Often, we buy items because a family or friend recommended them to us.
This is called social proof.
Social proof is when we follow where the "wisdom of the crowd" leads us.
No wonder social proof is integral if you want to boost conversion and sales.
7 Types Of Social Proof You Can Incorporate in Your Email Marketing Campaign
Social proof is not limited to a customer review on your product pages.
You can also incorporate them into your email newsletters.
Here are seven different social proof types that you can include in your email marketing campaign:
- Earned Authority
- Borrowed Authority
- Product Promotion
- Customer Reviews
- Employee Highlight
- Media Mentions
- Celebrity Endorsement
1. Earned Authority
This refers to people's perception of your authority.
You can show this through the awards you won, the number of customers served, year-on-year sales growth, and more.
2. Borrowed Authority
Do you know why musicians love collaborations?
Because both parties benefit from it.
This is called borrowed authority.
When it comes to email marketing, this translates to brand partnership with a similar brand that is popular with your customers.
3. Product Promotion
Let's face it: We do email marketing in hopes of turning subscribers into paying clients or customers.
Hence, it only makes sense that you add product promotion.
Just remember to promote your best-selling and most positively reviewed product.
4. Customer Reviews
When used at the right place and the right time, customer reviews can help boost abandoned cart recovery and increase sales.
When a customer leaves his online cart, you can send a recovery email that can include a discount coupon and customer review.
Doing so can entice them to take action and proceed with the purchase.
5. Employee Highlight
Authenticity and relevance can be powerful social proof.
So much so that you can use it for customer retention.
For instance, you can send a Mother's Day newsletter that includes the following:
A heartfelt note
An image of your employees and the moms
A link to a relevant blog post
Customer reviews that also involved moms (i.e., when a customer has his mom tried your product and liked it)
6. Media Mentions
We treat the media as a legitimate source of information.
If your brand is mentioned on an authority blog, reviewed by a famous blogger, mentioned in a podcast, make sure to include it in your email campaign.
7. Celebrity Endorsement
Having celebrity endorsements is nothing new.
This tactic is used time and again because it provides powerful social proof.
The only caveat is that you will need a significant marketing budget.
7 Clever Ways to Include Social Proof in Your Email
Now that you know the different kinds of social proof that you can use in your email marketing campaign, it is time to learn how you can use them effectively.
1. Highlight Customer Reviews
According to Local Consumer Review, 88% of buyers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations.
If you want to boost your brand's credibility, include testimonials from unbiased customers.
Doing so makes it easy for your subscribers to see what people are saying about your products.
2. Share Your Numbers
How many happy customers have you served so far?
Make sure to mention them in your promotional email whenever possible.
Doing allows you to take advantage of the crowd mentality.
That's because no one wants to miss out on what you can offer.
3. Upsell and Cross-Sell
Crowd mentality is also an excellent way to upsell and cross-sell your other products.
What you can do is showcase what your other customers are buying.
Start with the people who bought your best-selling products.
See who among them did not make any new purchases after that.
And then send them an upsell or cross-sell email, which includes products that other people also buy.
4. Share Celebrity Endorsements
Customers trust celebrities and influencers.
If you want to awaken your existing customers' interest in your brand, share celebrity endorsements.
5. Mention Important People
Similar to sharing endorsements, you can also mention essential people on your email campaigns.
PRO TIP: Mention a popular customer on the subject line. Doing so can increase your open rate up to 468%!
Another way is to mention them in the body of your content.
For instance, you are promoting an event.
You can list down the previous speaker lineup to get your subscribers excited.
And as you near the event, send them the current lineup (but not everyone).
Doing so builds up the excitement and can compel your subscribers to buy your event tickets.
6. Showcase Your Awards
They say that humility makes an efficient business leader.
However, it does not eliminate your bragging rights.
Letting people know that you won something is proof that you are excellent at what you do.
This makes your brand trustworthy, allowing you to convince subscribers to support your business.
7. Share Media Attention
Similar to showcasing your awards, you might also want to share whenever you have press coverage.
One, it adds to your business's trustworthiness. Two, you are letting your subscribers know more about you. And three, if the content is about your other initiatives like charity work.
In case you do not know, social proof is the most underutilized email marketing tactic.
If you want to spruce up your campaign, the tips listed above can help.
About the Author
Jake Rheude is the Director of Marketing at Red Stag Fulfillment, a reliable provider of Los Angeles fulfillment services.
He has years of experience in ecommerce and business development. In his free time, Jake enjoys reading about business and sharing his own experience with others.
