email direct marketing techniques
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Email Direct Marketing
Techniques Guaranteed to Increase Your Success
Reggie Brady
(203) 838-8138 © Regina Brady 2011 all rights reserved
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Agenda
• Email Benchmarks and How Do You Rate?
• 4 big trends
– Mobile
– Social
– Relevance and email triggers
– Reactivation
• 8 building blocks for success
Overall Benchmarks Q2-11
Conversions based on clicks – 3.16% (up from Q1-11)
Epsilon – Q2-11 Email Trends and Benchmarks – 8-31-11
a study of 7.1 billion emails sent by Epsilon across multiple industries for around 150 clients
Overall Benchmarks
Epsilon – Q2-11 Email Trends and Benchmarks – 8-31-11
a study of 7.1 billion emails sent by Epsilon across multiple industries for around 150 clients
Benchmarking
Maturity Class Mean Class Performance for
Best-in-Class Top 20%
• 21% average year-over-year
improvement in revenue
• 11% average year-over-year
improvement in click-through
rates
Industry Average Middle 50%
• 2% average year-over-year
improvement in revenue
• 2% average year-over-year
improvement in click-through
rates
Laggard Bottom 30%
• 2% average year-over-year
decline in revenue
• 1% average year-over-year
decline in click-through rates
How do you rate?
Aberdeen Research – Email Marketing: Customers Take It Personally – 12-10
Differentiate Process
from Business Metrics
Silverpop – Email Marketing Metrics That Matter – 7-09
Email Marketer
• Our open rate is now 22%.
• Unique click-through rates have increased since our redesign.
• Delivery at Yahoo is up since we stopped using one large image.
• Spam complaints are down 15%.
Executives
• How much revenue email generate?
• How has email improved customer retention?
• Has email reduced our costs of communicating with customers?
• What impact is email having on conversions from other channels?
Differentiate Process
from Business Metrics
Process Business
• Opens
• Bounces
• Delivered
• Clicks
• Revenue/Orders
• Downloads/Demos
• Qualified Leads
• Retention
• Cross channel activity
Your mission:
beat the competition
I’ll share some ideas
to keep you ahead of
the pack
Email design must take mobile
into account
Big trend #1
Mobile devices and email
• Last October fewer than 9% of
emails were read on a mobile
device
• Today between 16% and 20%
are read on a mobile device
• You need to re-think design for
the ―small screen‖ or be left
behind
• KISS - stick with your offer, create
something actionable
• Don’t waste valuable real estate on a tiny
screen with clutter
• Proper coding will enable your message
to be seen on iPhone, Droid, Blackberry.
• Avoid slow download times
• Use short subject lines
Advice for email re-design
Advice for email re-design
• Width must be compressed
– Less than 500 pixels
• Columns – no more than 2
– Put the most important information to the left
• The top 2 – 3 inches is valuable
– Put ―click to view‖ and ―click to view mobile‖ at top
– Headers should be short – no more than 120 pixels in height
– Move ―forward to a friend,‖ social icons and ―add to address book‖ below
top of the message
• Use text links, in combination with image links
– The fat finger issue
Mobile Rendering – a handy tool
If a rendering check is not provided by your ESP, Litmus.com offers this capability
starting at $49 per month for 29 different environments.
2 columns
• Easier to read on screen
• Allows for easy organization of content
• If many of your subscribers read emails
on mobile, you may want one column
… at least near the top.
2 columns
• Easier to read on screen
• Allows for easy organization of content
• If many of your subscribers read emails
on mobile, you may want one column
… at least near the top.
• If this email was displayed on a mobile
device, readers would see the upper left
text, but may not see the picture of the
waffle breakfast sandwich.
Maximizing social for sign-ups
and within email
Co
-op
20
12
Big trend #2
Social can be a big gorilla
• Plan to integrate your email and
social strategies
• Today most marketers have yet to
get a return on investment with social
… but it’s coming
– BtoB – 11% see a direct ROI
– BtoC – 15% see a direct ROI
Source: White Horse, ―B2B Marketing Goes Social,‖ 5-18-10
Exploit your social presence
to grow your list
• Promote your email program
Kentucky Fried Chicken created a
separate area on Facebook with an
email sign-up widget
3% of all sign-ups now come from
These sign-ups have 70% higher
opens and CTRs
• Post or tweet offers or content from
your email programs
• Promote social via email and email
via social
Email Sherpa – 2/15/11
Moosejaw
Mountaineering
Exploit your social presence
to grow your list
Consider a social sign-up option
Allow people to sign up with their social credentials
A recent study found 90% opted for regular email sign-up and 10% used Facebook Connect
Source: Janrain company blog 4-14-11
Social Network ID that Social Users
Worldwide Use to Sign in to Websites
Consider a social sign-up option
Source: Gigya, “Multiple Identities” 7-7-10
Profile Data Available on Social Networks
The data you collect
is amazing!
Consider a social sign-up option
Major implications for
e-commerce!
Source: ROI Research Inc., “S-Net:The Impact of Social Media” 6-7-11
Activities that US Social Network Users Are More
Likely to Do After They Follow a Company or
Products on Facebook or Twitter
Registration and email sign-up
Facebook Connect
Embrace social in your emails
Some marketers
consolidate social
media icons with
forward to a friend
Embrace social in your emails
• Create special emails to encourage
social participation
• Subject line: Now You Can Follow
Us on Facebook and Twitter!
Embrace social in your emails
An excellent job at explaining why people should follow them on Twitter.
– Share photos of you in your favorite looks by The Limited
Triggered Messaging for relevance
— you’ve got to do it!
Co
-op
20
12
Big trend #3
Relevance
The days of ―batch and blast‖ or
―spray and pray‖ are over
Relevant emails that make each
customer feel special will provide
more leverage and sales
Triggered messages are a great
way to personally touch your
audience
• Trigger sent if customer views
at least 3 products but does
not buy.
• Incentive to purchase
• Address possible customer
service issues
• 30% open rate and 6% CTR
along with increase in live chat
usage
S&S Worldwide – Must Have Triggered Campaigns for Every Business – 1-10
Trigger #1: browsed, but didn’t buy
Trigger #2: birthday messages
Subject Line: Happy Birthday
– Get 10% Off Your Next
Flight
Results:
– 50% open rates
– Revenue per email 360%
higher than average fare
sale
Alaska Airlines 2-3-10
Trigger #3: cross-sell in order confirmation
• Additional selling in message
• Subject Line: Order Confirmation
#092857855452
• Like top navigation & ―You May Also
Consider‖ with dynamic population of
items that complement purchase
• Observes 80/20 rule with most of the
message referring to transaction
Trigger #4: order review request
Purchases featured
Sent 3 weeks after purchase
Nice way to drive site
involvement
Trigger #5: abandoned cart
My favorite – you can recoup
up to 15% of lost sales
Most marketers see up to 50%
of carts abandoned
Consider:
• sending a series
• including a product picture
• no discount in first email
Trigger #5: abandoned cart
You could sweeten the offer, like the email here
• I like sending a series and NOT including a discount in the first email
Opens Clicks Conversion % Revenue per email
No offer 15% 12% 1.8% $3.20
Offer 17% 13% 2.9% $3.29
Experian CheetahMail- The Remarketing Report – 2/10
Trigger #5: abandoned cart
Including a picture of the product left in the cart is a consideration.
Opens Clicks Conversion %
Product shown 63.8% 28.8% 2.9%
No product but link to cart 53.5% 24.9% 1.4%
Log in to see your cart 45.1% 17.1% 1.3%
Experian CheetahMail- The Remarketing Report – 2/10
Abandoned cart emails work!
Experian CheetahMail- The Remarketing Report – 2/10
One company’s experience with triggered
messages
*Carolyn Nye- S&S – eROI Virtual Trade Show 11/11/10
Annual email volume Annual email sales
Reactivation
Co
-op
20
12
Big trend #4
Create a win back plan
Up to 50% of most lists are inactive and have not
opened or clicked in months.
Win them back – before it’s too late!
Reactivation
• An important reason to care!
– ISPs are starting to measure non-openers
– It affects your reputation
– A large volume of inactive e-mail recipients is considered junk by ISPs.
– Long-term inactive email addresses can turn into spam traps.
• Remember, your most active subscribers generate all your traffic and revenue
– Inactive do NOT help you reach business goals and you are paying to send to them.
• Your metrics are distorted if you have a significant number of inactives.
Reactivation
And, it is costing you money!
The financial costs of inattention
Reactivation
Cisco Win Back Campaign
Huge database – but, only 25% were active - Some hadn’t been active in 3 to 6 years
- Some didn’t have clear opt-in flag
- Decided to test 14.5% of inactives
Segments and offers to capture updated info: - VPs and above - $25 Starbucks gift card
- Directors & Managers – white paper
- Directors & Managers – no offer
Results: - VPs – Opens 17.1%, CTR 7.6%, Conversions 6.1%
- White paper – Opens 12.1%, CTR 2.0%, Conversions
1.4%
- No offer – Opens 18.3%, CTR 6.5%, Conversions
3.9%
Email Sherpa – 1-11-11
Reactivation
Bed Bath & Beyond Win
Back Campaign
Decreased frequency for
inactives from 7x per month,
to 5x per month and
eventually to 1x per month
Reactivation
Bed Bath & Beyond Win
Back Campaign
Finally, they send a re-
permission email specifying a
date when they would stop
sending emails without
subscriber permission.
When all else fails
Remove dead addresses – your metrics will also improve
Subject Line: We Miss You –
Come Back for 30% Off Your
Next Flight
Entice non-flying members to
book. Tested offer vs non-
offer.
Results compared to usual
promotions: - Opens 55% higher
- CTR 75% higher
- Revenue per email 564%
higher
Alaska Airlines – 2-3-10
Re-engagement of past purchasers
8 Building Blocks for Success
• Make email sign-up visible and ―above the fold‖ on your home
page
• Include sign up on most visited pages
• Or, use persistent sign up to promote on every site page
• And give them a reason to sign up
– Offers and promotions
– Tips and best practices
– Product news and updates
– How to information
1. Leverage your site to grow your list
Sign up above the fold
Upper right-hand
corner draws
attention
Which form position generated higher submissions?
A. Form on the left B. Form on the right
Which Test Won – 1/27/10
2. Registration form placement
Which form position generated higher submissions?
Version B generated 24.6%
more form submissions
In western countries we tend
to read from left to right
2. Registration form placement
Which form position generated higher submissions?
B. Form on the right
Which Test Won – 1/27/10
Which form position generated higher submissions?
3. Work your subject lines Top 100 used words
The larger and darker the words, the more frequently these words were
used, while those that are smaller and lighter were used less frequently.
Source: Mailer Mailer: Email Marketing Benchmarks 7-11
Subject line length
Source: MailerMailer: Email Metrics Guide – 7-11
4. Learn more about your list
Data Capture
Subscriber Empowerment
Increased Relevance
• Demographics and interests
• Up to date/changes
• Personal control
• Better retention
• Preferred frequency, lists
• Basis of personalization, segmentation
Preference centers
Simple preference center
Complex preference center
Preference center email
Subject line: Spring Fever! Introducing New Women’s Styles
Promotes preference center
Which form position generated higher submissions?
5. Segment and mine your list
1. Self-selected
2. Demographic
3. Email behavior
4. Transactional
5. Site behavior
6. Lifecycle
7. Modeling
American Meadows sends a weekly email.
Now they send an additional email 3 days after
main email.
- Those who click on a product receive an email with a call-to-
action based on the product clicks
- Those who did not click receive an email based on the most
popular product
Results:
• Behavioral segmentation increased revenue by 14%
Email behavior
Bronto website
National Hockey league
• 800,000 fan database
• Segment on zip & favorite team
• 60% of fans don’t live in the city of their
favorite team
A Boston Bruins fan living in Boston receives an
email with Bruins imagery and the Bruins first 7
home games
eDialog 7-10
Geographic segmentation
A Bruins fan living in Philadelphia receives Bruins
imagery, but the game schedule only has info on
games in which the Bruins were playing the
Philadelphia Flyers in Philadelphia.
The NHL believes this system increased single
ticket game sales by 31%
King Arthur Flour
Currently has 6 segments with the first 4 gained
from registration & preference center:
• Subscribers near their retail store
• Canadian subscribers
• Those interested in wholesale
• Gluten-free subscribers
• Print newsletter subscribers
• Subscribers to their baking school
Email Sherpa 7-12-11
Geographic & preferences segmentation
General opens and clicks – 30% and 27%
Segment opens and clicks – 35% to 50% and
25% to 35%
Involve your readers to build community
7. Engage your readers
Involve your readers to build community
Subject line: Help build the
Best Buy Business District.
It’s a robust site for small
business professionals with
a strong knowledge center
and the opportunity to post
questions and comments.
Engage your readers
8. Use Customer Reviews
• Reviews are altering how consumers make
purchase decisions
• Reviews will increase conversions
• Online shoppers are often willing to spend more
for highly rated products
• Plus, page views increase and customers say
they feel more satisfied with their shopping
experience when it includes customer reviews
Forrester Research says that 87% of consumers tend to write reviews
when they have something positive to say.
Customer Reviews
• Conversions go up
• SEO traffic goes up
• Returns go down
• Customer satisfaction and brand trust increase
Reviews are a fundamental tool where customer conversations become
powerful content.
• Subject line: Shop Dell's Top-rated
Products
• Consider highlighting reviews in your
subject line.
• Dell found if a shopper spent time with site
reviews, conversions doubled. (BazaarVoice)
Customer Reviews encourage site
purchases. If you have them on your site
– try including them in some emails.
Customer Reviews
• A review capability need not be
expensive
• AlpacaDirect.com, a small
business, works with
PowerReviews and pays
$80/month.
• Results:
– Sales grew by 23% for those
items that had positive reviews
–
CNN.com 9/28/09
Customer Reviews
Email & Social likes
Email helped
increase Facebook
fan growth by 700%
to surpass 1 million
fans.