Do you know who “Gap Give and Get Program” is? Were you aware that Gap, Inc. has a program called “Give and Get?” Did you realize that Gap, Banana Republic, Old Navy, and Piperlime are all Gap, Inc. brands?
If you answered “Yes” to any of these questions above, you are most likely in the minority. Congratulations. I must admit, of all the large corporations, Gap has probably done the best job of brand association in the offline world.
However, the problem is that email is different. As an email marketer, it’s important to remember that your readers spend mere seconds scanning their inbox. Keep it simple. Don’t add complexity. When I receive an email from Gap, I know what to expect. Same holds true for Old Navy or Banana Republic. Yet, when I open my inbox and see this (below), from “Gap Give and Get Program,” I am confused. Who is that? Is Gap Give and Get Program a new company?
I am not here today to reveal the answer, to share the perfect from name, or to preach best practices (for once). However, it is worth taking note as more and more marketers dabble into the world of co-branded from names. Here are a few recent examples from my inbox along with my commentary:
- Direct and Vocus - This was a message sent from Direct (not sure who that is) on behalf of Vocus (another unknown for me). It ended up in my deleted folder - never opened, never read, possibly “This is Spam” in the future.
- Magilla Marketing and Yesmail - In this case, I recognize both Magilla and Yesmail. I realize that this is a co-branded email, a promotional offer from Yesmail sent on behalf of Magilla. The preheader clearly states this. I opted-in to receive these types of emails, so all is good.
- Magilla Marketing and Bronto Software - Here’s an interesting one! A co-branded from name from Magilla and Bronto. Similar thoughts as #2 above.
I want to go on record as saying that I’m not sold on the co-branded from name. I realize that Bronto utilizes this approach. I think it works. It is the best option…for now. Like any other email marketing tactic, it’s all about testing. Test to see what works best for your organization, for your audience, for your particular situation. Don’t forget the answer to all email marketing questions - It Depends.
Please share what you think. Have you tested co-branded from names in the past? What did you uncover?
DJ Waldow
Director of Best Practices & Deliverability at Bronto
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{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
When sending a third-party email, I think cobranding is a quick way to alert the reader that although the email they just received is from a name they know and trust, the content is not the usual communication, adjusting their expectations before they open the email.
It can also serve as a seal of approval for someone else if the sending brand is a trusted one. For instance, if you are a trusted publication and you send out an email on behalf of or in conjunction with another party, the cobranding is telling the reader, we approve of this content (special offer, etc.) and are sharing it with you or we worked with this partner to deliver this special news to you.
What do you think of these related from line conventions?
From: Company A fbo Company B
or
From: Company A on behalf of Company B
I prefer the examples you give above with ‘Company A and Company B’ and will test that vs. the “fbo/on behalf of” versions in my next 3rd party email.
DJ, good post, but I think there is a major difference between co-branding between Gap and their other Gap-owned companies and the list rental that Bronto and YesMail did with Magilla.
Co-branding, in my opinion is less of me peddling my services to someone else’s lists and more of a joint venture for the benefit of the subscribers and both brands. There is no exchange of money between the parties, but a partnership.
List rental is the opposite. “I have a service I want to peddle and you have a list of people that I think might be interested so I am going to pay you to send out my marketing materials aka legally spam people.” I am curious to get your take on list rental DJ.
Elizabeth (@evilla): I understand where you are coming from. A co-branded from name can set/align expectations for the reader, but … it can also be confusing if not executed “properly.” I still believe that the Gap example is where it breaks down. I’d love to hear how your testing turns out. Can you add one more to your test? How about simply using your company name (aka, not using “and” or “fbo” or “on behalf of.” I bet you see better results with just the company name.
Jeff: I agree that co-branding and list rental can be (are?) different animals. However, the co-branded from name is still relevant. What is the best way to “alert” your subscribers that they are about to open a third party (advert) email? The more I noodle on this, I think that from names should almost always just be the sending company. For example, why would the email come from Magilla Marketing AND Yesmail/Bronto? Why not just Magilla Marketing. That is the name of the sender, right?
Again, I’m not sold on a co-branded from name. Nobody quite has this figured out yet, but we are getting there.
dj
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DJ Waldow
Director of Best Practices & Deliverability at Bronto
@djwaldow
DJ good post on the limitations and confusion around co-branded emails.
One thing I notice is that your three examples seem to all be from the same company (Direct aka Penton Media, parent brand of Magilla Marketing). So your email is making it’s rounds on the content rental side - proper expectations set from vendor (?) maybe maybe not.. Maybe a separate post about Recency and Frequency for targeted addresses when renting ad space to a 3rd party.
Matt
@emailkarma
@emailkarma (errr…Matt):
Great point about the 3 examples being the same. It was my error. I didn’t realize that DIRECT and Magilla Marketing are both Penton Media. But, that brings up another interesting point. Maybe Penton is not doing a great job of branding, right? Shouldn’t I know that they are all the same company? I’ve been receiving emails from DIRECT for some time now … and never knew.
dj
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DJ Waldow
Director of Best Practices & Deliverability at Bronto