No man is an iland

Identifying engaged subscribers: repeat opens

2009-07-10T12:21:00.000+02:00

Your list of email addresses has a wide range of people on it.

At one end of the spectrum you have those who signed up a while back, lost interest and now give any message as much attention as it takes to delete it.

At the other end are those who really value your emails. They look forward to, read, respond to and tell others about them.

Identifying the addresses at each end of this spectrum is an important exercise.

You can target the first group with a reactivation campaign. And the second group are nominally your "best" subscribers: you can thank them, perhaps target them with more email, and/or give them tools and incentives to spread the word even more than they already do.

Most people identifying their best subscribers filter their list according to the end objective. Who spends the most money? Who buys most often? Who attends the most events? Or they may use more complex models of behavior.

Which is great, but there are several problems:

a lot of us don't have the ability to match an email address with subsequent behavior at a website
a lot of us send informational emails where there is no such "result" to measure
not all our best subscribers respond online in a measurable way
the definition of best isn't just about traditional responses like sales or registrations. What about those who don't buy anything but do a great job of passing our message around?

All is not lost, however.

If you just have basic open and click data for your emails, you can still pull out "engaged" subscribers from your list by playing a little with the numbers. Here some suggestions using a real B2B newsletter as an example.

Repeat opens

Repeat opens are the forgotten statistic in email marketing.

We know the open rate has its limitations as it simply tells us whether a tiny tracking image was activated or not.

But most email marketing software and services also record how many times that tracking image was activated by any one recipient. And that's an interesting number.

Why?

Because if a tracking image is activated once, it doesn't tell us much. We don't know if they opened and read the email, or if they just triggered an open through a preview they never actually looked at.

We can never be sure if the recipient truly gave the email any attention.

But if an open is triggered many times (as measured by the repeat or total opens figure), it's highly unlikely that this is by accident. One of two things is probably happening:

1. The recipient is returning to the email again and again.

2. The recipient forwarded the email intact to others, who are triggering opens as they get the email.

Both scenarios suggest an "engaged" reader. The former is very interested in your message, the latter thinks your message is valuable enough to share.

Here's how the pattern of total opens might look for an email (based on real data from that B2B newsletter). The graph takes those who opened the email and details what percentage opened that message once, twice, three times, four times etc.:

Over 60% just "opened" the message once. But see how 2.2% opened the email 11 times or more. In fact, one subscriber actually opened the email 175 times. These are the folk we might zoom in on and tag as "engaged" subscribers.

Now maybe that one recipient found a dreadful error in the email and sent it to all her friends so they could share a laugh. Rather than pick out engaged subscribers from individual emails, we should maybe look at averages.

Here's what I did...

First I aggregated total opens across four months' worth of emails (nine issues) to get an average total open pattern (which is actually the graph above).

This is an interesting exercise in itself, because you can compare the average with the total open pattern for individual emails. Here's an example:

In this case, we can see that the holiday campaign was more engaging than the average and we can then explore why.

But I digress.

Having worked out average total open rate patterns across many emails, I calculated an average total opens per opener: 2.3.

In other words...a recipient will trigger an open an average of 2.3 times for each email that they open.

Defining what makes an engaged reader is a subjective decision, but I did it like this:

1. First I pulled out any address who opened an individual email more than five times the average. So anyone who opened any one email more than 11 times made the cut.

2. Of those names, I then recorded those addresses who opened another email more than twice the average (5 times or more).

The result was a list of "most engaged" addresses...the "influencers". Some 3.49% of the total address list fall into this category.

You can do it other ways, too. You might, for example, calculate the average total opens for each address on the list over a period of time and take the top 5% as your "best" subscribers.

Now you've probably spotted the big flaw in this approach. Thanks to image blocking, a lot of "engaged" readers may never show up through an analysis based on open rates. You only record an open when a tracking image is displayed.

Well spotted.

Next week, I'll look at some simple alternative measures that don't have this problem and explore some more flaws to the whole engagement approach...

Famous inboxes #2 Lord Voldemort

2009-06-30T17:30:00.002+02:00

Serious and practical posts are all very well, but I need a little light distraction now and then.

So after wrestling with the complexities of mobile email challenges, it's time to return to the famous inboxes series.

Part 1 revealed the contents of Darth Vader's email account. Here's one for Harry Potter fans to tide them over before the new movie appears.

Mobile email: dealing with the marketing challenges

2009-06-26T14:20:00.002+02:00

Last week's post proved that mobile email is on the rise and outlined half a dozen related challenges for email marketers.

So how do we deal with those challenges?

How do we, for example, adapt email design to account for the limitations of mobile devices, but without sacrificing on impact when the same email is viewed on a PC?

Should we even try?

Two years ago, ExactTarget published a detailed report on mobile email use and the implications for marketers.

The results of a follow-up survey are out shortly and Morgan Stewart (ExactTarget's Director, Research & Strategy) was kind enough to pass on some early insights.

The core message is "don't panic." Mobile email has caught on because people want a way to deal with urgent and personal emails when they are on the go.

As such, not many are using mobile email to interact with promotional marketing messages. Instead, they save such emails for later perusal:

"We're nervous about what mobile email looks like, but most people are actually waiting for the desktop to read commercial email."

So your design focus still needs to be on traditional display environments.

At the same time, the number that do read and act on promotions and newsletters through their mobile device is likely to grow.

However, since this development is driven by better mobile browser and email software, the problem is effectively its own cure.

Expect more from Morgan when the new results are fully analyzed.

Even though the mobile challenge may not be the big issue we sometimes assume, there are various changes you can make to better address the mobile email user base.

Make your normal email more mobile-friendly

Your commercial email needs to survive the filtering process that deletes everything that isn't worth saving for later. As Simms Jenkins wrote last year:

"...your goal should be to make it through this mobile gauntlet and hopefully get responded to later."

The basic value of your emails is the big factor determining whether you're saved or deleted. But you can help make the decision positive through the following tactics, none of which hurt the email experience back on the desktop (on the contrary):

1. Ensure your emails are recognized. This means, in particular, a consistent sender name (person, brand, organization, etc.) that recipients know, plus identifying text or images (e.g. logo) at the top of the email.

(See this post for more details on ensuring recognition.)

2. Use the preheader space to communicate the value of the content or offer. (See here for information on preheader design.)

3. Ensure images and logos use alt attributes so useful text appears in place of blocked images.

4. Make sure the important words are at the front of your subject line.

Kath Pay writes:

"Put the key information first in the subject line, such as call to action or the offer. That way, important information remains if the mobile inbox cuts off the subject line before the end."

For more on "frontloading" subject lines, see Part 5 of the subject line series, and this follow-up.

Optimize for the smartphone future

The "next level" of change you can make is to account for people who also read and act on commercial messages through their mobile device.

The number of such people is likely to increase as the smartphone market grows, smartphones improve their Internet capabilities, and the differences between phones and mini-computers become blurred (see the previous post.)

If a significant number of people are reading emails and websites on their smartphone, then this implies that these phones are doing a pretty good job at displaying both.

In turn, this means we can relax a little about design. Except for the issue of screen size.

In a recent report on email design, Aaron Smith notes:

"In the next year or so we may be recommending widths closer to 500 or 550 pixels for promotional messages as we'll want to pay more attention to market saturation and email usage on smartphones."

Loren McDonald also has some useful tips on general design improvements that help align PC and mobile email design.

The "mobile version" link

The widely-recommended practice of simply adding a link to a "mobile version" is easier conceived than implemented. It's hard to come up with a link that keeps all potential users happy.

There are two main challenges: how do you code the link and what do you put on the page hosting the "mobile version" of the email?

The landing page issue is rarely addressed in the media, because you actually have various choices. For example:

Option 1: A "normal" web version, for those with good browsers in their mobile device.

Option 2: A "full mobile" version of your email, which is simply a web page optimized for narrower screens and perhaps bandwidth limitations.

Option 3: A "simplified mobile" version, which is a web page consisting mostly of text in narrow columns.

Someone using an older mobile phone wants option 3. Smartphone users want option 2. And your CFO wants option 1 because it doesn't cost extra.

Can your software or ESP automatically create a genuinely mobile-ready website version of your HTML email?
Which kind of mobile-ready website version does it create? Is it the right kind?
Can it still do it when you're using personalization and dynamic content?
If the ESP or software doesn't have this functionality, can you do it yourself?
Is the additional work justified?
And if the landing page is mobile-optimized, does that mean the subsequent pages leading off that page have to be mobile-optimized, too?

Those are just some of the questions you need to ask: the mind begins to boggle.

Now for the link itself. If you do this...

Mobile version

...it will work fine on many mobile devices. But some will display this...

Mobile version

Another option is this:

Mobile version: http://email-marketing-reports.com/112/

The written-out URL is not linked here: it's just text.

If it was linked, it would introduce another whacking great tracking URL to fill up the screen on some devices, plus there are concerns that it might trigger some anti-phishing checks (see here for an explanation.)

The text link gives a clear and short URL for mobile users to click on or copy and paste.

I'd welcome any input from you on how you think it's best to link to a mobile version of your email.

Whatever link(s) you do use, put them right at the top of the email where they're easily found. For more on mobile link formats and traps to watch for, see this post.

Deciding if it's worthwhile

Given all the above, you might wonder if it's worth the hassle. And in many cases, it probably isn't.

Here's a quote from the great Anna Yeaman of Style Campaign:

"I'm ditching the mobile link in my newsletter. Only person who clicked on it was me because I was so chuffed I'd put it in."

Currently, developing a comprehensive mobile email and website experience probably only makes sense for very large lists or where you can be certain that your recipients are using mobile email and regard your messages as relatively urgent. An example might be stock updates.

Many experts recommend you let people self-select as mobile users when signing-up or in preference centers. The problem there is that people don't use their mobile device exclusively. As we noted, they tend to keep commercial email for later when back on a PC.

So if you send allegedly "mobile users" nicely formatted plain text messages, you're missing out on the power of HTML and images when most of these messages are actually read on a desktop or laptop.

So how do you decide how much effort to invest in making your emails mobile-friendly?

I can do little more than point you to this article by Deirdre Cook which covers that decision process in depth. She concludes:

"...unless there is a clear benefit to implementing a program today, for now, the best mobile strategy may be to use this time to enhance your knowledge of your customer's mobile habits and preferences."

With so many mobile devices, operating systems and software out there, nobody need feel out of touch if they're confused. I know I am. What's your take on all this?

More on mobile email marketing | Tags: email marketing, wireless email, mobile email

Outlook 2010: Bad news for HTML email design, but...

2009-06-24T09:41:00.002+02:00

The folk at Campaign Monitor have important information on the likely rendering capabilities of Outlook 2010, slated for release in about a year.

In essence, the problems associated with Outlook 2007 have not been fixed. So Outlook 2010 is set to be equally resistant to animated gifs, background images, various CSS properties, etc..

Since HTML email design adapts to the lowest common denominator, Outlook 2010 would continue to place limits on design creativity and functionality.

The only "good" news is that if you've adapted your emails for Outlook 2007, you hopefully shouldn't need to make new changes for Outlook 2010. (Perhaps a designer can clarify that for us?)

The original issues around Outlook 2007 led to the creation of the Email Standards Project and today saw them set up an initiative to try and get Microsoft to take appropriate remedial action.

Microsoft's argument is that their approach (using Word to render emails) ensures that emails composed in newer versions of the Outlook email client will look as intended when received by those same clients.

Which is a solid argument if the whole world is using that product to send and receive email.

Oh.

It's a strangely insular kind of logic which I don't really get. The Campaign Monitor post has further details and relevant quotes from Microsoft staff.

But there's a lesson for us here.

Outlook 2007 (and its likely successor) don't support particular HTML design features that we'd quite like to use in our promotions and newsletters.

That's a big issue for email designers. But you know what? The email industry (not the email marketing industry) and seemingly Microsoft isn't that bothered.

Put your email user cap on. The vast majority of messages you consider truly important are nothing more than text and maybe the odd image or attachment. Mails from friends, family and work colleagues, and simple transactional emails.

Of course there will be exceptions, but the vast majority of "important" messages received by Outlook 2007 users look fine. A few bulk marketing emails may look a little weird as not everyone has adapted to the constraints imposed by Outlook 2007. But do these users care?

Are the protests about Outlook 2007 and now 2010 coming from people who are not designers or marketers? It's likely to be the key question for the software folk behind Outlook.

Let's be clear: I'm not saying our concerns about Outlook are unimportant or irrelevant. I'm a long-time supporter of the Email Standards Project and you'll find my ugly face adorning FixOutlook.org, too.

But the whole issue reflects the fact that recipients do not see our emails and the complexities of HTML email design as quite so urgent and important as we perhaps do. Otherwise we wouldn't be having this argument.

It might also explain why mobile device manufacturers have - until recently - been extremely lax about support for HTML email.

People use mobile devices to check their email for important messages. And marketing email isn't that important to them. So support for HTML email was perhaps never a great priority. (The follow-up to last week's mobile email post is out later this week BTW.)

So can we learn anything from the Outlook debate?

Perhaps it serves as a useful reminder: the format or the medium is important, but not nearly as important as the basic value of the delivered information. We need to make people care what their commercial HTML email looks like and can do.

Meanwhile, add your voice to the others at FixOutlook.org.

More on email design | Tags: html email, outlook 2010, outlook 2007

Mobile email: the marketing challenges

2009-06-19T18:51:00.001+02:00

Life is full of unavoidable truths, mostly involving waistlines and wrinkles.

One of them is that more and more people are reading your emails on a mobile device.

While we all feel we should somehow take account of that in our email design and strategy, few of us do. Mostly because it's hard to work out exactly how to deal with the "mobile email challenge".

The problems start when we try and work out what exactly the "mobile email challenge" is. Much advice on the topic carefully avoids going into detail because the challenges (plural) are various and changing.

Back in 2008, Morgan Stewart summed it up succinctly:

"There is no simple quick fix."

So we shrug and kind of hope it's not a big deal.

Now I'm a big fan of the General Melchett approach...

"If nothing else works, then a total pig-headed unwillingness to look facts in the face will see us through."

...but strong sales of smartphones suggest the time has come to look at the topic in detail.

This post outlines the current status of mobile email use and the associated challenges. A follow-up post then explores some of the ways we might adapt our emails and even benefit from this trend.

Mobile email capabilities are increasing

The use of mobile email is clearly linked to the availability of email-ready mobile devices, particularly smartphones (phones incorporating advanced PC-like features and strong online capabilities).

According to analysts Gartner, 36.4 million smartphones sold worldwide in Q1, 2009, accounting for 13.5% of all new mobile phone sales.

With all the iPhone love around, you may be surprised to find that the Gartner stats show Nokia is the global smartphone market leader, with 41.2% market share.

Research in Motion (RIM, makers of BlackBerry devices) comes in a distant second with 19.9%. Apple smartphones have "just" a 10.8% share of the market (double the equivalent number in Q1, 2008).

In terms of operating systems, almost half of all smartphones (49.3%) use Symbian.

Market shares differ regionally, of course. Both RIM and Apple post far better numbers in the USA, for example.

These smartphone numbers are likely to grow:

Juniper Research predicts that annual sales of smartphones will reach over 300 million by 2013, representing about a quarter of the mobile phone market.
A Kelsey Group study of US mobile phone users back in 2008 found that 49% planned to buy an advanced mobile device within the next two years.

Clearly, millions and millions of email users do or will own a phone with very advanced mobile email capabilities.

Mobile email is a top smartphone activity

In that same Kelsey study, around 40% of mobile phone users said they'd used their mobile phone to go online. And a Netpop report noted that "For Americans, the top three services on the mobile web are e-mail, texting and weather."

A recent ComScore study of mobile phone use in the UK discovered that 13.1% of all mobile phone users had accessed email through their device. More importantly, 35.4% of smartphone users and a massive 75.4% of iPhone users had done so.

So not only are there millions of email-ready mobile devices out there, but people do actually use them to check email.

HTML email capabilities are growing

Given the above, a prime concern of email marketers was always the way in which mobile phones displayed email.

The good news is that popular and newer smartphones are getting much better at handling HTML: the iPhone's excellent treatment of HTML email has forced others to catch up.

Last year, for example, HTML email support arrived for BlackBerry devices through OS and software updates. And the latest release of Nokia Messaging for mobile devices using the S60 software platform with the Symbian OS now supports HTML email.

[If you like your jargon, spend 10 minutes browsing through mobile phone manufacturers' websites. If you don't, stay well clear.]

So if smartphones are getting as good as PCs at reading emails, is the whole mobile email issue going away? Unfortunately...no.

Mobile email challenge 1: rendering

First, there are still devices and systems around that are very poor at handling HTML email.

The classic problem of mobile email design, where incoming mail may be stripped of the HTML code or the code itself is displayed etc. is still around, though it will decline with time.

Second, even the newer models that work adequately with HTML, images and even attachments have displays constrained by the physical nature of the device itself.

Put simply, the size of the screen is much smaller than for a PC or laptop. That alone has implications for email design.

Mobile email challenge 2: user behavior

If we knew exactly which of our subscribers use a mobile device to read our emails (and we knew which device and which software), then we could segment by "reading environment" and send appropriately-designed messages.

So people using old mobile phones might get plain text messages, iPhone users would get HTML-rich messages etc.

Challenge: we don't know this.

Then another layer of complication comes in because people use mobile email in different ways.

1. Many are reading email both on their mobile device and on the PC back home or in the office.

Challenge: If we send email that looks great on a mobile device (for example text-only emails), then these emails are under-optimized when viewed on a PC.

2. Some are using their mobile browser to read webmail.

Challenge: Even email sent to a webmail address may be appearing on a small mobile screen.

3. Some use their mobile email for triage: dealing with urgent messages on their mobile, deleting the rubbish and saving the rest to view later on the PC.

Challenge: how do we ensure our emails survive the triage process?

4. Some will sometimes open and act on marketing email on their mobile device and not save it for later. The distinctions between smartphone, netbook and PC are becoming blurred. Nokia already refers to its newest N97 "smartphone" as "the world's most advanced mobile computer".

Challenge: how do we ensure the whole email/landing page experience works for these mobile users?

5. Some will only use their mobile device for all their email (as explained by Morgan Stewart here).

Challenge: Mobile-only email addresses may reflect specific demographics or be subject to special anti-spam regulations.

But the fun doesn't end there. Let's add in a third layer of complexity: people's habits in terms of why, when and how they use email and the wider Internet change as they gravitate to mobile use.

Aaargghhhh!

Just how do we make sense of that mess?

Can we make sense of it?

Find out in Part 2

More on mobile email marketing | Tags: email marketing, wireless email, mobile email

Webinar: Hidden costs of lazy email marketing

2009-06-15T13:16:00.000+02:00

Quick note to say I'm speaking on this topic at a free webinar hosted by Listrak on Wednesday, June 17th at 1pm EDT. Details and registration here.

I'll draw out some of the problems with email marketing you might not have thought about, throw out some examples, and discuss some of the simple improvements that can make a big difference to your success.

You also get to laugh at my British accent and the way my voice gets gradually higher as I get excited about the topic...

Updated docs for email designers and marketers

2009-06-12T02:18:00.000+02:00

Just a quick pointer to major revisions of two key resource documents, published today.

1. After a 2009 update, the "42 HTML email design resources" page now actually lists around 50 such resources...covering overviews, guidelines, standards, templates, checklists, design tools, galleries and more.

2. Also revised for 2009: the "Why do email marketing?" article collates surveys, studies, reports and statistics outlining the value of email marketing and marketer's attitudes and plans with regard to the channel.

It includes new numbers from Forbes Media, the European Interactive Advertising Association, Datran Media, Shop.org, Internet Retailer, MarketingProfs and Forrester Research.

Intended for marketers looking to convince budget owners of the value of more (or continuing) investment in email.

Enjoy!

The best day to send email?

2009-06-09T17:33:00.003+02:00

After discussing the best time of day to send an email, it makes sense to look at the best day, too.

We all agree that the answer is "it depends": you need to pick out your best guesses based on what you know of your audience, emails and organization and then test to find the winning day.

Good.

But what if that process isn't practical or particularly insightful? And is the idea of a "best day of the week" even the right approach?

What do studies say?

Most experts are leery of those benchmark reports that aggregate numbers across thousands of senders to find which day of the week produced the best open or click rates.

After all, if you have a "what to do this weekend" newsletter, you're not going to send it on a Sunday morning just because that's when studies say the average list gets the best open rates. You don't have an "average" list.

Another argument against using aggregated benchmarks is that the reported "best" day keeps shifting around.

Here are some "best day of week to send" results (based on open rates and some measure of click rates)...

As reported by MailerMailer for 2004 - 2008:

As reported by eROI for intermittent periods from 2005 - 2007:

So, yes, the "best" day keeps changing. But note how often the weekend and start of the week pops up compared to, say, Thursdays. Surely no coincidence?

Does that mean we should always send sometime between Saturday and Monday?

No, because we still have the issue that your list and organization has its own unique characteristics that might make Thursdays the best day.

In fact that "what to do at the weekend" email might perform best on Thursdays, when people are beginning to plan their Saturday and Sunday.

But these aggregated stats do have value. Here's why...

First, if you really can't come up with any realistic "best guess" day, then benchmarks are a starting point...it's worth testing the weekend or early week for your emails.

Second, these stats bring home the point that you need to base your decision on the right metric. The reported best day for opens is rarely the same as the best day for clicks. And the best day for conversions may be different again. What are you trying to maximize?

Past performance and segmenting by daily responses

You can apply the same principles to finding the right day to send as we suggested for finding the right time. Namely:

1. Look back at your campaign reports and see if you can pick up on any patterns. Do emails sent on a particular day always get better results?

2. Define segments based not (just) on what people click, but also on which day they click.

Not everyone on your list has the same email habits. You may find some that check email on weekdays only. And others that use Sundays to catch up on email. Segmenting by "preferred day" lets you better time your sends to match the recipient's email habits.

Change the question: new thinking

All of the above and most articles on this topic fall into a common trap, however. Thanks to the legacy of a newspaper mindset, we often think of the "best day to send" issue in terms of days of the week.

But the question isn't "what's the best day of the week to send email?" It's "what's the best day to send email?"

There's an important difference.

Put it like this. You worked out Sundays are the best day of the week to send out your email promotions.

OK, Christmas Day is on a Monday.

Are you going to send your "gifts with free overnight shipping" promotion on Sunday, December 24th?

Of course not.

Whenever we send campaigns out related to specific events, weather, etc., we implicitly acknowledge that the "best day of the week" and the "best day" are not always going to be the same.

Once you think of the "best day" as independent of a weekly timetable, it opens up numerous possibilities.

One is to explore those trigger email campaigns that essentially let the recipient determine the best day to send. Because the email is sent relative to some event or recipient behavior. More on that here.

Another is to draw up a list of those factors that determine the best time for a recipient to take the action you want them to (click, view, download, buy, register etc.).

The choose your send date based on a review of those factors.

One such factor is when recipients check their email, which is where "best day of the week / best time of day" comes in. And that's still likely to be a critical factor, especially for informational publication-type emails.

But other factors are often undervalued, representing missed opportunities: especially for promotional emails.

Dela Quist writes, for example:

"A far greater number of people on your list are likely to buy because they have just been paid than the number of people who buy because you sent the email before 10am on a Wednesday."

Sending your email on a day of the month where people are likely to have cash in their pockets is a no brainer, as confirmed by Morgan Stewart.

Dela argues strongly in favor of looking at more critical timing factors that are independent of the day of the week, rather than searching for the artificial compromise that is a best day of week (or best time).

Payday is just one example of a factor that might drive the timing of a campaign. I'm sure you can come up with many more that are relevant to your list, organization, and emails.

Think time/day combinations

Another trap is to think of "best day" and "best time of day" as two separate issues. The best time to send depends on the day you send it. And vice versa.

This is illustrated in a detailed test involving B2C campaigns conducted by Switzerland's Newsmarketing agency.

They tested time/day combinations to come up with a matrix (see Page 12 of their report) that shows, for example, that Saturday evenings get great responses...but Monday afternoons are better than Saturday mornings. (NB: report is in German.)

This kind of detailed testing pays off if you can then build the associated time/day list segments and adjust the timing based on the multi-factor approach outlined above.

In summary, it's clear that simply finding some "best day of the week" or "best time of the day" to send your email is a worthy exercise, but only an initial step in optimizing your timing.

Any thoughts?

More on timing | Tags: email marketing, best day to send emails

Followers, fans, friends and fools

2009-06-05T13:47:00.002+02:00

Allegedly, a rose would smell just as sweet with another name.

Except it wouldn't.

Words have associations that affect the way we think, which is why a good copywriter is worth their weight in gold (or aurum, if you prefer).

Some email marketers allow themselves to be misled by terms like open rate, delivery rate and blast.

The first two sound like they measure something they don't actually measure at all. And blast encourages you to think of email as a one-to-many, untargeted marketing approach. Which is not helpful.

A new danger is the terminology surrounding social marketing.

Current social networking terms like "friends," "followers" and "fans" mean something in the "real" world. The mistake is to assume they mean the same online. They don't.

Online, these labels can be based on nothing more than a single click. They are imposed, not earned. And they suggest a depth to the relationship that rarely exists.

Offline, a friend, follower or fan is loyal and (to an extent) forgiving.

Online, they are likely not.

A real "follower" will listen to you spout inanities for an hour. An online follower will give you about 0.5 seconds before moving on to the next Tweet.

A real "friend" will do something for you with no expectation of payment. Most online "friends" ask "what's in it for me?"

Why does this matter?

Many of your online followers, friends and fans will pay attention only for as long as you keep delivering value in your updates, posts, Tweets and messages.

If you let those labels seduce you into assuming offline levels of loyalty, you'll be tempted to tip the value exchange too much in your favor.

You'll assume you have enough goodwill in the relationship bank to get away with entirely self-serving content. You'll let standards slip, and fall into the one-way, push, broadcast marketing mentality that is the antithesis of social media.

Let me quote the wonderful Anne Holland:

"Loathing Facebook friends who "suggest" I become "a fan of" someone, usually themselves. Vomit self promotional."

So if someone becomes a fan, follower or friend, it's you that needs to keep on earning that status. Not them.

What do you think?

Assessing the best time to send email

2009-06-02T16:56:00.000+02:00

In Jane Austen's Mansfield Park*, Mary Crawford says "I cannot be dictated to by a watch."

Unfortunately, email marketers dare not share that opinion.

We fuss over subject lines, offers, calls to action and targeting, but sometimes a lack of response is simply a matter of timing.

By the time the recipient checked her inbox, your carefully crafted email was buried by Facebook alerts, business memos and a reminder to pick up a bottle of wine on the way home.

Timing matters.

At this point in any article on "the best time of day to send email," it's traditional to say "it depends" and advise testing to discover the best time for your particular audience.

Which is very sound advice, but let's see if we can come up with something more.

You've probably been through the brainstorming process to draw out a "best guess" time to send. And testing may not be an option if you haven't the time or a big enough list. So where do you go from there?

1. Look at your past results

As noted before, there's a lot of insight already sitting in your campaign reports.

How about taking 6 months' worth of emails and graphing time of send against response and seeing if any patterns emerge?

Specifically, are certain send times always associated with a higher response?

2. Exploit benchmark data on open patterns

If you always send emails out at the same time, you have nothing to compare. But here's an idea...

MailerMailer's half-yearly email marketing metrics report includes a graph comparing opens per hour with time since send.

You'll find the original graph in the latest report, and it looks something like this:

As the numbers are drawn from thousands of email campaigns, you can treat this graph as a typical open rate curve.

Generate your own curve using your campaign stats and compare it to the MailerMailer benchmark. Suppose you see this:

The deviations are telling you something. Is there a timing issue at play?

For example, my newsletter's opens/hour follows a similar curve until around 13-14 hours after the send, when there's a bump.

My email goes out at 1.30pm Eastern Time. That's 7.30pm for most of Europe and that bump represents European readers opening their inboxes the following morning.

The lesson? Even though the newsletter is buried a little in inboxes, it still gets an "unusually" large amount of opens in the European morning.

I should delay sending the newsletter out to Europe until, say, 9am local time so my email is even higher in the inbox when marketers arrive for work.

3. Segment by time of response

That simple example highlights the fact that any "optimal" send time for your whole list is actually a compromise.

It's not "optimal" at all.

Optimal is when you send out each email at the best time for that individual recipient.

At least one ESP provides that functionality in their system, sending out each email based on when the recipient opened and clicked on previous messages. They report big response improvements as a result, with one customer lifting net revenue by 40%.

That kind of functionality is not accessible to all, but you can still apply the principle to your list. Instead of defining segments according to what recipients open and click on, you can look at when they open and click.

So you might be able to build segments like...

"checks email between 6am and 10am EST"
"checks email between 10am and 1pm EST"
"checks email between 1pm and 4pm EST"
"checks email between 4pm and 9pm EST"
"checks email between 9pm and 2am EST"
"checks email between 2am and 6am EST"

...and time your emails to each segment accordingly.

If you have data on recipient location, you can segment by timezone. So if your "best guess" time to send is 9am, you can ensure that people in California, Connecticut, Cologne and Canberra all get the email at 9am local time.

Even without geographic data on your subscribers, you can do some timezone segmentation by matching TLDs (the last bit of the email address) to a timezone. For example, people with .de (Germany) or .fr (France) addresses are likely to be on Central European Time.

[Here's a list of TLDs and their associated country or region.]

4. Make the question obsolete

An alternative option to second guessing the best time of day to send out your emails is to do away with the question entirely.

Eh?

Control of timing becomes less critical to success where the recipient either determines the time of send for you (a concept also applied in the one-to-one model described above). Or where the recipient is determined to seek your emails out, irrespective of when you send them.

Both those concepts are explained in the New Email Marketing series, specifically this post from last year.

5. Think beyond email

Clearly timing is an important issue in email marketing. But many of the concepts involved apply equally to other channels.

Do you, for example, apply as much care to the timing of your blog posts, Tweets or Facebook updates as you do to your emails?

6. One problem

Nearly all articles on the best time to send out email assume that every email leaves the delivery system simultaneously and reaches the recipient instantaneously.

Limitations imposed by both sending and receiving systems mean this just isn't the case, unless your list is relatively small.

So if you have a "best time to send," when do you actually set the email campaign to go? Do you know how long it takes to get all the emails out the door? And should the "best time to send" be at the beginning, middle or end of this time period?

I don't have answers here, but you need to ask the questions. (Love to hear how you deal with this issue.)

This very problem is, however, yet more reason to segment by response time.

If you break up your list into smaller segments, each getting emails sent at different times, then you have a much better chance of delivery times matching intended send times (there are less emails for the systems to get through at any one time.)

Coming up: the best day to send your emails (which also, of course, affects the best time! Fun, isn't it?)

OK, over to you - thoughts?

*Austen novels are a key source of online marketing insight.

More on timing | Tags: email marketing, best day to send emails

Twitter: email marketing industry accounts

2009-05-28T17:56:00.001+02:00

If you want to know if your ESP, software provider or favorite email marketing blog is on Twitter, here's a list I compiled.

Use the comments to let me know of missing accounts.

Some people suggest it's hypocrisy for those involved in email marketing to use Twitter for communication.

I agree. At a recent conference, I had to reprimand an email marketer for talking into a mobile phone. The brazen cheek of the man!

It's the TV ad execs I feel most sorry for. Imagine having to communicate with your loved ones entirely through ad breaks in episodes of House. Your marriage totally at the mercy of TiVo.

Mark (MarkatEMR on Twitter)

Gmail inbox tricks and alt text traps

2009-05-26T21:34:00.000+02:00

Gmail displays more than just the sender and subject in the user's inbox. You also get a snippet of text from the email's body appended to the subject line.

Smart marketers exploit that knowledge to encourage people to open the email. But manipulating the displayed snippet can also backfire.

Here's the story...

First, a screenshot of my Gmail inbox:

The appended text shows up in gray to the right of the bolded subject lines. You'll note none of the senders chose to optimize for Gmail users.

Gmail appends the first bit of text it comes across in the email, which usually means:

1. Blurb about viewing the email online, or...
2. The salutation that often graces the start of the email's copy, or...
3. The first headline in the email (commonly a copy of the subject line)

Those bits of text are in the email for good reason (probably), but they do little to encourage a Gmail user to investigate the email further.

If you want custom snippet text to appear, then there are two common approaches...

1. Text preheader

You can place the text you want Google to pick up at the top of your email. Like this:

Indeed, many people choose to use this preheader space for a call to action or little teaser anyway. The text's appearance in the Gmail inbox is just a bonus.

Others, however, prefer to leave that space free of clutter and use it for an image, or to point people to functional links like the web version, the forward-to-a-friend feature, etc.

Which brings us to the alternative approach...

2. Alt attribute text

Gmail doesn't just pick up free-standing text, it also reads the text in the alt attribute listed in your image code:

<img src="http://acmesite.com/EFGR.jpg alt="click here for coupon">

You can exploit that by putting a transparent 1x1 pixel image at the very top of your email and giving it the alt text you want Gmail to display.

When the image is downloaded by the recipient, it's effectively invisible. So this code...

...looks like this in Gmail:

(The pixel is invisible but the "Boost your clickthrough rate by 25%..." alt text will show up in the inbox as the appended snippet of text.)

OK, I see a hand going up at the back there. Yes?

"What about when images are blocked?"

Good question, and one which users of this technique often forget about. A tiny, invisible image is not quite so tiny and invisible when images are blocked by the recipient's email client or webmail interface.

Trap 1: Undefined image size

If you forget to define the size of the 1x1 image using height and width attributes, this is what happens in Gmail:

The blocked image expands to fit in the alt attribute text, which can play havoc with your layout.

Yahoo! Mail does this as well and Outlook 2003 creates this mess:

So, first warning: define the height and width of your snippet pixel.

Trap 2: Defined image size

If the height and width is defined as 1, then the image effectively remains invisible, even when Gmail blocks an image:

But we're not finished yet.

If you're sending out all your emails coded like this, there are some clients that aren't so friendly as Gmail.

For example, even if the height and width is defined, Thunderbird will still expand the size of the blocked image to fit in all the alt text you used:

So if you're going the invisible pixel route, run some design tests just to make sure you don't mess up your layout if images are blocked.

Related posts:
Alt attributes and image suppression in email

More on email design and copywriting | Tags: email marketing, gmail, image blocking

Learn more from your click reports: paragraph layout

2009-05-22T14:58:00.001+02:00

So what little islands (ilands?) of insight are still floating around our analysis of campaign reports? What else brings us more clicks?

We began with a look at link placement, before moving on to the call to action. In this final analysis, let's explore paragraph layout.

Can we really expect more clicks just by playing with paragraph length and number?

An analysis of article teaser texts in six months' worth of newsletters pumps out these graphs:

CTR and number of paragraphs in the teaser

CTR and average paragraph length

CTR and total teaser text length

Now the purpose of these graphs and all posts in this short series is not to tell you to use an average 3.2 lines per paragraph or keep your CTA to four words or less. It's simply to reveal:

the extraordinary richness of information sitting unexamined in your email campaign reports.
the strength of numerous factors in driving response. We've seen how simply adding an in-text link to a paragraph of teaser text can push up CTR by 25%.
the importance of taking a nuanced approach to your email marketing: the little things matter.

In terms of paragraph layout, it seems the "ideal" teaser has two paragraphs, each consisting of 2-4 lines.

An acceptable explanation might be that if the teaser is too short, it doesn't provide enough information to drive a response. If it's too long, people move on before clicking.

You should do the same analysis and find out what works for your audience. But the point about nuances is important...

The impact of paragraph layout (and any factor) often depends on interactions with a range of other elements in your email. Don't look at each factor in isolation, but as one part of a holistic whole.

[We all want step-by-step instructions for each part of the email, but the customized, holistic approach is what will win you more clicks in the end.]

For example, longer teasers might work just as well if you add more in-text links...so people can break off reading and hit the landing page at any time.

Or you might shorten teaser length, the further down the email it appears...if you believe that people's attention span dips as they read for longer.

Or you might explore whether you can send different teaser lengths to different sets of subscribers. For some recipients, three lines is too little information...others just want a headline.

No rules are set in stone. The never-ending long versus short copy debate tells us that there isn't just one way of doing things.

It's simply important to continually re-examine your assumptions using hard numbers and a broad understanding of your audience's preferences.

OK, that about wraps up this series for now, though sometime in the next couple of weeks I'll have a little bonus stat for you and a look at what the experts say about email copywriting.

More on metrics and copywriting | Tags: email marketing, cta, email design

Time to kill the "view as a web page" link?

2009-05-19T16:34:00.001+02:00

One suggestion that popped out of the European Email Marketing Summit last week was to remove the "online version" link from the top of your emails.

[Cue flushed eyeballs, mass astonishment and the thudding sound of one audience member hitting the floor after fainting.]

Heresy!

Or is it?

Let's look at the numbers.

The average unique click-to-open rate for that link in my newsletters, for example, is 0.66%. Or a 0.22% unique CTR the way most people measure their clickthrough rate (as a percent of "delivered" email).

If I told you that an offer or article link in the prime real estate right up top of your emails gets a 0.22% CTR, would you keep it in there?

No, you'd replace it with something more valuable.

Hmmm. This needs more thought...

Run the numbers

First, find out how many people actually use that link. If you have an image-heavy email design, you might find the "online version" link does a good job for you. People might use that link if images are blocked.

The same might be true if your design is breaking in a particular webmail interface or email client. (In which case, you should think about modifying your design.)

If your emails look fine wherever they are viewed, even when images are blocked, then your "online version" link probably isn't getting many clicks.

Consider the value

If the click numbers are very low, can you use the space for something that offers you and the recipient more value?

But don't forget...the value of the "web version" link is not just measured in clicks. Here, for example, are two reasons I'll stick with the link.

First, it's an insurance policy.

If an email client upgrade (think Outlook 2007) or an unannounced change at a webmail service plays havoc with the email's layout, subscribers can fall back on that link.

I hope they never have to use it, but it's there if they do.

Second, some of those "web version" clicks might be your most valuable recipients.

These are folk who maybe can't see your message properly in their email client. But instead of just moving on, they make the effort to view the online version...suggesting they're more engaged with your messages than most.

One of my best subscribers explained to me how he likes to visit every article link in the newsletter, but this is impractical if it means switching from email client to browser and back again. He needed that "web version" link.

Consider the size of the link

If you want to keep the link, you might still reconsider how much space you're giving it.

Can you replace...

"If this email does not display properly, then click here to view the web version" (15 words)

...with...

"View email as a web page" (6 words)

...or even...

"Web version" (2 words)

...and use the space saved for another call to action or useful link?

[See more on that topic in the Better preheaders? Six ideas to consider... post from January.]

So...what do you think? Will you keep the "web version" link in your emails?

Email Marketing Summit: top insights

2009-05-15T18:24:00.001+02:00

An overview of the top tips and insights I picked up from MarketingSherpa's European Email Summit earlier this week.

The event featured lots of great speakers who spoke in some detail about their winning email marketing programs.

If you can get there next year, go...it's well worth the trip.

Cited speakers:

ST = Stefan Tornquist of MarketingSherpa
TS = Dr. Torsten Schwarz of Absolit
EL = Edoard Leeuwenberg of Telegraaf Media Groep
TG = Tamara Gielen, consultant
SK = Stefanie Kidder of Avid
GB = Gurmej Bahia of Expedia
S = Saskia Blume and Isabell Geib of Steganos
KR = Kai Radanitsch of eBusinessLab
LS = Larry Swing of MrSwing.com
R = Nik von Graeve and Uwe-Michael Sinn of rabbit eMarketing
SW = Stefan Wornle of Wunderman

Top ideas

1. Go book a flight or trip at Expedia (claim it as a marketing expense). Their post-purchase email stream is very, very impressive.

2. Try testing checkmarks for bullets and make them green. (KR)

3. In your headlines, use a reference to current news to catch attention e.g. "Recession-proof tactics for online marketers." (KR)

4. Make the first word of each bullet point in your copy different. (KR)

5. Use arrows before or after the call-to-action to encourage...action. For example:

>> Click for more info

6. Personalize your welcome emails with targeted offers or content. This way you establish the value of your program within seconds of someone signing up. (R)

7. Look at putting your transactional email to work as a marketing vehicle, too. Apart from the obvious benefits, transactional email is a rock solid channel that's relatively immune to the impact of changes in communication technologies and habits. (ST)

8. Consider matching emails to the weather to make them more relevant or personable. Sports shops send out ski promotions when the first snow falls. Weekend emails might start off with "another rainy Sunday?" (TS)

Email landing pages and copywriting

1. Five key areas to focus on in landing page copy are the headline, lead text, product photo or hero shot, bullet points and the call to action. (KR)

2. The lead text under a headline is often neglected. It needs to establish facts about the offer, make the benefits clear...and relate both of these to the reader. (KR)

3. Product images or hero shots used in the email should appear again on the landing page. If you use images of people, the eyes should always be looking at the product or important text. (KR)

4. If faced by two different calls-to-action, people will choose the one requiring the least commitment. (KR)

Social media and email marketing

1. It's a question of finding the right channel for the right end-user need. (ST)

"I don't want bank statements via Twitter"

2. Consider social marketing not as advertising, but as a listening and learning process where you can help support customer communities.

Microsoft do this by monitoring blogs etc., supporting the work of those who manage independent (i.e. not MS-run) communities and giving special attention to around 4000 non-MS folk identified as Most Valuable Professionals (influencers and opinion leaders).

They do not try to exert undue influence over MVPs, but simply ensure they have special access to information, behind-the-scenes trips etc.

3. Use email to drive social network content. (SW and TS)

[Me: This isn't just about adding "share on Facebook" links. You can also draw on social media to produce content for the email...blog posts, lists of forum discussions, etc....which in turn sends people to those networks to produce more content in a feedback process.]

Segmentation and trigger campaigns

1. Simple, but effective, segmentation is to match your emails to the lifecycle status of the recipient. Software company Steganos split their list into: (S)

Prospects (get informational emails)
New customers (get tutorials, tips & tricks, cross-sells and upsells)
Regular customers (focus on relevant content)
Lost customers (get reactivation emails)

2. The conversion rate for promotions that segment by past purchase can be up to 30 times higher than conversion rates from generic offers to the whole list. (S)

2. Take common ideas for trigger campaigns (like birthday emails) and vary them.

For example, try a pre-birthday email that offers to get a treat wrapped and sent off in time for the party. The value of standard triggers like a $5-off coupon on your birthday is likely to diminish with time so you need to innovate. (R)

International email programs

You need to master seven main challenges when running multi-country email marketing initiatives (TG):

1. Legal (complying with individual country laws)

[One pragmatic approach suggested by SK is simply to take the strictest law applied in any country you mail to and use that throughout your operations.]

2. Segmentation (regional lists may be too small to easily segment)

3. Design and content (templates get thrown out of kilt when a 3-word English headline becomes 10 words in Finnish)

[Me: SK suggested using a mix of cross-border and local content to save on production costs but keep the local flavor.]

4. Translation and localization

SK said don't ignore the potential value of translating into a local language, even in markets where English is widespread. A test in Scandinavia (where "everyone" speaks excellent English) showed you could double opens and clicks if you translate into Swedish, Norwegian etc. But there's a cost issue, too...

5. Deliverability (there can be 10-15 relevant ISPs per country, plus local blacklists operating in the local language)

6. Operational challenges (coordination and costs)

Many marketing agencies claim the ability to work internationally, but few actually can. So choose wisely (SK)
It's not exciting, but spend time setting up clear and robust business processes. Only then can you avoid all the problems of coordinating emails across countries. (GB)
Ensure common performance measures are used in each region. That way you can identify winning tactics easily and spread them around. (GB)

7. Data (can you segment by region or language?)

Testing

1. Don't extrapolate A/B test results from one region or language to another. Test results change with geography and culture. (SK)

2. Test every assumption: the best results are often surprising and inexplicable. (LS)

3. If you have no time, find a service that uses on-the-fly multivariate analysis to optimize emails during the actual send process based on early results. (LS)

Trends

1. The recession encourages longer sales cycles for B2B and expensive B2C items. (ST)

[Me: this suggests a growing role for emails that nurture long-term customer relationships through valuable content.]

2. For all the talk of cutting edge technologies, email and search still form the mainstays of online marketing. An informal (i.e. don't quote this) survey of German ecommerce sites revealed email driving about 20-30% of revenues. (TS)

Email marketing and your organization

1. Start treating email subscribers like a special customer group and offer them appropriate privileges (special pricing, sneak previews etc.). Too many marketers react to a sign-up like this:

"Thanks for giving us your email...sucker!" (ST)

2. In a survey of marketers, those who are seeing or predicting increases in the value and efficiency of email marketing as a channel are also those who are prepared to invest in the associated skills and technologies. Coincidence? (ST)

Consumer habits

1. People are happy to deal with more communications and more communication channels. But they're not happy to deal with irrelevant communications. When people abandon a sender of email, they tend do so as a direct response to that sender's content/offers/frequency and not because of a broader issue with overload. (ST)

[Me: Stop worrying about the wider problem of information overload and focus on your program: recipients will distinguish between your positive efforts and the rubbish sent by others.]

2. Internet use is changing. People are increasing their Internet use in the evenings, instead of (or at the same time as) watching TV. This may have implications for the best time of day to send your emails and also makes combined TV/online campaigns interesting. (TS)

Deliverability

1. Many German ISPs see any bulk email as spam, which is why certification holds promise for ensuring deliverability at participating ISPs with stringent anti-spam approaches. (TS)

2. Local language emails can get through where foreign language emails might get junked, if the ISP has a strong local orientation (like AOL Germany). (SK)

3. If mailing to Europe, use an ESP that has as many local (i.e. country-based) deliverability support teams as possible. (SK)

4. Don't forget that B2C lists in Europe may still be dominated by US ISPs (Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo) (SK)

Learn more from your click reports: CTA and article distribution

2009-05-12T13:58:00.003+02:00

The last post demonstrated how past campaign reports might hide a whole host of useful information on optimizing your emails.

We used my own informational newsletter (featuring article headlines and teaser summaries) to explore how link number and spacing might impact click rates.

Let's use those same campaign reports to look at call to action and the order of content.

Call to action

There's a sort of seductive simplicity to finding the right call-to-action. For example, compare the click-to-open rates for different types of calls-to-action across all teaser texts:

"Find" CTAs: 7.84% e.g. "find out here"
"Learn" CTAs: 6.59% e.g. "learn more"
"Read" CTAs: 5.00% e.g. "read on" or "continue reading"

Oh joy! If we just use the words "find out more" rather than "read more" in our links, we can expect clicks to jump over 56%. Hurrah!

If only.

The evidence certainly suggests a more positive and active CTA ("find" or "learn") works better than a negative, passive one ("read"). This is backed up by a test done by MarketingSherpa, who found "click to continue" pulled more clicks than "continue to article" or "read more."

However, there's a posse of ifs and buts riding close behind. For example:

1. The CTA needs to make contextual sense. It's no good using "find out more" as your link if the text before it doesn't indicate there's something worth finding out: the CTA works in tandem with the quality and content of the surrounding copy and images.

2. The color/design of your link also has an impact. Instead of text, you might consider using a HTML-based button. Back in 2007, Chad White reported on retailers having great success with that approach.

3. The winning CTA may change through time. AWeber also tested "images" versus "text" for the "continue reading" CTA and found the former performed much better than the latter...temporarily. After some weeks, the relative pulling power of each reversed.

4. Different CTAs resonate with different subscribers. When we talk about segmentation, we nearly always think of customizing offers or content to discrete recipient groups.

But why not customize the CTA to what you know of the recipient?

Might "impulsive buyers" respond best to "get it while you can" CTAs while "information seekers" need "learn more about this product" links?

5. The importance of the CTA may diminish as recipients become trained to recognize where the link is and what it looks like.

Long-term recipients may be less responsive to CTA changes than more recent subscribers.

Indeed, might it be worth mixing things up a little to keep attention focused on your CTAs. See, for example, the innovative CTAs used by Backcountry.

The message to take away is not that one particular CTA wording is always better than another. Your list will have its own preferences, depending on what exactly you want them to do).

The message is simply that words matter. Even something as apparently banal as the wording of a link taking people to a full article can make a big difference to responses.

[Related post: A better call to action in your emails]

Article order

Here's a graph depicting how click-to-open rate changes for an article, depending on which order the associated teaser text appears in the email (1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th or 5th):

Articles featured first in an email get around three times the clicks of those featured in 4th or 5th place. No surprise there, of course.

Not all of that click lift is down to position alone: the most interesting articles always go first in the newsletter, so are likely to collect more clicks anyway.

Can we learn anything new from this trend?

Note the uptick in CTR for the last article.

This likely reflects how some people read through an email to the bottom and then move on by clicking the last link they see. I've seen this in emails before when looking at how people click on lists of links.

So consider reserving last place for the "less important but not least important" articles.

You can also think of the graph above as the standard response curve for a sequence of articles (in my newsletter).

This gives me a baseline on which to judge the relative "value" of new articles.

Say the first three articles in the next newsletter all get a 6% click-to-open rate. Looking at that stat alone, you'd conclude there was equal interest in all three articles.

But compare the pattern with our standard curve and it's clear that interest in article 3 is actually highest: it's level on CTR with the top 2 articles despite the click penalty it gets from being lower down the email.

Again, we're just scratching the surface here of what you might glean from your reports. Next up: the impact of teaser text paragraph size and numbers of lines...

More on metrics and copywriting | Tags: email marketing, cta, email design

Learn more from your click reports: improve CTR by 25%

2009-05-08T17:20:00.002+02:00

Listen to the pitter patter of subscribers hitting your landing pages. Plip, plop, plip, plop...

Such a sweet sound to any email marketer. Like the first burst of rain after a drought, bringing new life to your response numbers.

How do you get more clicks? Well, test your emails to find what works best.

But here's a stat for you...

Average length of time between finishing up the email and sending it to the list: 4.32 minutes.

OK, I exaggerate, but how many of us really have everything ready far enough in advance to actually run some tests first?

How do we hard-pressed souls work out what's going to get us more clicks?

Some email marketing services now offer on-the-fly testing, where different versions go out to your list during a normal campaign send and the sending system monitors responses.

As soon as it identifies a winner, it only sends out that email to anyone not yet to receive a copy of your message.

Even then, you still need time to prepare the different versions and not everyone has access to this functionality anyway.

Use what you've got

A pragmatic alternative is to delve into the reports from previous email campaigns to find clues to what works best.

You probably review past reports to see what offers, topics or subject lines drive the most response. Which is fine, but...while these elements are very important, lots of other factors play a role, too.

For example, the call-to-action (CTA), number of competing CTAs, link position in the email, link position relative to other links, time of send, weekday of send, day of month of send, copy, copy length, copy structure, link color...the list goes on.

All might win you extra clicks if optimized.

Your reports can help you there, too...let's use my own example to walk through the process.

Doing the analysis

My informational newsletter features 3-5 article headlines, each accompanied by teaser text and a link to read the full article online.

How can I improve the layout of the teaser texts to get more clicks?

Step 1 was to draw up a list of some layout factors that might impact whether someone clicks on an article.

Step 2 was to go through six months' worth of campaign reports and build a spreadsheet: for each teaser found in an email, I documented the unique click-to-open rate and the value for each of the factors I wanted to investigate.

Here's what the spreadsheet looked like:

Now let's see what I learned about email copywriting and discuss the nuances.

Ideally, we'd do some kind of clever multivariate analysis on the results to pick out the winning combination of factors.

Unfortunately, I can barely spell multivariate analysis, let alone do one. So I kept it simple and relied on intuition to pick up clues...

Factor 1: How many links in the teaser text?

Reviewing past emails, I noticed that some article teasers included a single call-to-action at the end:

Others featured the end CTA, plus a link embedded in the teaser itself:

Lets do the math:

Average CTR when one link used: 6.81%
Average CTR when two links used: 8.57%

Adding that extra link to the teaser text improves clickthroughs to an article by an average 25.8%.

Now this isn't a statistically valid A/B test. So here's where intuition comes in.

Can we find a plausible explanation for that difference? And is there any other explanation for this improvement?

Intuitively, the extra link ought to attract more clicks. But playing with the numbers also showed that two-link teasers tend to appear higher up the email than one-click teasers. That might explain at least part of the response lift.

So we're already beginning to see the nuances of such an analysis...

For the future, I might broaden the teaser options. For example:

How about linking the headline to the landing page, a best practice recommended recently by the great Dave Chaffey.

Or how about setting the final CTA apart from the text, so it stands out more?

The possibilities are limited only by your imagination. But for now, let's hold on to the idea that an extra link does lift total clicks and move on...

Factor 2: Distance between links

Where the teaser featured both an in-content link and an end link, here's a graph showing how the distance between these two links related to the CTR for that article:

Now here's a tough one to call. But there's maybe a suggestion that the two links shouldn't be too far away from each other.

Perhaps greater "link intensity" has an impact on the willingness to click? Again, we're back to intuition. Is there a plausible explanation? Is there an alternative explanation?

For example, if the two links are far apart, the teaser text is likely to be longer than average. This in itself may be influencing clicks.

Might we also look at distance of the first link from the headline? Or the number of words in the teaser per link? Again, plenty of alternatives to potentially analyze.

The secret is to take a holistic view.

Look at each result and combine the insights with those from other factor analyses to build an overall picture.

It won't be perfect, and will likely have your neighborhood statistician tearing her hair out. But it will give you a starting point from which to work on making improvements. And future results will show you if you were right.

OK, the next post looks at some more factors...

Does the wording of the call-to-action matter? Does "keep reading" bring more clicks than "learn more?" And...does it matter which order articles appear in within the email?

This and more in the next post.

More on metrics and copywriting | Tags: email marketing, cta, email design

Integrating email and social marketing: 20 questions to ask first

2009-05-04T14:03:00.000+02:00

Email marketing is hot...and social marketing is even hotter.

The two fields are already holding hands and exchanging shy smiles across the dinner table: talk of marriage is in the air.

But before rushing off to add those Twitter links to the next email promotion, perhaps it's worth thinking through the consequences.

Here a few relevant questions that crossed my notepad this week...

1. If we add "share this" links to an email, pointing at sites like Twitter and Facebook, do we have the kind of email content people will actually want to share?

Such links give people a way to share, but not a reason to do so. That's the bigger issue.

2. If the content is not particularly shareworthy, does asking people to "Digg" our new telephone number make us look lame?

3. If the content is indeed shareworthy, do we get some benefit out of that?

4. How can we measure that benefit?

5. In fact, what kind of content/offers should we develop to give value to the recipient, encourage sharing, and give value to us through this sharing?

6. What sharing tools and links best maximize this value and spreadability?

7. Do these sharing tools and links take up email real estate that has better uses? Or draw attention away from other important calls to action?

8. If we add these "share this" links to social networks, are we raising expectations that we ourselves have an adequate presence on the destination sites? (See this thoughtful post by Dylan Boyd.)

9. If we use email to get people to follow us on Twitter, get our blog feed or become Facebook fans, are we simply switching people from one channel to another or are we creating extra contact points?

10. If people are switching from email to Twitter, Facebook, RSS etc., does that change their value to us? Is a Twitter follower more or less valuable than a Facebook fan...than an email subscriber...than a blog subscriber?

11. Does that matter? Is perhaps giving people more communication choices the only way to ensure their long-term attention and loyalty?

12. If people are switching, how can we deliver as much (or more) value through these new social channels as we do via email, so we don't disappoint people?

13. If people are adding channels and following us at various places (e.g. Facebook, Twitter and via email), should the content delivered at each place be the same or different?

14. If the same, are we usefully reinforcing the message or simply contributing to fatigue and information overload?

15. If different, how different? Do we know how expectations and response behavior differ between email and social channels? Can we find out?

16. If different, have we thought through how the content and messages interact across these channels?

17. How do we design our social and email presence and content so that it works for those getting all of it AND those subscribing to only one of those channels?

18. Might we segment email subscribers by social channel? So that those who see us at Facebook and on Twitter could get different content and offers to those who don't?

19. Who is in charge of all this integration?

20. How much is it costing and is this cost justified?

Any other questions?

Related posts:
Adding social links to emails: what and where
Coding emails and landing pages with social links

Book review: "Successful e-mail marketing strategies: from hunting to farming"

2009-04-27T12:24:00.000+02:00

[I'm on the road, which gives me time to catch up on some serious reading: here my thoughts on the latest email marketing book to emerge from the US...]

This new book from Arthur Middleton Hughes and Arthur Sweetser confronts you with a stark choice.

Do you want to continue doing things the "old" way, and see results fade under the weight of email fatigue and new marketing channels?

Or do you want to turn your email marketing into a highly profitable, future-proof channel that builds strong and lasting customer relationships?

The answer is obvious, but most advice out there already promises help along these lines.

So does "Successful email marketing strategies" offer anything different or better?

The answer is a resounding yes. This book offers a unique perspective that genuinely helps you take things "...to the next level."

The main premise of the book is to increase your email marketing success by building the kind of loyal customer relationships the corner store used to have. Not through force of personality, but through collecting, recording, appending, analyzing and using data.

The initial chapters set out the theoretical and financial argument for moving to a data-driven email model.

Most of the rest of the 373 pages then detail procedures and strategies that help you understand exactly how you might implement such a model.

Importantly, the authors talk about much, much more than "traditional" email data, such as open rates. Instead, they address the role of a wide range of appended data available from other sources (both inside and outside the business).

That's where the vast majority of email marketers need help.

Topics covered include measuring "campaign" and "subscriber" performance, calculating the value of an email address, transactional emails, trigger emails, detailed segmentation techniques and using web analytics.

As such, it's not a beginner's guide. Nor does it cover the basics of email marketing. Instead, it's the ideal book to buy after you've read one of those more general books.

And even if you're not familiar with database marketing, the text does a good job of persuading you why you should be looking into the wider application of customer data.

Particular benefits

1. The book communicates very clearly the value of data and metrics. This might just be the kick you need to tackle that area in terms of day-to-day practices and long-term strategic change.

My favorite quote:

"Marketing is too important to be made subservient to the abilities of a few programmers"

2. The book is very different to existing email marketing texts and opens up many new perspectives not covered in such depth elsewhere.

For example, the authors argue that data is so valuable that it makes sense to sacrifice a few sign-ups for the sake of collecting more information: particularly the kind of info that can then be used to append consumer and business data from commercial sources.

3. While the focus is on direct sales, there is plenty of encouragement to think of email as a brand builder and driver of offline action. The authors even explore methods for measuring offline sales.

4. The benefit of focus is that the book goes into detail. Rather than vague enjoinders to "improve relevancy," for example, you actually get a step-by-step plan for measuring and improving relevancy in practice.

5. The material covered is not stuff you can pick up free on the web in 700-word articles. Much of the information will be new to those in email marketing.

6. Many case studies and sample calculations really bring home the points being made.

Provisos

1. The target readership is definitely those looking to actively drive sales, with a strong focus on B2C. While many lessons are applicable to B2B and content-based publications, they receive little direct attention.

2. It's a valuable read, but not always an easy one and is a touch disjointed in places.

3. The book is strongest in those chapters dealing specifically with data-related issues, but there is coverage of other (related) areas, such as subject lines, copywriting and frequency issues.

My summary: Not the first email marketing book you should buy, but absolutely indispensable if you know your basics.

[Also, you have to love a book that contains this line: "Every marketing email should be an adventure."]

The book is available from the publisher's website.

More book reviews

Targeted opt-out email: busting some myths

2009-04-23T13:01:00.003+02:00

The blogtwitsphere is all-a-flutter of late with the implication that financial pressures are driving more marketers to send bulk email to those who didn't agree to get them.

We're not talking classic random spam here.

We're talking "targeted" opt-out email, where the sender has data on the email address that suggests the email might have relevance to the recipient.

So is this a legitimate tactic? After all, every email marketing book out there stresses the importance of permission as the foundation of good email marketing.

Ask those who sell business contact data, and they'll say of course it's legitimate. And they wheel out three convincing arguments to counter the objections of permission advocates...

Argument #1 As long as my emails are valuable and relevant, it's fine

You read a lot about relevancy and value in email marketing. The implication is that a "good" marketing email is one that is relevant and offers value to the recipient.

Which leads opt-out enthusiasts to say "hey, opt-out is fine as long as my emails to those folk are relevant and valuable."

And if my aunt had testicles, she'd be my uncle.

The problem is that targeted opt-out emails are invariably not targeted at all. Not relevant. Not valuable. Here's why...

Misplaced self-estimation

Every proponent of opt-out I've ever talked to overestimates the value and relevancy of their email. Every single one was convinced that their product or service was so good that people would be grateful to hear about it. Here's the reality:

False assumptions

However much data you may have, you cannot know enough to accurately guess what I'm interested in. Which is why opt-in works better because I self-identify my interests by signing up for that email.

Opt-out email invariably uses cues and clues that are entirely speculative in nature...

He has a business, he must want accounting services.
He has a website about email marketing, he must want to rent email lists.
He is male, he must want a bigger...

The answer is no, no I don't actually.

Bad data

Unless your information comes from the email's owner, errors inevitably creep into your data. Examples:

1. Stefan Pollard writes on collecting email addresses through email appends:

"...you can end up with addresses that actually belong to other people, not your customers."

2. One well-known supplier of business contacts has me listed as working for Return Path. I've never even met a Return Path employee, let alone been one.

(And my website is apparently based in New Jersey, which is only out by about 4,300 miles.)

Still think opt-out is targeted?

Here's the crux...

Most opt-in email isn't terribly relevant or valuable (check average clickthrough rates for proof). And these are sent to people who self-selected themselves as interested and made the effort to sign-up.

How can you imagine that bulk opt-out email would do a better job?

Opt-in is holding up broccoli in a room of kids and asking who wants some. Those who put their hand up get it, like it and want more.

Opt-out is picking out kids on the basis that they "eat food" and then forcing them to eat broccoli.

Who's going to be more popular?

Argument #2 It's not spamming because it's legal

There is nothing in the US Can-Spam legislation that says commercial email has to be opt-in. (This comes as a surprise to many people, but it's true.)

So what?

First, note that most anti-spam legislation elsewhere in the world does require an opt-in for commercial email, except in particular circumstances.

Second, both recipients and those who manage incoming email (ISPs, webmail services, corporate IT departments) are more interested in the migration patterns of the black-tailed Godwit than the legal definition of spam.

Spam is whatever they define it as and Can-spam compliance is no defence against spam complaints or blacklisting.

Opt-out practices usually exclude you from any deliverability help through whitelists, certification, feedback loops etc.

And most email marketing service providers (ESPs) won't let you use their systems to send bulk opt-out email.

For more on this, see "Legal compliance is for lawyers not marketers."

Argument #3 I've done it and it works: nobody ever complains

Still, the opt-out folk remain defiant. "You're wrong" they say "...because I've been doing opt-out for years and nobody's ever complained."

I won't lie to you. People send out opt-out email campaigns and get some positive responses. The problem is that the problems caused by the opt-out approach aren't immediate or obvious.

But they are very real.

People may not always complain to the sender, but they'll complain to their ISP or their colleagues. Or their social network.

I've covered this in the recent post "What's the worst that can happen." While you might be out celebrating a new sale, your brand and future deliverability is potentially disappearing down a large black hole.

Summary

The arguments about opt-out or opt-in all boil down to one of the commonest questions I get asked: "If I send this, will people think I'm spamming?"

(If you have to ask, the likely answer is yes.)

Whatever protagonists on both side of the debate may claim, there is no simple answer.

Whatever email you send and whoever you send it to, you will always get a spectrum of responses. Some will welcome your email and respond positively. Some will call you a spammer. And most will fall somewhere in between.

The further you get from the permission ideal, the more responses will fall in the "you're a spammer" end of the spectrum, with all the horrors that brings. And opt-out is a long way from the permission ideal. It's your choice, but choose wisely.

Further reading: Marketing email or spam?

Images in HTML email: time for change?

2009-04-21T13:59:00.001+02:00

It's funny.

An HTML email is at heart a combination of words and images. That's what people see.

Yet how much do you read about using those words and images to improve your email marketing success?

Can we, for example, use images for more than just product shots and space fillers?

Certainly.

Just check out this post and this one on how the direction people and dogs face in images might impact reader eye movement and response.

What about dynamic images?

The images displayed in an email are retrieved by the viewing software (email client or webmail interface) from an online source (your server or your ESP's system). The email just contains the URL of the image file.

So there's nothing to stop you changing the image served at the URL at any point after an email campaign goes out.

Why on earth would you want to do that? Here two examples...

1. Sold out notices

Linda Bustos and Chad White reveal how Tiger Direct replace a product image in a promotional email with a "sold out" image if that product is no longer available.

Both agree it teaches people to open and respond quicker to Tiger Direct's mails.

[As an aside, you might prefer people to click on sold-out items if, for example, they can then sign-up for an email alert telling them when the item is in stock again.]

2. Image optimization

If you send out different email versions, each with a different image, you might notice that one particular image drives more response than the alternatives.

You can then change the image source files to the "winning" image for those emails that haven't gone out yet (and/or those already delivered).

At least one service already offers this kind of real-time image optimization.

Other ideas...

Let's throw out more ways we might use dynamic image updates. How about...

updating an image with the number of items left in stock to induce a sense of urgency?
updating offers with the very latest customer reviews?
automatically converting your stream of Tweets or blog post headlines to an image so that every email you send always contains your latest information, regardless of when people read it?
if someone downloads the white paper or buys the product on offer, can the associated email image update to a "thank you for downloading" or "thanks for purchasing" message? Or change to a cross- or upsell offer?
might sidebar images change according to the click behavior of the recipient? If the subscriber spent time browsing engagement rings, could the sidebar images in your past emails automatically switch to appropriate offers? If they just bought a digital camera, could they see a sidebar advertising batteries and camera bags next time they looked at an old email from you?

Intrigued? And I'm sure with a little thought you can come up with some more ideas.

There are, however, four caveats:

First, both image blocking and image caching might prevent the old and/or modified images from displaying.

Second, some of the targeted images might cross privacy boundaries or come across as too "big brother."

Third, none of these ideas are widespread or proven. I'm not even sure some have ever been tried. So test.

Four, you or your email marketing service/software provider may have to do some serious IT development work to get these things going.

Any other suggestions for new things we might do with images?

Update: Here's another idea: images personalized with the recipient's name. See this 2007 (!) post or click on the OTTO email on this page to see an example in an Easter greeting. (Found via absolit.)

See you in London or Munich?

2009-04-20T10:35:00.001+02:00

Come and say hi at Internet World, London, Tuesday April 28th to Thursday April 30th.

I'm not wearing my email hat there. Instead, I'm working with an old friend, dispensing general online marketing wisdom on his stand (E5009: Memorable Domains).

Anyone who comes up and says "Email marketing is the new black" gets a Mozart marzipan chocolate ball.

On May 12th/13th, I'll be attending MarketingSherpa's European Email Marketing Summit in Munich, Germany. A Mozart ball for anyone who sees me and says "You look younger in real life."

Seriously, would love to meet any readers: get in touch and we'll grab a tea/coffee/beer...look forward to hearing your stories.

Use numbers to show the value of subscribing?

2009-04-16T15:25:00.001+02:00

Last week I discussed adding evidence of social approval to sign-up forms and pages to make people feel more comfortable about subscribing to your list.

Let's go further with that concept.

Any article on sign-up forms - like this one - talks about the need to communicate the value a subscriber would get from joining the email list.

Yeah, yeah, we know.

But if there's one part of email marketing that suffers from "set it and forget it" syndrome, it's the sign-up form. Many fail to communicate any kind of value to the prospective reader.

Perhaps there was a time when website visitors felt an uncontrollable urge to fill out any form field asking for an email address, squealing with delight at the prospect of getting another email.

But that time is not now.

Those that do "sell" the benefits of signing-up usually talk in vague terms about subscribers getting "useful advice" or "special offers." (I'm guilty as charged.)

In a world where almost every etailer has an email list, "special offers" really aren't that special anymore (which is why content might be making a comeback).

"Special offers" might appeal to your loyal fans, but such banalities are less attractive to the casual passer by.

So how can we make "special offers" or "useful advice" sound better?

Here's a thought: you wouldn't write a headline that said "lower prices on everything, today only" when you could say "25% off everything, today only."

Numbers have power

So might a few numbers demonstrating the value of your list be more persuasive than the usual empty phrases?

If your emails are a source of discounts and special offers, for example, might you draw on your campaign reports and tell prospective sign-ups:

"So far in 2009, email subscribers saved $2,364,081 on purchases."

What about making that number dynamic? So people can watch it rising as new orders come in.

What about putting that number in an email occasionally, to remind people of the fantastic value your messages offer?

Or how about...

"Our subscribers save an average of $235 each year on purchases."

Or maybe:

"Our last email gave away $500,000 worth of coupons"

With a little thought, extrapolation and/or reader surveys, even informational newsletters can come up with some impressive numbers:

"Our dieting tips helped readers lose 746,733 lbs last year"
"Our time management tips saved each reader an average 51 hours of work last quarter"
"Our articles helped 237 readers sell their house last month"

At the least, take a fresh look at your sign-up copy and ask yourself if you're doing enough to convince people that handing over an email is worth the effort.

What do you think?

More on building a list | Tags: email marketing, email acquisition

What you can learn from unsubscribes

2009-04-14T08:46:00.002+02:00

For most marketers, the unsubscribe link is like a tax number. An unpleasant administrative requirement you'd rather not need and certainly don't like having to use.

Hiding or disguising unsubscribe links doesn't help of course. If your boyfriend wants to break up with you, hiding his phone won't keep him in the relationship.

On the contrary, proof is accumulating that a prominent unsubscribe link can actually lead to lower spam complaints...

Chad White reports that LifeScript put an unsubscribe link up the top of their emails and saw "unsubscribes go up and complaints go down - almost at 1-to-1"

ESP StreamSend recently wrote, "We have found that customers who place the unsubscribe link at the top of the email often reduce their complaints by about 75%"

(Loren McDonald has an excellent overview of the nuances of unsubscribe link position here.)

An unsubscribe is a thing of beauty. It's certainly better than the alternatives.

Subscribers could just delete your emails everytime they see them (not a great brand experience) or simply hit the "report spam" button (get enough of these and you'll win a blacklist entry).

An unsubscribe deserves high praise, because of three clear benefits: proper analysis of unsubscribe patterns identifies problems with your email program, an unsubscribe helps you retain the subscriber (really) and an unsubscribe is an opportunity to impress.

Learning from unsubscribe patterns

Most systems and marketers examine unsubscribes (or spam complaints) in the context of the email that apparently triggered the negative response:

"What did we do in the last email that caused people to hit the "report spam" button or unsubscribe link?"

For example:

Did we change the from line so people failed to recognize the sender?
Was the subject line too spammy?
Did we put in an opinion piece that annoyed some readers?
Was the offer irrelevant?

This kind of analysis is fine and worthy: some unsubscribes or spam reports are indeed an immediate, direct response to a particular header, offer or article. But others are the final act in a long process.

Perhaps the "last email" didn't do anything different to the previous emails. It was merely "the email that broke the camel's back."

So how else might you look at unsubscribes and spam complaints? Try these examples...

Segment by domain

Are unsubscribes spread evenly across all address domains, or are certain domains disproportionally more likely to abandon your email list?

What if @gmail.com addresses are ten times more likely to unsubscribe than everyone else?

Possible explanations:

Do you have a deliverability problem at Gmail? Are people only getting emails intermittently. If the first email to make it past Gmail's filters arrives several weeks after the sign-up, people may have forgotten they ever opted-in.
Do you have a display problem at Gmail? If your emails simply look bad in Gmail, this might drive people to unsubscribe. Open a Gmail account and see for yourself or use a design testing tool.
Is there a demographics issue? Is there something different about Gmail users? Check your stats and see if Gmail addresses click on different offers or articles than everyone else. Do you need to treat them as their own segment?

Segment by sign-up source

Unsubscribes happen when expectations and reality fail to meet. And the sign-up process plays a big role in setting those expectations.

So unsubscribes might be linked back to problems setting the right expectations at sign-up.

Are unsubscribes spread evenly across all sources of new subscribers, or are addresses gained from a particular source (like a sweepstakes) disproportionally more likely to abandon your email list?

What if people subscribing offline at point of sale are ten times more likely to unsubscribe than everyone else?

Possible explanations:

Do you have a training problem? Should your staff do a better job of explaining the benefits, content and frequency of your emails?
Do you have a permission problem? Are staff signing up people without getting proper permission? Are you incentivising POS sign-ups to favor quantity over quality? Does that matter?
Do you have a forms problem? Have you optimized printed sign-up forms just as you would your website sign-up copy?

Segment by time since sign-up

How quickly do people tire of your emails?

If the vast majority of your unsubscribes come after the first email received by a new subscriber, then your problem is subscriber remorse.

If users gradually tire of your emails, perhaps there is a critical threshold when they tip over into the unsubscribe bucket? If you know when this occurs, you can take remedial steps to prevent it happening.

What if people tend to unsubscribe about six months after joining your list?

Possible explanations:

Do you have a frequency problem? Once a subscriber's initial enthusiasm wanes, are your emails simply arriving too often? Should you aim to increase value, cut back on frequency after an initial welcome series, or give subscribers a clear option to move to a less frequent mailing schedule before they abandon ship?
Do you have a value problem? Are your offers or content good enough?
Do you have a diversity problem? Are your offers or content too repetitive? Should you look for fresh ways to add value to your emails?

Of course, all these potential problems impact more than unsubscribes or spam complaints. You could do the same kind of analysis with open/render rates, CTR or any other measure.

People rarely switch from "highly engaged" to "wanting to unsubscribe" without passing through an intermediate phase or two.

For example, what does the pattern of opens and clicks look like over the lifetime of a typical ex-subscriber? What are the warning signals that indicate an unsubscribe is imminent?

When do opens and clicks begin to dip?

At what point should you jump in with a special offer or fresh content to renew the subscriber's interest in your emails before it's too late?

Not every unsubscribe is an unsubscribe

An unsubscribe can mean various things:

I don't like your content or offers
I don't like getting so many emails
I don't want you communicating with me via email
I just want to change my email address

...none of which mean the inevitable end of the relationship.

If the unsubscribe link goes to a subscriber preference center, you can give subscribers the chance to select different content or types of offers, opt for fewer emails, or update their address.

...all of which can mean you've stopped them unsubscribing and answered their needs.

And if they really want out, then you can remind them of other ways of getting information from you: Facebook, Twitter, a blog or web feed, even a catalog.

It's a chance to shine

Finally, a quick, painless, gracious, positive unsubscribe experience makes a good impression on a subscriber who's leaving the list but not necessarily leaving your brand or business.

With our tendency to island thinking, we forget that email is just one point of interaction between a customer or prospect and our organization.

When someone leaves, take the trouble to thank them for their previous interest, solicit feedback (without making it compulsory to give that feedback) and let them know they'll always be welcome back.

For more articles on how to handle unsubscribes, see here.

Improve email opt-in rates through the wisdom of crowds?

2009-04-08T12:54:00.002+02:00

We all like the comfort of the crowd. The knowledge that others went here before us tells us we're on the right path.

You see this concept of social proof applied all the time by online retailers, who use testimonials, customer reviews, bestseller lists etc. to help drive conversions.

A new sign-up to your email list is also a conversion.

So why not apply the same approach to your sign-up forms and sign-up page copy? It makes intuitive sense, yet hardly anybody does it.

Try testing testimonials, text and display widgets:

Add testimonials to your sign-up page

Whenever you get positive feedback about your email, ask the sender if you can use their comment and name in a testimonial and post it on your sign-up page.

Unsolicited testimonials come across as more genuine and less contrived than those you get when you ask for them. (See this post for excellent advice on online testimonials.)

Add indicative text

At its simplest, using social proof just means changing a line or two of copy. Here's what I added to my sign-up page a while back:

"Over 3,000 marketers, agencies and businesses already benefit from their email subscription...join them:"

I've not done A/B tests yet, but since adding that line of text, sign-up rates have increased. Coincidence?

Add dynamic social proof indicators

I made that term up. It means any automated display that gives people the feeling that others believe signing up is worth doing.

See whether your IT folk or ESP can come up with any of the following to test out:

1. A small icon displaying real-time subscriber numbers:

Last year, AWeber published a case study showing how displaying such an icon lifted sign-up rates by over 30%.

2. A self-updating display widget stating how many people signed-up recently:

436 visitors signed up for the newsletter in the last 24 hours

3. A scrolling display widget which updates every time someone signs-up:

mark@**********.com signed up to this newsletter 5 minutes ago
jamie@*******.de signed up to this newsletter 15 minutes ago

(Obviously you'd need to disguise the actual email address as above for privacy reasons.)

4. An interactive map:

Zappos just launched a map page with a real-time display of new purchases and the location of the purchaser. It's fun.

Why not do that for email sign-ups? Let people watch new subscribers appearing in real time on a map of the world or your region.

One argument which might make the social proof tactic backfire is that of exclusivity. If your list is positioned as an exclusive club available only to the lucky few, then mentioning all those other subscribers might take some of the shine off that selling point.

And, of course, you need to have enough existing subscribers or regular new sign-ups to have the desired impact. Otherwise you might actually discourage opt-ins when your widget says you have 23 subscribers and the last one signed up in 2007.

Hence, as always, these ideas are for testing before simply implementing.

Any other thoughts on using social proof to drive opt-ins?

More on list building | Tags: email marketing, list growth