Eblasts: what are they, what are they for and what are their alternatives?

Although the term “eblast” is very technical, the truth is that we are more familiar with it than we should be. 

You will agree with us as you progress through this post. 

If you’re here, it’s because you’re already familiar with the concept and you may even have become fed up with it after coming across it a thousand times. 

But let’s start at the beginning and let’s discover together what eblasts are, what their usefulness is and what are the alternatives so that you can start improving your sales strategy through email marketing as soon as possible. 

Let’s get started!

Defining the term “eblasts”

When we told you at the beginning that it’s something we’re super familiar with, we’re not lying. 

An eblast translates to “bulk or unwanted email”. 

So, we could define it as a standard email that is sent to many contacts at the same time. 

This type of strategy is often used when the company or business is looking to reach a huge audience at once, with one email reaching thousands of people.

Although, when reading this, the mind may go straight to “junk mail” or “SPAM”; there are certain differences between this type of emails and eblasts. 

Spam emails are addressed to customers’ inboxes without personalization and practically with the sole objective of impacting as many people as possible. 

Eblasts often avoid falling into SPAM folders and are considered less annoying by recipients because they allow them to view the headers and check that they are not lying about the true intentions of the message. They also allow recipients to unsubscribe from the list if they wish to do so.

In short, eblasts are the electronic version of direct mail.

What is eblast currently used for?

It is possible that, reading the previous point, you are asking yourself a question: if this type of email has these characteristics, why do people still use them? 

The reason is very simple, and it is that, nowadays, B2B marketing is faced with having to generate leads constantly and it is still thought that the more people receive the emails, the more revenue will be achieved. 

And this is not true. 

Quality makes the difference, not quantity. 

That quality is unattainable if we continue to give such importance to the number of contacts without more. 

Although most businesses are moving away from this thinking, there are still companies that continue in this belief, quite wrong by the way. 

Besides, it always takes less time for businesses to create a generic mass email that can reach thousands of people in a single click, than to personalize, create lists and segment emails. 

From here, we will always recommend that you avoid mass mailings because it is proven that personalization rules and works much better than eblasts. 

Focusing on the question of what an eblast is currently used for, businesses tend to use it to send newsletters, meeting reminders, so that recipients do not forget the brand or simply to sell “hard”. 

Conclusion: whenever you can, choose a personalized and segmented email over a bulk email.

What alternatives do you have to eblasts?

If you are not using eblasts to reach new leads at all costs, start by focusing your entire marketing strategy on the customer journey. 

This is essential to understand the entire customer journey throughout your buying process. 

And it is so important because, by being aware of each moment, you will be able to communicate and give your lead what they need, considering the stage of the funnel they are in. 

Thanks to the full knowledge of the customer journey, you will be able to segment, personalize and nurture your contact database to qualify them, so you will end up with a smaller list of potential customers, but more interested in your product/service. 

That’s the kind of list that makes every sales team in the world happy. 

From there: 

• Create emails that your customer is actually interested in. 
• Start moving through the same online circles that your potential customers are in, this will allow you to get to know your audience better and what they really value. 
• Use matched audiences, for example from Facebook or Linkedin, to plant the seed and start high quality campaigns from the beginning. 

We hope we’ve helped you understand a little better what eblasts are, what they are used for and how you can replace them to benefit your sales strategy. 

Now answer us a question: 

Had you used eblasts in your marketing strategy or had you discarded them from your email list? Tell us in the comments 😉