The Whitelist

Subject Line Length: Test for Results

Subject line best practices tend to be all over the map.  We’ve seen studies claiming the shorter subject line is better, and others saying longer subject lines are. And we’ve seen studies saying personalization works and other saying it doesn’t. On subject lines, don’t assume you know the best length. Instead, test, test, test.

What’s an email marketer to believe?

When it comes to subject lines, the only email marketing best practices you can really depend on are the ones you determine yourself through testing.

Consider just subject line length, for example. As email consultants, we still run into the mindset that there’s a hard and fast rule one must adhere to. Email marketers can get fixated on the 35-character limit but that’s not necessarily true. There is no hard and fast rule, only your rule.

A short subject line might work best for you. A long subject line might work best for you. Or something in between might be just the right length. There’s only one way to know: Try A/B testing for your initial answers. Then continue to test and refine.

Don’t automatically dismiss longer lines. Consider the benefits of the longer subject line. A long subject line tells the recipient more about what to expect from the email content, possibly leading to more opens. For example, a magazine touting their newest issue might reference three articles in the subject line.

On the other hand, short subject lines can be “long enough” to get opens when the emails are known to be relevant to the recipient, expected and timely. If you’ve built up a rapport with your audience, the shorter subject line might be the way to go.

And that’s another reason for continuing to test. It could be you’ll need longer subject lines until your audience gets engaged, then shorter subject lines will suffice. Or it could be for some kinds of content your subject lines will perform better shorter and other kinds of content will perform better with longer.

The key is not to take any advice for granted. Instead, test for results…the best results for you.

Emails Aren’t Sent in Batches but They Are Read in Batches!

As email marketers adhering to email marketing best practices, we’re no longer doing batch-and-blast email on our end, but our recipients are probably checking email in batches on theirs.

That was a point made in the ExactTarget 2012 Channel Preference Survey. The survey is a must-read for email marketers from the email newbie to the email expert. Download it and review it for critical information about the channels your customers prefer, from email to direct mail to SMS to social. Today, however, we want to talk about one little gem in the survey.

While reading through the data, this paragraph on page 12 jumped out at us:

“…the telephone and SMS (text messaging) channels index well for alert-based communications. This stands to reason since both phone and text hold a place of higher communication priority in most consumers’ lives. If the phone rings, you answer it. If a text arrives, you can read it quickly. This is vastly different than email and social media updates which tend to get checked in batches.”

Email tends to be checked in batches…that is something we as email experts know, right? But maybe not something that stays top of mind as we carefully craft our campaigns, subject lines and offers. We already know the inboxes we sit in are crowded and cluttered, but do we also take into account customer behavior, their mindset as they tackle that inbox?

Whether you’re a B2B or B2C marketer, this is a gem of information to think about. Email lacks the immediacy of the phone and the text. That’s not a bad thing. But this idea that email is checked in batches, not as it comes in, well that’s important.

What does it mean? It means we’re not only in a cluttered inbox, but we’re even less likely to stand out as a recipient does email triage or deletes in bulk. We are more likely to be put off, to be dealt with later (affecting our immediate open rates).

Why does it matter? It is yet one more reason to be targeted, relevant, engaging and wanted in the inbox. Once you’ve won your customers’ hearts and earned a welcome place in the inbox, your emails will stand out, even among the clutter.

Granted that was only one tiny nugget from 35 pages of critical stats and data. Think about it, but don’t stop there. Read the survey and apply all of the insight to your email marketing program when you download the full report here.

The Email Catch 22: Engagement = Deliverability = Engagement

Is email marketing now a Catch 22? To keep getting your email delivered to inboxes, you must engage the recipients. But to engage the recipients, you must get email delivered to inboxes.

Huh?

It looks odd to see it spelled out that way, doesn’t it? But it is true. In 2012, your recipients’ interactions with your emails are now an indicator of your worth in the eyes of some ISPs. If the folks you email don’t interact with your emails, the ISP sees your email as not wanted, determines it to be spam, and no longer delivers any email from you…at all.

This kind of Catch 22 isn’t really a conundrum at all if you’ve been following the email expert advice all along. If you’ve been building a permission-based list, segmenting your list, sending targeted messages, keeping your list clean, serving up awesome content and essentially being subscriber-centric, then you have no Catch 22. You’re adhering to the email marketing best practices the ISPs want to promote with their filtering. There is always room for improvement, even for an email expert, but you’re on the right path. Just stick to it.

If, on the other hand, you’ve yet to implement these types of email marketing best practices, now is most definitely the time because you do face the email Catch 22. If you haven’t been engaging your subscribers, then your email deliverability rate might already be less than it could be, which means you have less opportunity to engage because you’re not getting into as many inboxes as you used to. So act now to be a better marketer.

Engagement = deliverability = engagement. You have to engage to deliver, but you have to deliver to engage.

Need help? Call on ClickMail.

Getting Into the Inbox: 3 Ways to Weather the Waves of Change

As we just wrote about last week, the email marketing industry can be frustrating because so many factors are outside of your control, factors that can keep you out of the inbox.

Working with email consultants will definitely help you overcome the challenges of our ever-changing industry, but there are also some tried-and-true email marketing best practices that will help you weather the waves of change and get into the inbox on a consistent basis.

These are email marketing best practices that have worked before and will continue to work. If you haven’t implemented them already, implement them now and be in a better position to handle the fluster and flux of email marketing in 2012…and beyond.

1. Segmentation: Focused segmentation can do wonders for your email deliverability because it means targeted, relevant email messages people will want to receive. Segmentation should be a required email marketing best practice and it’s one even a small mom-and-pop marketer can manage at a basic level. Yes, the big guys are segmenting to the nth degree and using complex web analytics and behavior marketing, but the small- to mid-size business can also be more relevant with some simple segmentation. If you need help figuring that out, just ask.
2. Data Hygiene: Keeping your list clean will also help you weather the waves of change. A clean list means a better online reputation means a higher deliverability rate. For tips on scrubbing your list for better data hygiene, see this advice pulled together by the email consultants at ClickMail.
3. Content: A solid and consistent content strategy will keep your emails relevant and your audience engaged, no matter how regulations change or technologies shift. Content can be words, images, newsletters, tips, articles, or almost anything else, as long as it appeals to your audience as great content they anxiously await. (What kind of ISP would say “no” to content like that?)

There you have it, three email marketing best practices from the email consultants at ClickMail that are sure to help you get into the inbox no matter what the email marketing powers that be throw your way.

The Age of Engagement

What’s your focus as an email marketer? If you’re paying attention, you know we’ve moved past the rule of relevance into the age of engagement.

We know the reasons for engaging subscribers: improve email delivery, increase sales, encourage social sharing. But what does it really mean to engage?

Let’s think about what it means to engage. Below is the word as defined by FreeDictionary.com:

1. To obtain or contract for the services of; employ: engage a carpenter.

2. To arrange for the use of; reserve: engage a room.

3. To pledge or promise, especially to marry.

4. To attract and hold the attention of; engross: a hobby that engaged her for hours at a time.

5. To win over or attract: His smile engages everyone he meets.

6. To draw into; involve: engage a shy person in conversation.

7. To require the use of; occupy: Studying engages most of my time.

8. To enter or bring into conflict with: We have engaged the enemy.

9. To interlock or cause to interlock; mesh: engage the automobile’s clutch.

10. To give or take as security.

What do all of these definitions have in common? One party engages another. One makes the first move, if you will, sets the stage, makes the move, initiates the invitation.

That is what we as an email marketing agency and you as an email marketer must have at the forefront of your thinking when ensuring your email marketing program is focused on engagement.

To engage is not to be passive, waiting for someone else to make a move. Nope. Engaging our prospects, subscribers and/or customers means we make the first move, in a way these prospects, subscribers and/or customers will react to.

Is your email marketing program engaging? Does it actively seek an interaction with the recipients? Is it designed to be a two-way communication, one mindful of the recipient’s time and interest?

If so, you’re engaging! If you think you could do a little better, call on ClickMail to help. We’re your engaging email marketing agency. And we’ll help you engage too!

(Heart) Your Subscribers…Today and Every Day

Today is Valentine’s Day, a day about love: love of spouse, love of family…and—for email marketers—love of subscribers.

Yep, February 14 is a great day to remember how much you appreciate these people who willingly get your marketing messages. In fact, every day is a great day to show some subscriber love! With email marketing, showing appreciation and consideration for your subscribers is so easy, there’s no reason not to do it.

With this blog, we’re at a disadvantage. You’re likely reading this because you came across it during a Google or Bing search for an email marketing agency or some tips for email your in-house email list. You didn’t sign up for it, and it’s not something you regularly expect to see in your inbox. As a blog, this marketing medium can’t very well show you any lovin’ beyond being useful and full of email marketing best practices.

Your email marketing program, on the other hand, can easily show some much-needed care and concern. After all, your subscribers signed up to hear from you. They expect to see your email messages in their inboxes and on their smartphones. Reciprocate with consideration. Offer them a preference center so they can tell you when and how they want to hear from you. Be mindful in your messaging, really and truly thinking through what the subscriber wants to hear vs. what you want to say. Segment your lists and thoughtfully message different segments in different ways. Study your web analytics for opportunities to market based on specific buying behaviors.

And above all, be engaging. There’s a reason an “engagement” is the stage before a marriage. For you, the engagement is the stage before the sale. Be thoughtful and loving of your subscribers, considerate of their needs, wants and desires, and you might find that lovin’ headed right back to you as increased ROI.

Happy Valentine’s Day to you, your family and your email subscribers from ClickMail, the email marketing agency with a heart.

With all the channels available to us now as email marketers, we have a lot of communicating to do…which could trick us into thinking shortcuts are okay.

In business, shortcuts are often shorthand for “bad idea.”

Let’s consider our cross-channel marketing for a moment, for example. If you’re marketing to your customers via email, direct mail, Facebook/LinkedIn, Twitter and blogging, you might be tempted to copy and paste information from one place to another to save time. And why not, right? Who’s to say the Facebook fan is also an email subscriber?

Well, they might be, but that’s not really the point.

The point is, you’re more engaging when your communications are fresh and appropriate to the channel you’re using. If I get the same content from you via email as I do via Facebook, chances are I’ll stop paying attention to one or the other. And what’s appropriate in an email format is not usually appropriate in a Facebook format. An email will be a little longer and have a little more staying power. An email can sit in an inbox for a few days before a customer chooses to interact with it, even. A Facebook post will be much shorter and will have a lifespan of as little as 15 minutes.

Writing once, reusing everywhere is probably tempting because it reduces workload. But if it also reduces interest, is it really worth the time savings?

Be engaging, not repetitive. Be careful of the copy/paste.

Five Signs It’s Time for a New ESP

Business relationships differ from personal ones in a very big way: Sometimes it’s just time to move on.

Case in point: Your marriage might be for life and your kids are around for good, but your ESP could be a temporary relationship. As much as you might like your ESP, as long as you’ve been doing business with them, there still might come a time when staying with the ESP you know so well could mean a lower email marketing ROI.

If you’ve been with the same email service provider for more than a year, consider these five signs that it’s time for a new ESP:

1. Your in-house email list has grown.

With over 100 ESPs to choose from, you’re going to find that capabilities differ among them. This includes scaling to meet your needs as your volume of email grows.

2. Your email deliverability has shrunk.

As strange as it sounds, the email deliverability rate you’ll get with one ESP is not the same as you’ll get with another. As an email marketing agency, we test different ESPs with the same list and we get markedly varied results. When even half a percentage point in improvement means more email ROI, having the highest possible email delivery rate is imperative. It could be your ESP isn’t keeping up with your needs, and that’s affecting your bottom line.

3. You’re ready to automate.

Triggered, event-based email marketing is the way to achieve the most targeted, relevant messages possible. If you’re ready to go that route and your ESP isn’t, it’s time to move on…not get left behind.

4. You’re ready to integrate.

Web analytics, CRM systems, social media, SMS…there are so many sources of customer insight and possible contact points that all need to be working in tandem for maximum results. Email marketing best practices alone will only get you so far. Integrating with other marketing channels is imperative. If your ESP is limited in integration capabilities, it might be time to shop for a new one.

5. You need some strategy.

In today’s economy especially, marketing budgets can be tight and staffs small. If you’re resources are enough to get the job done but not enough to add a strategic element to your email marketing program, you might need an ESP with consulting services available.

If you’re thinking maybe it’s time to move on to a new ESP, here are three ways to jumpstart your search:

• Plug your requirements into the online ESP selection tool, the ESPinator
• Download the 2011 guide to choosing a new ESP
• Head to booth #39 at MarketingSherpa’s Email Summit in Las Vegas this week to visit with email marketing agency ClickMail

Whether you do one, two or all three, you’ll be well on the way to moving on to the right ESP for your newly evolved needs.

What Happens in Vegas…Will Stick With You in a Very Good Way!

This is one time when what happens in Vegas need not stay in Vegas: MarketingSherpa’s Email Summit 2012. This time, we hope what happens in Vegas sticks with you in a very good way.

Taking place February 7^th through 10^th, the summit promises to be overflowing with email marketing expertise, experience and education…all designed to head back to your office with you, to be implemented in the coming months as you improve your email marketing program…and your email marketing ROI.

And if MarketingSherpa’s Email Summit 2012 doesn’t already promise enough new knowledge to tempt you, consider these three reasons, from ClickMail, your email marketing agency:

1. Get One-on-One Coaching!

Three of the email marketing industry’s best and brightest—ClickMail’s own Cameron Kane, Michael Kelly and Grant Johnson—will be on hand offering coaching and one-on-one consultation. That’s right. During this Las Vegas event, the real show stoppers will be the 12 different topics you can choose from when you want an expert’s undivided attention and advice. (Get the details and sign up for your private session.)

2. Get a Discount!

Register with our special email marketing agency promotion code, and you’ll save $700! To get your discount, enter priority code 185-ST-1003 at check out when you register for the Email Summit.

3. Get Connected!

Most important of all during this email event is meeting up with the folks from our email marketing agency. Be sure to stop by booth #39 during the Email Summit. While at the booth, plug your email marketing needs into our ESPinator to see which ESP gets recommended for you…and to be entered to win free prizes.

What’s not to love about three days in Vegas, especially when it all goes home with you?

Email: The Foundation of all Online Marketing

Although we’re an email marketing agency, we’ll be glad to see this month—and all of the 2012 predictions that came with it—come to an end. We must stay on top of the changes in the email marketing industry and the predictions help us to do so, but we are ready to get down to the business of email marketing ROI once again.

Why? Because one constant remains throughout all those predictions: Email is the foundation upon which your online marketing program is built, no matter if you’re switching from an ESP to marketing automation provider or putting extra resources into your social media campaigns. Email is the enabler to it all.

And that’s something we can all bank on by keeping our focus where our focus should be: constantly optimizing our email marketing best practices and programs, and further integrating our email with our web analytics and social media marketing.

Email is the starting point, the foundation, the enabler and even the glue. It’s also the preferred medium of your customers. According to ExactTarget, “56% of US Internet users interact with brands only via marketing emails, compared to 1.3% who interact only via Twitter and 0.7% by Facebook.” [ExactTarget, "Subscribers, Fans, and Followers: The Social Profile" (2010), emphasis added]

Emails not going away, and it needs your attention to make sure it’s doing all it can for you. The other stuff might be shiny and new but without the solidity of a well-functioning, optimized email marketing program, your other online and social media marketing efforts will fall short.

You’re already taking action to keep your email optimized: You’re reading this blog! For other resources that will educate you and strengthen your email marketing foundation, subscribe to our email marketing newsletter and definitely be sure to visit our booth at MarketingSherpa’s Email Summit 2012 next week.

Or just reach out to this friendly email marketing agency for some one-on-one email marketing consultation. We’ll help you lay that foundation brick by brick.