How are you using E-mail Marketing?

E-mail, is it a blessing or not? Can a DME/HME dealer use e-mail effectively? This past weekend this topic was a discussion I had with a few cronies (peers). It appears that most senior citizens enjoy reading their e-mails and at the same time abhor the great number they receive. This morning when I opened my computer I found 87 new messages. I deleted all but a dozen, which I read carefully. There was much important information that arrived. Dave Parks sends his HomeCare Newsletter, which is filled with current events. Important? Yes! Then I opened the hmeNewswire, which Liz Beaulieu edits, and this is another good source of news. Since we are about a month away from Medtrade Spring, it is also important to study Medtrade Monday as we all prepare for tomorrow. All that is what a DME/HME provider normally does. How do your senior citizens look at their e-mails? With enthusiasm! They, too, wipe out the obvious commercials in which they have no interest. However, this still leaves a good number for them to review. I was with three other gentlemen my age and two of them both told me the same thing. They look forward to the weekly newsletter their pharmacy sends. There was always a good health idea and occasionally a sale on an ADL item. I have spoken with a number of dealers at the Medtrade meetings. They do the same and tell me sending a Weekly Newsletter, via email, does two things for them. It maintains the loyalty of the customer and increases sales when they offer a single item at a special price. All of the necessary material to successfully send an e-mail weekly newsletter is in your computer. If you have the address of the family caregiver, please include them. The answer to my opening comment is that e-mail can be a valuable tool for a DME/HME provider. If you're looking for an inexpensive way to market to your customers using e-mail, check out Constant Contact at www.constantcontact.com.