5 easy ways to integrate email marketing and Facebook

Five tips for bringing all of your messaging together

This is the first of a two-part series. Also see:
• 8 ways to get more from your nonprofit’s email marketing strategy

Target audience: Nonprofits, cause organizations, foundations, NGOs, social enterprises, general public.

Growing an email list in addition to building a Facebook fan base can sometimes feel overwhelming. This is especially the case if these two endeavors are not well integrated.

To help make things easier, here are five ways that you can integrate your nonprofit email list with social media.

Add an email option form to your Facebook page

1As you deepen your relationships with your Facebook fans, acquiring emails from your most engaged fans is a natural next step.

If you’re using a service like Aweber or Mailchimp, create a web form and add it to a custom tab (see step-by-step instructions).

Make sure you create a new list so that you can easily identify where these subscribers came from, and make sure you give them a very good reason for joining your email list.

Make messaging the same

2Many times your email marketing and your Facebook content have different messaging, which can confuse people. When your email messaging supports your Facebook messaging (and vice versa), the results from both channels will be bigger.

Make the content different

3A question your subscribers ask is, “Why should I become a Facebook fan when I already subscribe to the email list?”

Make sure you create different content for each channel. For example, you can use email to share insider stories around outcomes and Facebook to share photos and videos from those stories.

Consistently cross promote each channel

4Let’s stay with the previous example of using email for deeper stories and Facebook for photos about those stories.

• Email –> Facebook: Within your email newsletter, include links to the photo album related to stories covered in the newsletter.
• Facebook –> Email: In the description of photos, encourage fans to subscribe to your email list to get the inside story.

Target Facebook Page updates to specific list segments

5Facebook ads now allow you to target your offline supporters and donors among Facebook users. This allows you to touch people via their inbox and their news feed, essentially reinforcing both messages.

How do you guys integrate email with Facebook? Leave us a comment and let us know what’s worked for you!John Haydon delivers social web strategy solutions for “the quick, the smart, and the slightly manic.” Curious? Then visit the John Haydon blog, follow him on Twitter or leave a comment.