| Reggie Brady Marketing Solutions 203-838-8138 | ||||||||||||
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| Reggie's articles appearing in Target Marketing Magazine | ||||||||||||
| Email Offers and Creative Do’s and Don’ts January 2005 BY REGINA BRADY It’s 2005 and if you haven’t yet made any new year’s resolutions, there’s still time. At the top of the list should be a look at improving your email programs. Here are some thoughts on how to fine-tune your email marketing efforts and differentiate your campaigns from your competition. Don’t just offer discounts. The vast majority of emails I receive offer a sale, a percentage off discount or free shipping and handling. Of course, everyone likes a sale and the chance to save money, but these tactics will not differentiate you from all the other emails in already crowded in-boxes. A recent Jupiter Research study found that more than half the email subject lines they studied pitched a discount. Do develop an arsenal of compelling offers. Make sure that you vary your marketing approach by creating a toolbox of offers for use over the next few months. Think about seasonal tie-ins, time-sensitive offers, instant coupons, web-only specials, lists of top sellers, limited quantity offers, contests, surveys with an incentive, gift or premium with purchase, gifts over $25, specials that are only for your email customers, and more. For example, I liked the email I received from The Wine Enthusiast that had offers only for their “email enthusiasts” because it made me feel as if I were on the inside track. Don’t only run product shots that link to your site. They say, “A picture is worth a thousand words.” While that’s true, not every picture tells the whole story. Give the product name and consider whether a short descriptor will help. Do highlight product and company benefits. On the web your competitors’ sites are just a click away and it is easy to do comparative shopping. Have you positioned your company in the minds of your customers? Some differentiators beyond price are a commitment to customer service, return guarantees, and breadth of services. For higher ticket items take care to highlight features and product benefits. A recent email from Brookstone offering their version of an air purifier stressed The Brookstone Advantage for five different aspects of their offering. Don’t simply sell, sell, and sell. People do not sign up for your email programs just to read ads. You want to establish a relationship for the long haul. Respect your customer. Do offer value-added content. Email success depends on the goodwill of your customers. Give your email recipients reason to look forward to your messages. Even if your primary goal is to sell product, you’ll engage your audience by adding editorial content. This could be a piece of trivia, a factoid or even a longer form story. Give your recipients yet another reason to open and read your emails. Lands’ End is a master at this and their lead article is always an entertaining feature. They might cover customer stories, seasonal notes, product stories or what’s happening in their hometown of Dodgeville, Wisconsin. Williams-Sonoma recently promoted glasses and bar accessories with a link to cocktail recipes. Office Depot included the history of the quill pen – I bet you didn’t know they were originally plucked from live birds. Don’t forget to check spelling and links. This may sound like a “no brainer,” but a Jupiter study found four percent of emails contained spelling errors and fourteen percent had broken links. While you will receive the vast majority of your click-throughs quickly, some recipients may save your message to act upon at a later time. If you run a limited-time offer or if your site dynamically displays only items that are in stock remember to have a customer-friendly page rather than just a dead link. If your offer has expired, you might want to point to another offer. Do organize your creative so it is easily scanned. People do not read every carefully crafted word in your emails; studies show that seventy nine percent of recipients scan. So organize your content and offers with headlines, clear and informative sub-heads, bullet points, short paragraphs and short sentences. Use what copywriter Bob Bly calls the “breath test.” Read your copy out loud, and if you have to take a breath before you finish a sentence make sure to pare that copy down. Don’t think only of the email channel. Email is a powerful stimulus to drive site traffic and sales. But in today’s multi-channel environment you want to be prepared to take advantage of the synergy between channels. Always include your 800 toll free number in your emails. Marketers have found that up to twenty percent of email stimulated revenues may come in via phone. And, if you are mounting a direct mail campaign test the impact of pre-announcing your mail via email. Do incorporate site functionality into your email design. Make sure your emails do double and triple duty by mirroring your site design category navigation. If you have a search function on your site, include a search function in your emails that links directly to the site. Jupiter Research found that eighty percent of the emails they studied did include category navigation; but only ten percent included the search box. You recipients may not be interested in the particular products promoted in a campaign; but these visual cues may prompt them to find another product of interest. Remember, it’s a new year and now is the perfect time to take your email programs to the next level. I’ve given you a few ideas and hope you find at least one nugget that you can incorporate into your programs. Have a successful 2005! Regina Brady is president of Reggie Brady Marketing Solutions, a direct and e-mail marketing consultancy. She can be reached at (203) 838-8138 or reginabrady@att.net. Return to Articles | ||||||||||||
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