The Pew Internet and American Life Project, says e-mail remains the number-one online activity of Americans. So as a nonprofit, it’s important to capitalize on this trend. E-mail marketing can still deliver a higher return on investment (ROI) than methods such as direct mail and newspaper and radio advertising. Not only do people access thier e-mails on computers, now a growing number of people are able to receive e-mail on their cell phones and PDAs. E-mails have many advantages, but here are the three most popular:

Cheap E-mails are free or extremely cheap to send and receive. Unlike sending out mass correspondence through the post office, e-mails don’t cost much money. The only cost to you is the time you spend constructing them and if you choose to use an email client to assist you with design creation and list management .

Fast E-mails can be sent out instantaneously to thousands of recipients. The recipients can be previous donors or interested parties who submitted their email through your website.

Measurable Software can track e-mails opened, clicked on, and actions made. Many of these e-mail tracking softwares are inexpensive and easy to install or already come with an e-mail client. They can help you see which e-mails are translating into actions or donations and which e-mails aren’t performing.

Often times users flag irrelevant e-mails as spam, so it’s important to make e-mails relevant and segmented to grab your reader’s attention. A 2006 report by MarketingSherpa found that e-mail marketers using segmentation saw click-through rates that are 72% higher than e-mail marketers who aren’t segmenting their opt-in lists. Some of the most popular ways to segment your company emails include:

• Location
• Brands
• Age

Your segmenting options are limitless! Experiment with different categories and see which ones offer your nonprofit the greatest success. Don’t forget to stay on top of your “subscribe” and “unsubscribe” requests. Not being thourough can cause you trouble with your Internet Service Provider (ISP) and Anti-Spam Laws. Always review your subscribe and unsubscribe requests right before you send out an e-mail blast or use a e-mail client to have them automatically managed for you. Following these simple rules is a great cheap way to have e-mails add to your bottom line without breaking your wallet.