How to Close the Attribution Gap Between Email and Phone Calls

presented by ConstantContact.com featured partner CallRail.

Email remains one of the most powerful tools in the marketer’s toolkit – and it’s easy to understand why. 

There are over 4 billion daily email users – roughly half of the world’s population. Global email marketing revenue will reach an estimated $11 billion by the end of 2023. On average, companies generate $40 for every $1 spent on email marketing campaigns, and with good reason– 55% of people still prefer email as the number one way for businesses to communicate with them.

For these reasons, marketers rely heavily on email marketing platforms like Constant Contact to create campaigns that foster customer relationships, nurture leads, and close sales.

But there’s a problem. 

Many marketers have no way of linking phone calls and form submissions to the email campaigns that drove them. In other words, marketers can’t determine the true ROI of their email campaigns. 

The attribution gap between emails and subsequent calls and form fills means marketers are unable to identify what works, what doesn’t, and to use these insights to create more effective campaigns moving forward. Marketers end up operating in the dark – not really knowing what drives their prospects to take action.

The solution to this attribution gap lies in integrating your marketing tech stack. A good example of this is the CallRail x Constant Contact integration via Zapier, which closes the attribution gap, allowing companies to directly link emails sent to inbound calls and form submissions. 

What is the attribution gap between email and phone calls?

Email and digital marketing platforms platforms like Constant Contact are optimized to email customers en masse, but without the right data, they don’t have the visibility needed to provide accurate marketing attribution.

So if you’re not integrating a Call Tracking provider like CallRail to link outbound emails with inbound calls and form submissions, then you’re missing out on vital conversion information. 

Imagine you email users in your database about a brand new service your business is offering. The email links out to a landing page where they can find more information – and many recipients click through to this page. 

Impressed with what they read, some decide to call your office using the number they see on the landing page. Many even decide to sign up for the service after speaking with one of your representatives. 

Your email campaign was obviously a success. Your promotional email encouraged prospects to visit your landing page, find out more, pick up the phone, and convert.

But without Call Tracking and Form Tracking, there’s no way to directly link these conversions to the initial email. You know you’ve gained some new clients – but which came from these emails versus organic traffic, pay-per-click campaigns, or your new billboards?

Integrating your email and landing pages with a service like CallRail works something like this: 

CallRail uses a feature called dynamic number insertion (DNI) to track each caller by the marketing that led them to get in touch. For example, someone who clicks through on your email campaign will see a different number on your landing page than someone who arrives on your site via a PPC ad. 

Imagine a prospect calls your sales rep using the phone number in the rep’s email signature. Ordinarily, the salesperson would use the same number for their business cards and emails — with no way to link a caller to a specific email– unless your tech stack is integrated and ready for this eventuality.

How to action your newfound call attribution insights

Attributing inbound calls and form submissions to outbound email campaigns is just the first step. Once you know which efforts generate ROI and which don’t, you can then use these insights to fine-tune all future marketing campaigns.

Imagine you created an email campaign that generated lots of calls. Great! So, should you just rinse and repeat over and over again? Not necessarily. 

You know the content resonated – but that doesn’t mean the campaign is perfect. A/B test different subject lines, CTAs, and times you send the email to unlock further improvements. 

For example, try “Does Monday at 2pm work for a phone call?” instead of what you’ve been using to date, “Call me when you’re available.” Dig into the details to understand whether phone numbers in landing pages convert higher than phone numbers directly in emails (or vice versa). 

Folding call tracking into your campaign process provides the insights you need to consistently take your marketing to new levels and understand which content drives action for your target audience. Use these learnings to create tailored email campaigns you know will resonate – and ultimately close more business. 

About Constant Contact x CallRail 

Tracking open rates and click-through rates is just the first step when it comes to analyzing your email marketing performance. If you want to close the attribution gap and link emails sent to new business created, you need to track the inbound phone calls and form submissions that your campaigns generate. 

Call Tracking and Form Tracking by CallRail provide this missing link. Integrate with Constant Contact to begin measuring every step of the marketing journey after the email. 

See who clicked through onto a landing page, submitted a form requesting more information, or called your company directly. Link calls that your reps receive to the emails that encourage prospects to pick up the phone. 

When you close the attribution gap between emails sent and calls and forms received, you can determine the true ROI of each campaign, and connect dollars spent to dollars earned. Stop guessing and gain a complete picture of your multichannel marketing success with the CallRail x Constant Contact integration. Constant Contact customers receive 20% off when you sign up for CallRail today!