
- Feature your logo, colors, and consistent layout in every email, from event announcements to registration reminders and schedule changes.
- Ensure parents instantly recognize your signature header, signaling the email is about their favorite athlete's upcoming event and raising its status to a "must-read-now" message.
6. Optimize for mobile
Make it easy for busy parents to read your emails on the go. Being easy to read on smartphones is crucial for success, with 55% of emails opened on mobile devices (Source: HubSpot).
7. Grab attention with video
Did you know emails with images and videos perform best? (Source: HubSpot). In fact, videos can increase conversion rates by as much as 80% (Source: VWO Blog).
Show action shots from past tournaments or brief highlight reels to convey the excitement of your events. Engaging visuals also boost social media shares, expanding your audience beyond email subscribers.
8. Make it brief
Brevity is your best friend in email marketing. Parents and coaches are busy, so long-winded emails tend to go unread. Short emails with bullet points for key information perform better.
For instance, when sending info about your event, stick to the essentials like dates, location, registration deadline, and a call-to-action (CTA). Let brevity pump up your read-through rates and registrations.
9. Create compelling CTAs
Every email should provide an obvious next step. In marketing, these next steps are referred to as a "call-to-action" or CTA. Whether "Register now!" or "View tournament schedule here", a strong CTA tells readers what to do next. Best practices call for a bold color and larger font. Make your CTAs jump off the page to turn email opens into registrations.
Wrapping up
Follow these best practices for smoother-running events with more informed participants and higher attendance. Remember, sports event email marketing is about more than sending messages.
It's about building better relationships, turnout, and customer experiences, which can foster a love of sport that delights families and keeps them coming back.