EMAIL MARKETING.. A MUST READ

Email marketing is a set of practices aimed at exploiting email messages so as to promote or sell a product or service. Every web marketing manual praises the email as an invaluable economic, practical, measurable and profitable business tool.  And it's exactly so. Thanks to the email it’s now possible to carry out advertising campaigns at a really low cost but still benefiting from a considerably high return on investment. This is also because it is now so wide spread, demographically and geographically, it is very flexible, and is very easy to create and use. But how many companies are truly aware of these qualities, and exploit them to fullest?

On average a user from Nigeria receives about 33 emails a day. Obviously, in the case of a manager or a person in the communication sector - these numbers increase exponentially.
In the midst of this deluge of information, there are also direct marketing messages: the likes of which include newsletters, bulletins, announcement lists, registration forms or confirmation requests etc. The big question is, how much attention are we willing to grant each of them? Our emails are a valuable commodity, and it is up to marketers to make the most of it.

Yet the literacy of this tool - meaning the practices of writing, sending, and managing contacts - is still rather low. Various companies - even top level ones - consider email marketing as a tool to use only because "one must", because everyone else does.

The results are, very often, disappointing - DEMs and newsletters full of grammatical mistakes, um-displayable images, disclaimers missing, mass mail-outs without differentiation, databases not kept in order etc.

Taking for granted the email as a marketing tool - but also as a means of sharing and transmitting information, in the case it’s not to sell anything but only to inform - is a common mistake.

A key point to remember is that via the email we literally enter people's digital homes - their inbox. The least we can do is present ourselves in the best possible way, and demonstrate that we are interested in them - whether it’s proposing a commercial offer, or to keep contacts informed about our activities.

This e-book serves as a basic tool for keeping the latest email marketing best practices in order.

Many topics have not been touched - the details relating to privacy regulations, the spread of spam, the future of email etc. - because I feel it’s better to keep it essential. I’ll look at them in a next work.

                              THE ABC OF EMAIL MARKETING BEGINS.

 1. A few seconds to make a good impression. The attention market

If we had to describe the currency of today’s web, it would be without a doubt attention: so much that the discipline of the attention economy has not only become essential for theorists in the industry, but also for advertising and marketing experts. Until recently, ads or any piece of info was not sup-posed to compete too much in order to grab the individual’s attention. Above all, it was still possible to carry out a qualitative or in depth analysis in order to decide the importance of the object.

Today things are a lot different. Many studies have shown that the extraordinary growth of the infosphere and the increasing number of messages that get exchanged and received - not only emails, but also social tools, sms, news, etc - is literally changing the human brain. The result is that we are less willing to find out about whatever we come across on the web in more detail, and prefer to "nibble" at bits of info here and there, often skimming over the data.

So the information overload we are subject to every day makes it particularly difficult to capture peoples’ attention - and this directly affects email communication. Data collected by the famous (even if a little bit out-dated)  Nielsen Group survey confirms this. Only 19% of newsletter recipients read it from the beginning to the end, and the way it is viewed - is of particular importance - follows a sort of "F shape":

As one can see, it isn’t read in the traditional sense but rather skimmed over in a fragmented and often superficial manner.  But the average defined by Nielsen’s study should be reduced even further. Just think how many times we ourselves have quickly glanced over a message’s general layout - or every time we binned a newsletter without even opening it.

 In light of all this, it is clear that commercial or editorial emails must be straight to the point, creative, simple and have instant appeal. From the first line, and even better from the subject. There is no room for second place, in the world of email marketing - you’ve got to get straight to the point.

2. Having a long-term strategy In this scene, we are dealing with structuring messages so that they strike readers and get them interested as much as possible. But even before you figure out how to do it, you need to understand a little underlying philosophy about proper email marketing.  One of the most common pitfalls is the idea of considering email marketing as a “push” method able to produce only immediate results.  On the contrary, although using email marketing it is possible to achieve returns in a very short period, the more sensible strategy is a long-term one whose main purpose is not so much to get the most out of a single campaign, but rather to foster a loyal relationship with users.

Any expert will tell you the same thing, but unfortunately there are still many companies that haven’t truly taken on board this concept. The concept of forward-thinking email marketing has yet to take root.  On no account must you “treat email addresses as email addresses; treat them like relationships." That's exactly right. What lies behind your contacts are people and peoples’ lives revolve around relationships.

How can that be put into practice? Don’t start thinking you can get out of it so easily just because you send a well-crafted newsletter every week, or a fantastic discount campaign every now and then. The only true way to add any real value to this method of marketing is to establish a line of continuity between actions and reactions, creating a positive feedback loop.

In other words:

·         Always reply to one’s emails and don’t be afraid to establish a genuine dialogue. This is definitely one of the most important points of any email contact strategies, and one of the factors which determine the difference between other forms of advertising - completely one sided. Newsletter senders using no-reply@domain address, give the fatal impression that any form of conversation has been severed right from the beginning - a rather unpleasant feeling. Make sure that recipients are able to reply to every email you send, and get back to them as quickly as possible.

·         Create customized strategies. One of the most extraordinary advantages of email marketing - yet highly underrated - is the ability to mail-out a raft of different messages depending on the target, the tastes and needs of users. Unlike traditional forms of advertising that bombards everybody with the same content such as TV ads, email marketing enables a true customization of one’s message. Not only does this heighten your chances of selling more or satisfying specific customer’s tastes, but also helps rebuild a trusting relationship that was lost in the era of the global market. A bit like the old local shopkeepers who used to put aside our favorite products. For us and only for us.

• Keep the relevance of the messages high, according to users’ previously stated preferences and interests. Always show a high standard of quality and avoid any content that is not useful.

•  Avoid flooding your contacts with too many emails, especially in peak periods such as summer, holidays, Christmas. It’s much better to continue building a customized path.

• Hold on to acquired information. User feedback and all the information customers are willing to give you in the registration form, i.e. age or tastes, are immensely valuable. With the right scenario analysis, they’ll help you improve content or offers quality.

•   Look ahead. As much as emails may seem a fairly static tool, the email marketing world is constantly moving, and there are always new ways to integrate and improve them. Strive to come up with new tips and different strategies, and never give up experimenting.

Finally, to leave you with a tiny pearl of wisdom from Middleton Hughes and Sweetser, authors of Successful email Marketing Strategies. From Hunting to Farming:

There are two basic ways to look at email marketing: as hunters and as farmers. All email marketers measure email campaign performance. Only advanced email marketers also measure subscriber performance.

3. Putting oneself in the user's shoes

 One of the greatest risks when working in the email marketing industry is to overlook the fact that we have an inbox too. And we also receive dozens of messages, often unwanted.

 Putting oneself in the receivers’ shoes is crucial if we want to come up with truly relevant communications: do not think like marketers or professionals, but try thinking like a recipient.

 Email Marketing, doesn’t beat around the bush! If they think your email is spam, then its spam. […] Your definition of spam doesn’t matter, and neither does mine, unless we define it in exactly the same way as our recipients define it. The ultimate judge and jury when it comes to spam is the recipient of the message, not the sender.

 Consumers consider spam as anything they don’t want or can’t verify.  It may seem a bit too harsh - there are definitely some good indicators to give us advanced warning as to what is or isn’t spam - Spam is not restricted to emails with "SEX VIAGRA $$ $" in the subject, but includes any unsolicited communication - or even uninteresting ones.

And so, this principally means three things:

·         Ask yourself some questions. Better still, many questions. Is the content of your email really relevant? Try subscribing to some of your competitors’ newsletters, and spend a few days simply sifting through your inbox, waiting for new ones to arrive. How many of the commercial emails that you receive are of any real interest? Carefully analyze the appearance and the substance of what you receive. Do you feel the urge to unsubscribe from any of the mailing lists? If the answer is yes, take a note of what factors triggered such a reaction. Now you’ve got a nice list of pit falls to avoid.

Evaluate the results with your whole team. What seems obvious to you mightn’t be so for someone else. Listening to others’ opinions especially in a field where there are no incontrovertible truths is a great way to finding a better solutions and answers.

·         Pay particular attention to first impressions: like the subject, sender, and information architecture. But do not stop there: as we’ve already said, the entire contents of the email must be relevant and well crafted.

 And finally: If it’s too much hard work putting your-self in the recipient’s shoes, why not find someone who’ll do it for you? For example, your own users. Don’t be afraid to accept their advice, and of course criticisms, or directly asking them for their opinions - perhaps placing it in the footer of your newsletter.

Behind every email address there is a person who differs from others in terms of interests, habits, and behaviors. That’s why it’s essential to send customized messages to your target audience.

With QCN EMAIL STRATEGY you can manage this important aspect of email marketing through a tool called Target.

This is a very powerful feature that can filter your contacts’ data according to one or more rules, up to a maximum of five. In the example above, we set two rules to create a subset of contacts who live in Lagos and who are 25 years or older.

We even do it for you…we help you send all the email you need to send while you can concentrate on what you know how to do best…sell your products or services.

ELEMENTS OF A COMMERCIAL EMAIL

1. How a commercial email should be technically, it is no different from any other type of email: they both have the same working rules, the general settings and a few other details. Unlike private messages, commercial emails have some additional features.  Take one of our Web Target newsletters, for example: for convenience we have divided it into three parts, as it should appear in any standard mail client - in our case, Windows Live Mail.

A) SENDER- RECEIVER-SUBJECT

B) MESSAGE

C) FOOTER

Each of these three parts will be carefully analyzed in later chapters. Here's just a quick overview to get started:

A) The recipient is clearly the recipient’s email; the sender is the person who sends the email (and will either be a name or email address); the subject is the title that describes the message itself.

B) The header can contain the name of the brand, a well-recognized image, or even just a general title about the message.

But it's the body the place where the content is structured and the call to action should be placed. This plays a fundamental role, because it’s the part of the email urging users to act - in general, a click to be led to a web page.

C) The footer is the final part of an email. It must include an opt-out link and the privacy policy - both are necessary to ensure that your message is legally compliant.

With QCN Email Strategy For Business it’s possible to prepare commercial emails with all the features we have highlighted in this chapter using the panel Compose Message. With a few clicks you can choose a Template, and add the Subject along with the message in HTML or plain text.

You may want to customize your messages, i.e. by showing the recipient's name in the body or subject of the email; you can use the so-called tags.  Automated system that allows your email to insert recipients names, numbers, address or whatever info you want to insert. This way I get to send emails to thousands of people and the system will automate the process for you.

  2. Web-oriented writing: a question of style

Before analyzing the different parts of an email, just a few general hints.

 Web-oriented writing follows very different stylistic canons compared to writing for paper-based sources. Whilst, newsletter syntax needs to be looked at separately. The first point to touch on, common amongst every type of web writing, is the need to be synthetic and sober. As it has been mentioned previously, the average user looks over a newsletter in a pretty superficial way and tends to scan over the content - unless the content is particularly interesting (which is what we all wish).

Secondly, it is essential that the email is consistent with the original website. Adopting a snappy and flirtatious tone in the direct communication channel, when instead your portal deals with very serious topics, can be completely counterproductive.

Here are some general rules that should be adhered to:

• Text should be divided into blocks. There is nothing worse than an email with a single continuous block of text that lacks any paragraphs or has no reference points.

•   Highlight any important elements in bold and avoid using italics or underlining

• Organize the content structure of the email according to a clear hierarchy. A bit like if it was a page out of newspaper: organize the flow of information from the most important element you want to get across to the ancillary ones.

•  From a stylistic point of view, don’t use expressions that have more than one meaning or are difficult to immediately decipher. Remember that you have a very limited amount of time and it’s impossible to know in advance the mood of the person who’s going to read your email: you don’t have to try to make it "funny" or intriguing at all costs.

• Use simple syntax sentences that are direct and clear, without being involutes.

• Focus the key points within the first few lines of the message. When reading from smartphones it’s likely that, among other things, these are the only lines that users will skim over.

• Create internal links within the text: Do not include the full URL, but directly link the words instead. So, rather than  www.quickconnectnigeria.com only put  Web-Target. This is a key step in encouraging the call to action and leads users to the reference site. However, do not overdo it. Too many links in the body of the text - especially if you have chosen to highlight them with underscores - adversely affect the readability and just confuse readers’ attention.

Rigorous editorial standards, making sure there are no double spaces between words, leaving a space after each punctuation mark, and of course, impeccable grammars are all must do’s

I REALLY HOPE YOU ENJOYED READING THIS SHORT EMAIL TIPS.  DON’T FORGET…QCN IS A MARKETING AND BUSINESS STRATEGIST COMPANY AND WE SUCCED WHEN YOUR BUSINESS SUCCEEDS.

FOR MORE INFO PLEASE CALL 0817-495-7830  REACH ME ON TWITTER @quiconomics  E-mail; victor@mynationaldiscounts.com