When Brian Coyle, the founder of internet marketing firm e-Zone, started working with image consulting company House of Colour, the goal was to get all of the franchise’s internet marketing up to speed.

“Our consultants were using simple, text-based email campaigns and seminars, and benefiting from the cheerleading of our loyal client base,” Director of Business Development Alison Riches says.

By working with Brian, House of Colour consultants started creating newsletters through Constant Contact.

Clients loved the new look and feel of the emails, and it was easy to tell. In an industry where the average open rate is about 15%, House of Colour emails consistently saw 50% open rates or higher. Not only that, a number of consultants saw some impressive revenue from their efforts.

“With just two newsletters, one of our top consultants generated £4,000 worth of business,” Alison says.

Here’s how e-Zone helped House of Colour use email marketing:

1. Education

“Sometimes, there’s a perception that email marketing will be very resource-hungry, but there’s also a lack of understanding as to how campaigns can make a difference for business,” Brian says. One of the first steps was education.

E-Zone, a two-year Constant Contact All Star solution provider, held regular workshops that helped consultants learn how to use email marketing software, then held advanced sessions covering everything from content and subject lines to integrating email campaigns with social media.

“The training sessions have been a huge success,” Alison says. “They’re a testament to how user-friendly Constant Contact is—even most IT-fearing people have shown their relief at how enjoyable and easy the software is to use.”

Brian says, in general, email can jumpstart other internet marketing efforts.

“In our experience, Constant Contact is a launchpad for modern marketing techniques and product promotion such as social media, mobile marketing, and other internet best marketing strategies.”

2. Branding

Every House of Colour franchisee uses the same template – it shares logo, tone, and color combinations, but all the content is customizable.

Alison says the specific challenge when adopting an email marketing program was branding. “We wanted to have a strong, branded campaign template that could be easily customized by our consultants,” she recalls.

Last year, House of Colour was recognized with the Investors In People Gold Standard for placing an emphasis on client relationships, so it was important that the franchise’s newsletters maintain the tone and feel people had come to expect over the years.

Brian adds that rebranding was easier for the franchise, too, because all e-Zone had to do was provide House of Colour with one template and a formalized education program.

The template guaranteed that the House of Colour’s brand was maintained, while consultants could customize each of their emails.

3. Communication

Turning to email marketing helped House of Colour with both external and internal communications.

Every company update is sent through Constant Contact to make sure each franchisee is on the same page. That helps House of Colour act on united initiatives with little more than a click of a mouse.

Most important of all, of course, is the impact the new email marketing campaigns have had on their business.

Consultant Mary Blackhurst-Hill saw the benefits of this extra reach almost immediately. “I sent a special offer on wardrobe reviews and got three days’ work out of it—so it was definitely worth spending a couple of hours putting my newsletter together,” she says.

Helping everyone become a marketer

Overall, Brian says he has seen email marketing help businesses rethink the way that they do marketing.

“We believe companies should treat their whole workforce as a potential marketing resource,” he explains. “Keeping in touch with your customers can only help increase sales,” Brian adds. “Good quality email marketing can help you do this with minimum costs, and it offers a way to track results and monitor effective marketing messages.”

With that launchpad in place, any business can then start thinking about other internet marketing initiatives, too.

Learn more about marketing a consulting firm here.