Strategic Elements

Scope the Program: Everything starts with the end result.  What do you want the recipients of your e-mail to feel, think or do? If this is a one-off effort it will need to work differently than if its part of a newsletter, club or continuity program.  If this is going to a specific segment or a house list, it will be received differently than if it’s a wide scale mass acquisition effort.  If it’s a new product or service launch versus a special offer on a well known brand, response will vary greatly.  The scope will reflect the goals – who, what, when, how often and what needs to be accomplished and measured.  Clarity on the front end will make measurement and analysis much easier on the back end.

Build/Align the Channels: An e-mail is the front end of a multi-dimensional response system.  Before you blast out e-mails you must decide where you will direct the response, usually expressed as clicks or calls, and what experience the responder will have immediately after making a click or a call.   This involves designing landing pages, embedding additional links, video, audio, PDFs, PowerPoint presentations, 800 numbers and measurement tools.   It also demands that you anticipate the most likely emotional and rational responses to your message and prepare the requisite answers and materials.

An e-mail starts a hoped-for chain reaction.   At the outset of a program, you must anticipate each step in that chain and marshal the creative, technical and analytic resources necessary to capitalize on those clicks.   If you mail before these are in-place and tested you squander the effort.  If you do this smartly, you are rewarded with the results you desire.

Work on the List: Who you address directly influences what happens.  Every list is flawed.   Assume that 20-30 percent of the names on any list you buy will bounce.   And assume that most house lists, even those carefully maintained, will lose 3-5 percent of address after each mailing.   The provenance of the lists is also a key indicator for response.  Names carefully opted-in by brand loyalists will perform much better than random names gathered by lead generation sites or list compilers.  Smart players, and virtually all bulk e-mail programs and services, offer list cleaning, merge/purge and integrity tools that everybody should use.   In this market, negotiate a “net name” deal which will give you credit for the names you buy that can’t be delivered.

Craft a Compelling Offer: We have trained everyone to expect a deal in an e-mail.  Your offer has to speak directly to your target audience and present something that they have to do right now.  Limited quantities, discount prices or time limitations drive some urgency but most of us can discern a real value from a passing promo offer in a nanosecond.   So think long and hard about what you are offering. How sensible is it your customers and how can you make it feel like something they must have right away?  Also think about how the offer will impact subsequent brand perceptions. Will the offer cement your relationship with customers or could it signal that the brand is slipping in quality or customer focus?

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Michael

A: There are plenty of reasons why this is a great time to be in business for yourself, take your pick:

• Inexpensive marketing options abound – everything from social media to pay-per-click are possibilities
• The ability to work anytime, anywhere ( a double edged sword to be sure!)
• More markets than ever

But for today,  let’s avoid these usual suspects and look at something different, something that any small business can use to grow, right here, right now:
Software automation.

Because of technology, because of computers and software and the Internet, it is easier than ever to automate tasks both simple and complex, tasks that you would either have to spend time doing or that may not get done because they slip through the cracks. And when they don’t slip through the cracks because some cool software is doing them for you, you then are more professional, have more time, are more effective, and your business will grow as a result.

Specifically, what I am talking about is automating your most time consuming and basic (and sometimes not so basic) functions: email follow-ups, sales leads follow-ups, customer relationship management, invoicing and the like.  Imagine if those things were automatic, what would that do to your business?

It radically changed Charles Mack Jr.’s business for the better, that’s for sure.  Mack owns a very successful business outside of Washington D.C. , VIP Auto Appearance. His father started the company some 25 years ago out of the trunk of his car and it has since grown into a business with eight employees and 3,000 customers.  So how does the son, who now runs the business, keep things moving and continue to grow?
Automation.

“My business changed on August 7, 2007,” Mack told me.  That surprised me.  How did he know the specific date? “I remember it because it was so important.  That was the day we got some software and started automating our business.  We have seen serious growth since as a result.  I can’t forget that day.”

Mack explained to me that his first foray into automation was so successful, so powerful, that he became a quick convert.  “I now try and automate everything,” he told me, “so now, whether it is billing,  making appointments,  follow-up reminders or what have you,  I don’t have to spend my time on it.  I automate those sorts of things and they happen routinely.”

There are all sorts of separate programs that do this sort of thing, but Mack raves about a great Web-based application called Infusionsoft which smartly combines customer relationship software (CRM) with email marketing,  e-commerce, and automatic follow-up, so that Mack’s marketing, sales, and customer management “runs on autopilot.”

Automating your business in this way can have huge returns.  If you are like many small businesses, leads get lost, or not followed up on in a timely manner; they too often end up in a maze of spreadsheets, Post It notes, emails, business cards and the like.  But what if, instead, any lead was touched by your business on a regular basis, automatically?  Whether someone is briefly checking out your site, signing up for your e-newsletter, or taking an online quiz, that interest should be considered a lead and that lead should become a sale.

The right software will allow you to track that lead, communicate regularly with that lead, let them know of specials, turn that lead into a sale, track that sale, and follow-up on the sale.  Billing and invoicing can even be automated.

Of course there will always be a need for the human touch, but it is truly remarkable that everything in the sales cycle from interest to invoice can be done automatically these days.  The result, as Charles Mack Jr. told me, is that it will allow you to be “far more strategic” in your business.  You will “work smarter, not harder.”

Today’s tip: Service business owners often think that theirs do not lend itself to e-commerce.  I think that is incorrect.  Charles Mack owned a service business – an auto detail shop. Yet he attributes a significant part of his company’s growth to opening a store online (using the same automating software).  “This was definitely a major step forward because we are the only Auto Appearance Center in our immediate with an online web store.  Having the web store gave us the ability to sell products and services 24/7, not just when our doors were open.”

Any service business can do the same: A chiropractor can sell back relief supplies.  A family therapist can sell books.  The ability to make money while you sleep is an automation option that should not be passed up.

The Federal Trade Commission announced in a press release today that it will soon be publishing clarifications to the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003. The following topics are to be addressed:

(1) an e-mail recipient cannot be required to pay a fee, provide information other than his or her e-mail address and opt-out preferences, or take any steps other than sending a reply e-mail message or visiting a single Internet Web page to opt out of receiving future e-mail from a sender.

(2) the definition of “sender” was modified to make it easier to determine which of multiple parties advertising in a single e-mail message is responsible for complying with the Act’s opt-out requirements.

(3) a “sender” of commercial e-mail can include an accurately-registered post office box or private mailbox established under United States Postal Service regulations to satisfy the Act’s requirement that a commercial e-mail display a “valid physical postal address.”

(4) a definition of the term “person” was added to clarify that CAN-SPAM’s obligations are not limited to natural persons.

Keep your eyes peeled for it. The good news is that if you are already conducting an ethical email marketing campaign, these specifications should not affect you one way or another. If not, you may want to revise your strategy. For some guidance, check out Keeping Your E-Mail Campaigns Legal .

But, don’t worry; email marketing doesn’t have to be pointless. When done right it can truly be effective. It’s getting your emails to stand out from the sea of junk that’s the seemingly tough part. Incorporating some of these tips into your next email campaign can help to increase both your click rate and your response rate:

Use a branded “from” name – Your marketing email’s from name should reflect your company or brand name, not the message contained within the email. If you want people to read your emails, then you’ll need to get them to trust you – and that means giving them a straightforward answer as to who is sending the email. Even tags like Specials, Weekly Tips, or Discounts added to the from name will make most recipients think twice about opening your emails.

Include a call to action in the “subject” line – If you want people to open your emails, you’ll need to give them a reason to. Some of the most successful email campaigns contain a powerful and tantalizing offer or teaser in their subject line. For instance: “50% off and free shipping – one day only!” or “Kids titanium bike – $59 and it ships free!” Give people a reason to act; don’t expect a “10% off all housewares” subject line to get anyone excited.

Use a “time is of the essence” strategy – Hyping up a big discount in your email’s subject line is one thing, but unless you give people a reason to react now, you could be missing out on a huge percentage of clicks. A tantalizing subject line may very well grab someone’s attention, but if it doesn’t require an immediate response it might end up being buried in a sea of other emails – inevitably to be forgotten about. So, before or after your call to action, give readers a reason to click. Something like “3-day sale”, “24-hour sale”, “One-day only”, etc.

Don’t over punctuate in the subject line – Punctuation can be a good thing in subject lines – especially exclamation points and question marks. But don’t go crazy. An overly-punctuated subject line is a red flag to most spam folders, meaning your readers will never end up seeing your message. So, try to keep an “at most” limit of three punctuation marks per subject line.

Inside the email: get to the point, quick – Okay, if you’ve followed all the above tips and are lucky enough to have someone click open your email, what now? Email readers make decisions very quickly on whether or not they close and delete and email. In order to give your message a fighting chance, you need it to be short and concise. Give readers more information about the teaser in your subject line and then give them the opportunity to click onto your website.

Email marketing is abused so much, each and every day, that inboxes are jam-packed with worthless scam emails. In order to make your emails stand out, you need to be upfront and honest about who you are and what you have to offer your readers.

However, a newsletter is only as effective as the content that’s in it, whether it’s via email or more traditional print media. Therefore it’s important to know what needs to go in your email newsletter, and what you can leave out.

Content is King

Everyone’s heard the saying “content is king”, and this is particularly true for any written communication. Without the right news and content, your email newsletter will probably join countless others in the recipient’s email trash folder. Therefore you need to make sure that you’re getting across information that’s both relevant to the recipient(s), as well as promoting your company in as effective a manner as possible. Some of the best content to provide in an email newsletter includes:

* Tips and advice are excellent and are usually universally acknowledged as being an important part of any email newsletter’s success. Offering free yet expert advice is always welcome and your customers will be more likely to trust and use you for their needs.

* Interactive newsletters are also becoming extremely popular, not to mention highly effective at getting your message across. You could have a poll, or an “Insert Your Question Here” box or something similar. If people feel like they’re involved, again they’ll be more likely to come to you for your service or products.

* Offer your opinion on something that’s relevant to both you and your subscribers’ interests or industry. It may be discussing how the latest government by-laws will affect business, or how the economy can learn from other areas. It can be about almost anything you like – but for maximum impact, make sure you’re knowledgeable on the subject, and that it’s topical.

Once you have the content, your email newsletter will flow much more naturally and offer you a better chance of success. However, although content is extremely important, you need to make sure you present it properly as well. This is where list segmentation can help.

By only sending out relevant information to the right readers, you can soon set up different databases of customers that you can target with timely email newsletters. Not only will this save you time in creating your newsletter, it will ensure that you don’t get looked upon as a Spam emailer, making sure that your email newsletters will have a far better chance of being read.

There are two types of email lists that an append vendor can offer: opt-in and opt-out. An opt-in list means that all of the customers have responded to an opt-in email and have agreed to be on the business’ marketing list. On the other hand, an opt-out list means that everyone on that list did not respond to the initial opt-in request email. These people chose to either ignore or delete the email, or perhaps it is an old email address. Obviously, opt-in email addresses are more useful, as the customer is 1) responsive and 2) willing to join your list. For that reason, opt-ins will usually cost between $2.00 and $4.00 per address. Opt-outs, because of the customers’ unresponsiveness and non-interest, can usually be purchased for $.05 to $.20 per address.

The Pros and Cons of email appending

The good thing about email appending is that an opt-in list can fill in the missing blanks to your customer database. If done right, email campaigns to customers can lead to increased sales and frequent customer visits to your website. Having an append vendor help to complete your list could be the start to a healthy list that continues to grow, month after month.

The not-so-good-thing about email appending is the opt-out list. It’s important to remember that just because someone didn’t opt-out doesn’t mean they wanted to opt-in. Using an opt-out list means you are using email addresses without the recipients’ permission. If anyone decides to report your company for violation of the CAN-SPAM act, you will never be able to prove that they opted into your list or that you have their permission to email them.

Aside from spamming, opt-out lists are often completely useless; many believe that the absolute best you can hope for is a 2% response rate. However, chances are you may never get a single response from any of these unresponsive customers.

It’s very possible that you may also jeopardize future relationships with your customers. If your once-happy-with-your-company customers find that you are "spamming" them, they may not only complain, they may decide to never visit your website again. While some people just delete unwanted emails, others take notice and offense to the fact that a company they purchased from is now using their private information without permission, and for their own use. They may wonder if you are selling the information to third parties, and feel taken advantage of. It will be difficult, or impossible, to win those once-loyal customers back.

You may be wondering if email appending is even worth it. Many companies have learned the hard way to stay away from them entirely, while others swear they are worthwhile. An opt-in list may be useful as one-time method to completing your database, but from then on it would be best to build and grow your list on your own.

While you are eager to get going on creating a website that will hopefully boost your visitors and email newsletter opt-in rate, below are some suggestions on how to improve your opt-in rates.

1. Offer something for free, such as special report, e-book, e-zine, etc. This entices the visitor to sign up-they are receiving something free, while you receive their email address for further communication. Putting a testimonial on your invite page will help to obtain the email sign ups.

2. Describe the “What’s-in-it-for-me”. Another way to obtain emails for your list is by using language that will capture the reader. Most people are just skimming through text when they read. Describing the benefits of signing up for your email newsletter will help to capture the visitor. People want to know what they will receive, not thinking how it will impact your business.

3. A little personalization goes a long way. You may want to consider asking the visitor for their first name, in addition to their primary email address. This will allow you to personalize the information you send out to them, which will make it seem less like spam and more like a benefit they are receiving. Be careful, however, not to ask for too much information on your email sign up form. The more information you ask for (beyond name and email address), the less likely visitors will be to sign up.

4. Make sign up as easy as possible. During the design phase, it is important to make the boxes and buttons to click on very clear, such as the sign up and submit buttons. If they are not obvious and a visitor has to hunt around for it, you will have potentially lost a client or customer. Also, if you have too many steps in the sign up process, you may lose these potential clients or customers. They are not usually going to back up or return to sign up for a newsletter after they have already left the site. Make it easy for them and you will receive their information.

5. Include your privacy policy. This will put most people at ease knowing that their information will not be sold or be given away to other companies who will send them spam emails.

By implementing these easy tips, your email sign up lists will increase substantially in addition to increasing the number of visitors to your site.

Whether you’re just starting to use email to market your business, or are considering expanding your email marketing efforts, here are some tips to help you determine how much you should be sending and how often.

How Much Email Is Too Much? How Will I Know?

While there no set rules about how much email to send, there are some guidelines that can be applied. There are also some key indicators from your customers and site’s visitors browsing and buying patterns you can glean. The real question you need to ask is, “how often would I want to be contacted if I was the customer/prospect”.

What Type of Message Are You Sending?

The types of email communication you are emailing will somewhat drive the frequency of email you are sending out. For example, it is perfectly acceptable to send out a newsletter once or twice per month to your regular customers and prospects. You certainly want to include anyone on the distribution list of your newsletter who has signed up for it, purchased something from you, or emailed you asking for more information.

If you are selling products and have updates on those products, that information is very valuable to people who have those products. Typically this type of communication is for customers only, not prospects; but you can give prospects the option to receive this type of communication as it may be useful to them. Product updates, service information, and recalls all fall under this category.

Company news and event announcements are a great way to communicate with your customer base and your prospects. While you don’t want to overdo this type of communication, every other month or quarterly is acceptable. Use this communication to highlight exciting happenings in your company, trade show invitations, or an invitation to an event you are hosting or participating in. Make the announcement informative and newsy, not just fluffy and sales-y.

Who Are You Sending the Email Message To?

One of the first rules we are taught in communicating, whether verbal or written, is to know your audience! For your existing customers you want your communications to add value and build your relationship with them. You don’t want to be a bother, but you want to let them know what’s happening with the product or service they buy from you as well as what’s going on with your company.

For prospects, you want to build your brand name and position yourself as their logical solution for purchasing the service or product you offer.

A Clear Sign You Are Sending Too Much Email

If you find that many people are not opening your emails or are opting out, your email frequency is probably too high. Rethink your communications strategy and review your distribution lists. Track your site usage reports and analytics and watch the browsing patterns.

If you find your sales are stagnant, you need to try a little more communication or perhaps some variation in the messaging and remember the key: KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE!

One of the most effective marketing methods ever used is email marketing. Anyone with an Internet connection has email, and that means that you can reach thousands of potential customers or clients who are already in the “likely” category when it comes to your products and services, due to targeting. Also, the cost of email marketing is relatively low when compared to other forms of marketing, both online and offline.

As is true of so many things on the Internet today, though, not all email marketing service providers are equal. In fact, some may not provide you with what you were hoping for at all.

With that in mind, here are some criteria to keep in mind when you are choosing an email marketing service provider.

* Is the provider aware of the laws regarding email marketing? Believe it or not, the Internet is not a totally unregulated Final Frontier. Problems with email campaigns in the past have meant that both the United States and the European Union have passed laws which specifically govern the use of email in marketing (namely, the CAN-SPAM Act ).

Most email marketing service providers have an understanding of these laws and have built their own policies to comply with them and with industry best practices in general; but it’s a good idea to ask the providers on your short list any specific questions you might have about their understanding of these laws and their handling of spam and opt-outs. If they don’t provide information on their website or if their representatives can’t answer your questions, walk away.

* Is the service provider aware of ISP policies? Not all rules regarding email marketing are enshrined at the government level, but some can get a business in just as much trouble. One example is the violation of Internet service provider (ISP) policies.

Email marketing service providers make it their business to be well-versed on the policies of each individual ISP so that you don’t have to. Again, make sure that the provider you are considering does not just say “yes, we follow the policies”, but can give you a detailed description of those policies and what they do to help you adhere to them as a marketer.

* How many opt-in campaigns has the company handled? Experience counts for a lot; it means the difference between a good campaign and your company being used as a guinea pig. Make sure that the ESP you choose has a good track record in handling email marketing campaigns for other successful businesses – and can show you the numbers to prove it.

* Is the website user friendly? You want to spend most of your time developing or selling your products, not working out the finer technical points of an email campaign. Make sure that the provider you choose supplies you with easy to use templates, where all you have to do is fill in the information you need for a successful opt-in campaign.

Conversely, you will want your ESP to be flexible if you want your forms tailored to your specific business.

* What kind of reporting is provided? When you deploy an email marketing campaign, you don’t want to just send it and forget it – you want to know how many were opened (open rate), how many clicks it got (click through rate), and what links were clicked, as well as how many people unsubscribed and how many emails bounced. These sorts of statistics will help you to further improve your campaigns, and you want to make sure the ESP provides you with this information.

* What is the cost? This is an extremely important factor, for obvious reasons; but you should price out several providers and weigh their costs against their features and your needs in particular. If you’re just starting out with email marketing, you may not need something with lots of features you don’t really need that will cost you more than you expect to make from your efforts. You’ll also find that most ESPs have tiered pricing, based on the number of email addresses you send to.

ESPs tend to offer free trials, so take full advantage of those so you can “try before you buy”.

Email marketing continues to prove to be very effective as a means of direct communication with your potential clients. Choosing the best email marketing service provider is critical to your business; not only will the results be measurable, but your business will stay legitimate in all aspects!

Here are the key points of the CAN-SPAM Act for bulk emailers to follow:

* No deceptive subject lines

* No false or misleading headers

* Must include a clear and conspicuous way to opt out/unsubscribe out of your email list

* Must include a valid physical postal address

Not complying can subject the spammer to stiff criminal penalties of three years in prison for a first offense and five years for a subsequent offense. For a more detailed rundown of the CAN-SPAM act, you can go to the Federal Trade Commissions website and learn more: http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/buspubs/canspam.shtm

When putting together an email campaign for your company, you should take the above CAN-SPAM points into consideration as well as other customer-comforting additions such as:

Don’t Share Customer Email Addresses – It’s bad business practice to sell or give a customer’s email address to a third party. Some companies are in the practice of selling emails to list companies or trading their own list with another company’s. It’s unfair to your customers and if they trace the source of their new flow of emails, they will undoubtedly never consider doing business with your company.

Confirm Every Subscription -The best way to ensure that only interested parties are receiving your emails is to have a double confirmation (or "double opt-in"). With this method, a company sends an email to new subscribers requiring them to click on a confirmation link, at which time the new email address is added to the list. Subscribers who do not confirm their email addresses are not added to the list and will not receive further communications from you.

Avoid the "Negative Opt-In" – This is when a company pre-checks a box that automatically has a person agreeing to receive emails in the future. A company’s opt-in subscription box should be clearly visible and un-checked, making sure that subscribing to your list is an intentional act.

Identify Yourself Clearly In Every Message – To be completely clear to your subscribers, your company name should appear in the both the sender and subject line of every email you send out.

For email campaigns, if your end goal is to eventually sell something to your subscribers, then it’s best to make them feel comfortable and trusting of your company. Take a look at how some large and reputable companies (like Microsoft, Apple or Amazon) structure their emails and learn from their techniques. There are billions of scam emails being sent out each and every day, it makes good business sense to distance yourself from these illegitimate con artists as much as possible. A proper email campaign should be beneficial to your customers and something they actually want to open and read.

Complying with the CAN-SPAM act is simple, but making your campaign really effective means going a few steps further and making your emails a win-win for both you and your subscribers.