Firms wishing to increase their website traffic and online sales could be well advised to consider email marketing, a new study indicates.

According to research by Epsilon more than 84 per cent of respondents claimed they have visited a company's website directly as a result of receiving a promotional email.

Epsilon president Ragy Thomas suggested that although consumers "trust" and "respond" to email marketing, advertisers could do more to make best use of this technique.

He said: "Email marketers must continue to strive for relevance and take the initiative to ensure that their messages reach and are welcomed by their customers."

The study also indicated that 73 per cent of users had made an online purchase after clicking on a relevant email.

Last month, a report by Emailcenter UK revealed that internet users are more likely to open correspondence from B2B email marketers on a Wednesday than on any other day of the week.