Bronto Blog

Update 11/19 - The latest edition of BrontoFire was recorded live!

Chad White’s AM Inbox is a popular blog post on RetailEmail.Blogspot via the email experience council (EEC). Chad provides a daily scan of online retail subject lines under his “Subjectivity Scanner.” DJ and I decided to take Chad’s scanner a step further this week by adding a point counter point discussion around some of the highlighted subject lines.

Imagine Crossfire…Bronto style: DJ and I hunkered down in front of our laptops expounding on the strengths and weaknesses of each subject line. We were quickly immersed in a sparring dialogue, each Account Manager representing an opposite viewpoint. Here is a sample of the subject lines we scrutinized:

Harry & David, 10/23 — Scared? Don’t worry – there’s still time for Halloween gifts! Save 10% now!

DJ: “It asks a timely question for the season and answers the question – I like that it is different.”

Kimberly: “I don’t care for all the punctuation (someone likes their exclamation points). It is simply too long. The subject line was most likely truncated.”

KB Toys, 10/23 — Save on Halloween, Arts ‘N Crafts, and More

DJ: “It is timely, short and to the point and leaves something to the imagination”

Kimberly: “I would never know from this subject line that this company sold fun toys for kids. This subject line should scream fun by highlighting some seasonal toys.”

L.L. Bean, 10/23 — Free Shipping + “Wicked Good” Comfort

DJ: “Grabs my attention with a play on words for Halloween.”

Kimberly: “Would my father get this? Where is the comfort in the clothing, furniture? Hmmm I’m not sure my Dad would have even opened this message even though he has bought from L.L. Bean since I was a child.”

Victoria’s Secret, 10/23 — Swim 2008 Preview! Plus, Save Up to $150 Online.

DJ: “It works for me. I don’t need a discount or an offer, I just need to see the words ‘Swim Preview’ and I’m there.”

Kimberly: “As a female I wish it drew me in by bringing me to the beach, making me think summer in fall. They should customize the subject line based on gender.”

Throughout this showdown we laughed and we disagreed. However, in the end we both clearly agreed on one point - there is always room for improvement. Next time you’re deciding a subject line, try out this simple exercise with you and a coworker. It’s a fun exercise that helps you see a different viewpoint before deciding on that perfect subject line.

DJ Waldow and Kimberly Snyder
Account Managers at Bronto

You’ve probably heard that all of the cool kids: Windows Live (Hotmail), AIM Mail (AOL), Yahoo! Mail (Yahoo!), and Gmail are turning off images by default. To avoid a costly detour by this potential roadblock you could include the old standby “If you are having trouble viewing..” message in your emails.

However, does this messaging really help your bottom line? As a consumer, I bet you don’t even see those words anymore. You’ve subconsciously trained yourself to read right over it at the speed of light. Some phrases - like the ones in my Gmail inbox…

…have become so overused that eventually, they go overlooked and “unread,” wasting valuable email real estate.

I see the words: problems, trouble, online, web version, click here, viewing, and email being used too often in ineffective ways, such as:

1. If you are having trouble viewing this email, view it online.
2. Problems viewing this email? Click here to view a web version.
3. If you are having trouble viewing this email, click here.
4. Problems viewing this email? Click Here.

If you think you’re a culprit, instead of restating the obvious, I challenge the you to be like Apple of the late 1990’s and “Think Different.” What would happen if you put a “call-to-action” as your first line in addition to the online version (gasp). Dare to be different…add some spice!

For example…

1. View our entire collection now or the simply check out the online version
2. What are you waiting for? View all offers now.
3. Short on time? Go straight to the source.

As we always stress at Bronto: Test, Test, and then Test again. You may be surprised at the results.

Just beware, after making this change your next problem maybe your subscribers are too busy buying a featured product than reading your message! Not a bad problem to have…

DJ Waldow
Account Manager at Bronto

We asked, and you answered. From analytics to personalization, visitors participating in our Email Marketing Evaluation answered our most challenging questions when it came to the success and performance of their email marketing.

So what have we learned about our respondents? Here’s a recap:

• Metrics: 86% of respondents analyze multiple metrics for each campaign. Great News! Trending acquisition rate, click and open rates, deliverability, and complaint ratio ensures that you can easily measure how well your campaigns are or not performing, allowing for seamless optimization.
• Automation: Email marketers are quickly learning the importance of automation. 63% of our respondents are using some form of automation. Whether it’s basic event triggered campaigns or multiple automated and triggered emails, email marketers are learning the importance of using automation to make their campaigns more manageable as well as increase their ROI.
• More Than Acquisition: Email marketing uses are expanding. 75% of those who completed the evaluation are using email marketing for more than acquisition. They are also expanding their email marketing mix for branding, lead nurture, and customer retention.
• Data Collection: 38% of respondents aren’t collecting customer data at different points in the life cycle. Remember: the more customer data you have, the more dynamic the message can be. Try collecting purchase history, demographics, and email/web site behavior to give your customer a more customized and relevant experience.
• Personalization: Take your personalization to the next level. 63% of respondents are only using general personalization in their email. Including your customer’s name in the subject line or message no longer captures their attention. It’s important to do more for your audience to reinforce that you are actually paying attention to their individual needs. Try creating a unique message for your customers based on their preferences and variables.
• Testing: What testing? Respondents aren’t realizing the importance of testing their email marketing campaigns once active. Don’t just let your campaign die a long death, constantly refresh and test your subject lines, content, imagery, landing experiences, offers, and call to actions. By continually testing what works for your customers, you will return significant results.

Want to see how your campaigns are performing, and where there may be room for improvement?

Take our quiz today!

Sally Lowery
Online Marketing Manager at Bronto

On October 30th at 2pm EST, we will feature Trek Bicycles as part of our Customer Success Series. It’s no surprise that Trek is a high flying or should we say high riding customer, given that their practices were showcased recently in the Bronto blog and also in Marketing Sherpa.

During the webcast, Trek’s B2C e-commerce manager, Casey Kohner, will talk about their email marketing challenges, solutions, and results. Learn how Trek integrated Bronto in their marketing mix of the product release of the Madone bike, which became one of the most successful product launches in Trek’s 31 yr. history. Among many successes, Trek has been able to achieve a 70% open rate, a 99.7% delivery rate, and a 50% open to click rate. If you haven’t achieved these numbers yet, this webcast is for you!

To view the webcast success story or listen to the webcast podcast: http://bronto.com/success

Seems like Bronto wasn’t the only one blogging about Welcome Messages - Bronto Blog from August 20th, 2007.

Check out what our friends over at DM News wrote in their post, “Welcome e-mails gain popularity for retailers.”

Additionally, let this serve as the call to all Bronto clients: Please submit your examples of your experience with Welcome Messages. The good, the bad, the so-so. Bring ‘em all.

DJ Waldow
Account Manager at Bronto