You’re Missing Out on Millions: an e-newsletter case study
Whoever said email doesn’t drive sales never did it right.
When Halkey-Roberts approached us through one of our design partners, Tracy Sprinkle, they were interested in boosting their bottom line through “growing digitally.”
We quickly found the medical device company was sitting on a goldmine: 1,000+ contacts collected over years of doing good work.
But they weren’t doing anything with them. Not even a monthly email.
The Problem: Wasted Leads
Every name on that list represented someone who had, at some point, been interested in our client’s services. From existing and past clients to trade show connections, they all had said they wanted to know more about our client.
But without no outreach, those contacts sat idle - forgotten data collecting dust.
Why not reach out? Well, for starters, Halkey-Roberts didn’t want to bother anyone. After all, they weren’t even really sure where to start or what to say. Constantly emailing out a product list certainly didn’t feel natural or effective.
Sound familiar? You’re not alone, considering only 31% of marketers use email marketing. (1)
The Solution: A Simple, Strategic Newsletter
The solution was clear to us: connect with these old leads and light a fire of potential. We developed a clean and focused monthly newsletter with three consistent sections:
Inside Halkey-Roberts – company culture, leadership philosophy and what made them different
Product Spotlight – one featured product, clearly and succinctly explained
Industry Insight – an article with news or trends relevant to the medical device world
This format allowed Halkey-Roberts to share both who they were and what they sold in a way that felt natural, educational and enjoyable to read. Most importantly, it provided real value to the readers.
And we stuck with it, month after month, for over two and a half years.
The Results: Measurable ROI That Matters
What happened?
Email Open Rate: Met industry benchmarks (which was a win given how cold the list was)
Click-Through Rate: Outperformed industry standards by over 10%
Actual Clicks: Nearly 2,000 total click-throughs
Conversions: 41 form submissions requesting a meeting
With each lead valued at a minimum of $50,000, that means:
This simple, well-crafted email campaign drove over $2 million in potential ROI.
All from a list they already had.
With messaging they’d never used.
For a cost far lower than most traditional marketing.
The cherry on top? The email acted as a conversation re-starter at events. Many recipients referenced a past issue when meeting up with Halkey-Roberts at trade shows!
The Takeaway: Stop Letting Good Leads Go Cold
And yet email remains one of the most underused tools in small business marketing.
If you're sitting on a list of emails - even 200, not 1,000 - and not communicating regularly, you’re leaving opportunity on the table. Consider this: 59% of consumers say email marketing has influenced their purchasing decisions. (1)
How can we afford to leave that on the table?
Email remains one of the lowest-cost, highest-return channels in all of marketing. It doesn’t have to be annoying or overly promotional. In fact, it shouldn’t be. Unless you’re a clothing brand, people don’t want to read about your services or products over and over again. It should be stated, though, that some of the most successful, nonproduct related enewsletters actually do come from clothing brands.
Remember, you’re a guest in their inbox. Make sure you provide value.
Your email can simply be:
Helpful
Honest
On brand
And that’s often more than enough.
Final Thought
Show up in someone’s inbox once a month and you stay top of mind. Offer real insight and you become trusted. Top of mind and trusted? You’re no longer selling. You’re the de facto choice at decision time.
Don’t overthink it. Don’t wait until it’s perfect. Start sending something worth reading that provides value - and stay consistent.
At White Hound Co, we help businesses grow by connecting your message to your bottom line - without the buzzwords. Whether that means a smarter email campaign or learning how to make your brand stand out, we’re here to help.
Curious about what that looks like? Let’s talk!