Archive for the ‘email’ Category
How to Choose an Email Service Provider Whether you are just launching your list-building efforts or have had a mailing-list for a while, the choice of Email Service Providers is critical to the success of your email marketing efforts. But what to look for in an ESP can be complex -– yet it shouldn’t keep you from making the best decision for your company’s current stage of list development. Below are 10 considerations for evaluating an ESP. 1. Deliverability Deliverability stats are easy to document if the ESP is a good one. A few signs — will the ESP allow a third-party deliverability audit by a company such as PivotalVeracity or Return Path before requiring a contract? Do they consistently monitor deliverability? What about data hygiene services? Does the ESP scrub against known spam traps, active complainers, and undeliverable addresses? Can you have your own dedicated IP mail server address, or can you elect to be in a shared or distributed IP mail server pool? And really important, I’ve found — does the ESP have a team of postmasters to interact with ISPs? This is an area that takes babysitting and diligence. 2. Training Some ESP platforms are very intuitive, but many are not. Are there costs for initial or follow-up training? Is training available both online and live? Is training mandatory before being allowed to call customer support? Do new software releases include training? You want an ESP that offers easy access to resources to ensure your ramp-up time is minimal. Spend a bit of time exploring their online training options (videos, tutorials) and see how comfortable you are. 3. Both broadcast and autoresponder options Broadcast is when you set up a message to be sent out immediately or at a certain day/time. A broadcast is going to go out to your full email list. Autoresponders, both drip and triggered, are emails that are set up to be delivered automatically at certain intervals after someone signs up to your list. As someone who uses email marketing, you want both options as they’ll be useful to you in many ways while you work to reach your market. 4. Customer service With over 100 ESPs to choose from, much of email service is being viewed as commodity-based. Therefore, level and quality of service is a prime differentiator. Consider the overall account servicing. Check their website or sales people to find out if you will have online or email access to immediate customer support, or will it be next day with a ticketing system? Ask for references from current clients –- this will be most telling. 5. Personalization capabilities Adding personalization to your emails is a great way to increase interest and conversions. You can personalize emails with first names but you can also use functions like where they live, what hobbies they have, or other categories to call out your prospects. 5. Multiple email lists hosting Some programs only allow you to host one email list. You will likely want to keep separate email lists for different websites, topics or even to separate current customers from potential customers. 6. HTML and Text email creation Some people prefer to send plain-text emails while others like to add images and html code through an HTML email. Be sure your ESP can do both. HTML with a text backup will always get a higher open and read rate, and presumably click-through rate as well. 7 Easy and flexible sign-up form creation You will want to have the option of creating multiple sign-up forms that will create multiple lists. This is crucial for better targeting as your marketing becomes more complex. Check on the ESP’s form-creation opyions and capability -– if they even have one. 8. Reporting and analysis If you’re sending out emails without knowing the results, then it’s very difficult to be successful. Make sure you’re clear on the metrics that matter for your business, and review how well the reporting capabilities of the ESP match those needs. Standard metrics should include sends, deliveries, opens, click-throughs and forwards. What level of detailed reporting is available for bounce messages (i.e. why did a message bounce)? Take a look at the standard reports -– this should give you a good overview. 9. Templates and design assistance If your design skills are limited or non-existent, templates can be very helpful. Some companies make it easy to get a professional email campaign going by providing templates. If this would be helpful to your organization, this feature is a must. 10. Pricing You don’t want to choose your ESP based solely on price, but you do want to know exactly what you’re getting. Some ESPs require a 12-month usage/revenue commitment, while others have a pay-as-you-go model scaled for volume. Which optional features have costs? Ask for contracts from potential ESPs and have them reviewed for any red flags before final vendor selection. If you are in a larger enterprise, get a copy of the agreement from ESPs that are finalists so that your legal department can review indemnity and liability language. The inability of either side to be flexible can be signs of difficulties to come. All that work you put into finding your favorite ESPs can be wasted if you can’t come to terms. The best way to figure out if a program is the right one for you is to do your research first, then explore the option of taking a trial of the program. Your email list is without a doubt one of the biggest assets you will ever have in your online business. Take some time to do your homework and set it up correctly, and that initial investment of time and effort will pay off in multiples for years to come.
1. Direct Mail is back – have I said this enough yet? Yes, I know postage is going up, yes I know this seems old school. But mail boxes are pretty light these days, so there is not much competition for your prospects’ attention. Mail a piece that has your company’s Twitter handle on it. Invite viewers to follow you, and set up an autoresponder to their follow that includes a special offer with a quick timeline to drive that call to action (example: 20% off on your next order if you place the order by Friday). 2. Send a postcard (snail mail) and include a QR (Quick Response) code that can be scanned by your smart phone to send the reader to mobile enabled page of your website with a special offer, or to a training video that tells a better story or demo of a product, or even a free donut if they come into your store or place of business. (Keep donuts on hand, then!) QR Code generators are simple apps and easy to use. Do a Google search on QR Code generators and find the top rated suppliers, and jump in. 3. Or on that same postcard, send them to a squeeze page on your website with a specific white paper or eBook in return for registering for your newsletter. Now you have proved your value with some educational material for your prospect, and you have gleaned their email address as well for ongoing marketing. Not a bad quid pro quo. I’m a big believer in the give-to-get mentality. 4. With that same email registration (see #3), set up an autoresponder email to thank visitors for their registration to your newsletter, and link to your Facebook page, inviting them to “like” your page (FB, please change that concept — such an awkward verb), and set up a special tab with a timed offer. Now you have a postal address and their email address and have gained more traffic on your FB page — all for future marketing. Sound gimmicky? Not at all, certainly not these days and very easy to do.
Lest you think that Social Media has completely swallowed us up, we are still very much in the traditional media business as well. We have sourced a few new services that have me very excited. Say the word “email” and many people shudder. But email does not equal spam. Use it correctly, intelligently and strategically and you will stay in touch with clients, build your brand, and warm up prospects. Below are 7 tips for integrating an email strategy into your small business marketing efforts 1. Define your objectives (I know I always start here, and so should your company). Are you using it for CRM, prospecting, branding, information dissemination or a combination of several of these? 2. Collect email addresses ethically. Start with the email addresses of your current customers. If these aren’t already in a primary database, access all departments within the company to gather as many customer email addresses as possible. Accounting, tech support, customer services, marketing, and sales may all have email databases so collect them all and consolidate to begin. 3. Build your email database. Ask for the email address of every potential customer and prospect. Add a newsletter subscription link to your website (more on that below) and make it part of your email signature, make white papers and articles accessible from your site only with a sign-up form, make it part of the credit application. Any opportunity to ask for an email address, do so. 4. Start publishing an e-newsletter on a regular basis. Establish a look and tone, define what types of content will be included, set a schedule and stick to it. Twice a month or monthly is a good starting point. You may want to outsource copy writing and creative, or keep it internal depending on your organization’s capabilities and available time. 5. Use 3rd party deployment company for ease and to maintain list hygiene (opt-outs and unsubs must be honored if you are NOT going to be perceived as spamming). Vertical Response and Constant Contact are both excellent companies to start with if your list is under 30,000 records or so. 6. Have a registration/sign-up mechanism on your site. One do-it-yourself resource is Wufoo - a great site for online form building and registration capture. Certainly signing up for your newsletter will add email addresses to your database, but offering articles or white papers targeted to the concerns of your customers will not only build your database but add to your company’s credibility and positioning. 7. Measure results and improve. At the very least, keep track of the number of opens, click thrus and unsubscribes you get with each mailing. Is there content that had better results? Did your unsubs jump up? Be aware of the effect your email marketing is having. Ask your current customers what they think of your efforts, after 2 or 3 have gone out. You will get feedback on ways to improve and enhance. If all of this seems pretty basic…it is. But I’m amazed at how many larger organizations either do not have an email strategy, or are not doing it well. Start now. |
How do you stand out amidst the millions of emails in our inbox, Tweets, Facebook posts, LinkedIn status, blog mentions, direct mail offers et al? It’s a challenge. It’s always been a challenge but now more so than ever. And more than ever, creativity is the solution — and multi-channel/cross-channel activities or old media-new media combos will win. Below are several ideas for creating multi-channel efforts that will shine:
