Strength Matters
The Strength Matters podcast is a weekly show for health and fitness professionals who want the systems, tools, and resources to grow and scale a successful fitness business. Hosted by Head Coach Josh Kennedy and Strength Matters founder, James Breese.
Join the world’s leading experts in helping personal trainers and coaches uncover cutting-edge training solutions and share them with you.
Strength Matters is a system of training and education for fit pros and experienced enthusiasts who want to optimize performance and enhance their health span.
The central question that drives our work is, “How can we train smarter?” To answer that question, we like to talk about science-based ways, made simple, to solve practical health and fitness problems.
However, science doesn’t always have the answers. That’s why our work combines both science and practical real-world experience. What works in a textbook, doesn’t always work in real life.
This is why we like to talk about and share our client results with you… the good, and the bad, so that we can all learn from them, move forward to live, and perform better.
Strength Matters
Why Email is the Most Reliable Marketing Channel
In today's fast-paced digital age, where every new marketing channel promises to be the next big thing, there lies an unassuming powerhouse that many have prematurely declared obsolete: email marketing. In this episode we dive deep into the enduring power of email as the most reliable marketing channel for health and fitness businesses. If you're looking for actionable insights to skyrocket your business growth and nurture your audience effectively, pressing play on this episode is a must.
Timeline Summary:
- [00:00:05] Introduction to Email Marketing's Endurance
- [00:00:22] The Downfall of Social Media Engagement
- [00:02:21] Email vs. Social Media Metrics
- [00:05:01] The Value of Email Subscribers
- [00:06:14] Practical Tips for Growing Your Email List
Key Takeaways:
- Email's Unmatched Reliability: Despite the rise of social media, email remains the most consistent and direct way to reach your audience.
- Decline of Social Media Engagement: Engagement on social media platforms has significantly dropped, making email a more stable and effective channel for direct communication.
- The Power of One Email Subscriber: One email subscriber is equivalent to 1,000 social media followers, highlighting the importance of building and nurturing your email list.
- Segmentation is Key: Segmenting your email list allows for targeted, relevant communication, increasing engagement and conversion rates.
- Actionable Growth Strategies: Simple yet effective strategies for list growth include leveraging your existing network, utilizing social media bios, and creating compelling lead magnets.
Websites and Links Mentioned:
Quotes:
"Email marketing: The old giant quietly ruling the digital age." - James Breese
"A single email subscriber > 1,000 social media followers." - James Breese
"In the realm of clicks and opens, email reigns supreme." - Josh Kennedy
"Segmentation: The secret sauce of effective email marketing." - Andrew Wallis
"Build your list, build your business." - James Breese
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[00:00:00] James Breese: Strength Matters Media. Video. Print. Podcasts.
[00:00:05] Josh Kennedy: Today, we're talking about why email is the most reliable marketing channel. Uh, James, we're going to come up with this name again, Rand Fishkin, which I think is the best name ever. Talk to me a little bit about why he thinks email is the most enduring and effective marketing
[00:00:21] James Breese: tool.
[00:00:22] Well, let's have a think about it. The last 15 years, how much has social media, social media engagement plummeted? Everyone is complaining about it. Right now, because it's a pay to play software channel, basically, that's what, that's what they all are. You have to pay to play even with friends, even with family and particularly businesses.
[00:00:41] Well, as we talk about user
[00:00:42] Josh Kennedy: intent has changed, right? On, on Facebook, because I literally, all I go on Facebook now, very, very occasionally, by the way, I'm hardly ever on there anymore is to. Look at what friends are doing. Whereas I think it used to be different in the past. I spent a lot more time on there in the past, you know, poking people and stuff, but you don't [00:01:00] do that anymore, do
[00:01:00] James Breese: you?
[00:01:00] Yeah. Poking people. Yeah, we did the old pokes. Yeah. Do you remember the days of poking? Yeah, yeah. That was brilliant. No, but it's, it's true. So like you think about this now is like social media engagement rates have plummeted. But also ad rates and engagement has plummeted while clicks and engagement are plummeting because people aren't clicking on them anymore.
[00:01:21] They're tired and they're jaded by it. So a really good example is this is a go into Google. Next time you search something on Google, look at the ads at the top. Notice how you scroll past those three ads and how you go to the things that organically below it first. We all do it. I do it. Everyone else does it.
[00:01:41] Those ads get less than 2 percent click through rate. So more like, more like 1 percent most of the time, because people want to find what Google ranks organically first. And if they can't find what they're looking for, then they go to the ads at the top, right? So it's more of an awareness thing. And also, if you think about the visibility of [00:02:00] TV and print advertising, you know, that was a huge part of the 70s, 80s, and 90s.
[00:02:04] It was a big part of what we did. But now marketing is very different. We're just bombarded with it every single day. But we're talking about email marketing, the good old email, our good old friend, Rand Fishkin, who doesn't know we're a friend of his, but we're definitely a friend of his.
[00:02:21] Josh Kennedy: I think we need to be friends with Rand and get him on the podcast.
[00:02:25] James Breese: It's a great idea. Email open and click rates between 2005 and 2024. Right. So I look at the, let me share the data here again. So let me share my screen. Hopefully my computer won't break everything. So yes, I'm admitting it live in the podcast that I have a computer. It's your fault,
[00:02:46] Josh Kennedy: not mine. Yeah.
[00:02:58] James Breese: So.[00:03:00]
[00:03:39] Josh Kennedy: Before you move on, explain the difference between open rate and click through rate. Okay,[00:04:00]
[00:04:00] so that's stayed pretty steady all the way through, which is a good thing, isn't it? I guess. So looking at that, if more people are opening your emails, you're still going to get about the same click through rate. But if more people are opening it, you're going to get more click through essentially, obviously,
[00:04:14] James Breese: and more people in traffic to your website.
[00:04:16] So. The point we're trying to make today is your number one priority in your health and fitness business is to grow your email list and start segmenting them to current clients, old clients, past patients, current patients, people who don't know about you, haven't bought from you yet. So you can start sending relevant timely information and nurture them as best as you possibly can.
[00:04:37] It is the most cost effective way. to grow your business in 2024 and beyond. For every 1 or one subscriber you have on your email list, it's worth potentially 36 return on that investment back, if you nurture and look after your email list properly. That is a huge takeaway. So if you're not investing in your [00:05:00] email list, you're missing out.
[00:05:01] Now, here's why I think everyone is getting it wrong at the moment. People are going for vanity metrics on social media channels. But as our good old friend, Ran Fishkin says, right, and now we've got the data to prove it, for every 1, 000 followers, it's equivalent of one email address and subscriber. All right.
[00:05:23] So if you're saying you're not using email, and if young people these days aren't using email, that's bullshit. Because guess what they are? You have to use email to sign up for certain things, and you engage with your email every single day. So you see it's a more better way to do it. So. People are still using email.
[00:05:41] They're still using the same open rates. You're still going to nurture it and It's easier to get one subscriber if you do it right than it is to get a thousand followers On a pay to play system on social media. How do you get more subscribers, friends, family, post stuff on social media, but drive them back to your [00:06:00] email newsletter list to share expert, relevant, timely content.
[00:06:05] Josh Kennedy: Andrew, I want to come to you. Uh, give me some quick tips to help grow your email list. Cause obviously that's what we're talking about is the most important factor here. That's what we want to be focusing on.
[00:06:14] Andrew Wallis: As James says, initially for that first 100 get out to people that you know, or who know you tell them that you've got this newsletter that goes out.
[00:06:24] It's on your mailing list. It goes by email and you'll be able to collect those going beyond that. That's where we'll use our, our, um, our marketing hubs, our social media accounts and have a link on there in your bio, like in your Insta bio and your Facebook bio. If you're driving, Thanks for listening.
[00:06:42] That traffic back to newsletter sign up page that landing page that we've spoken about on a previous episode. You're able to collect those, those details then. And then thirdly, you know, putting together some form of lead magnet that you give away, it could be a [00:07:00] checklist, a cheat sheet, tips, a workout, a meal plan, whatever is relevant for your specific audience.
[00:07:07] They're going to get that initially. There'll be a welcome email sequence. So I would recommend a welcome email sequence, but then they automatically filter into your, your weekly email newsletter
[00:07:17] Josh Kennedy: then. Love it. James, in less than 30 seconds, summarize the key takeaways of this episode. Go.
[00:07:22] James Breese: Start sending emails.
[00:07:24] Done. No, basically think about this. Subscribers, one subscriber to an email list is worth a thousand followers. And if you're not building the email list, which is the most steady, reliable, consistent platform for marketing on the planet, you're missing out and you will not grow your business and get more clients and patients like you want.
[00:07:42] Fantastic.
[00:07:43] Josh Kennedy: There we go. That is it for today. Please don't forget to rate, review and subscribe. And if you want help getting more clients or patients, 15 minute strategy call with us by going to strengthmatters. com forward slash strategy.
