Bronto Blog

I was recently told that I’ve been on a “car kick” these past few weeks. It all started with my EEC post on June 13th, “Enterprise: Great Intent, Poor Execution” where I discussed how Enterprise sent me a confirmation email (good) but then continued to send me emails even though I didn’t confirm (bad).

Today’s post will continue down the automobile comparison road as it relates to the taboo subject of…list rental.

At this summer’s Email Insider Summit, I sat at a breakout session where marketers were debating 3rd party list rental. Suffice to say, the discussion got quite heated. Seems like you are either on one side of the fence or the other…not much room in the middle. If you’re in good company, list rental is just as dangerous a topic as religion or politics (”the things we don’t talk about”). Later that evening, I sat at dinner between a friend of mine from another ESP and a gentleman whose company provides email appends and list rentals. Emotions flew back and forth for over 30 minutes.

Why is the topic of list rental so controversial? But first…

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A fellow Bronto recently IM’d me a fantastic article from Slate author, Michael Agger. How we read online is a sagacious, witty piece outlining how:

We.

Read.

Online.

(Once you read his article, the 3 “paragraphs” above will make more sense)

Mr. Agger talks about reading online (aka, the Internet, World Wide Web). Much of what Agger writes is relevant not just to “online” but also to email marketing. Specifically, he recommends:

1. A short paragraph at the top of the page…surrounded by white space…in small type
2. Bulleted lists
3. Occasional use of bold to prevent skimming
4. Short sentence fragments
5. Explanatory subheads

Simple, yet brilliant.

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Don’t underestimate the power of welcoming new subscribers to your email marketing efforts with a very clean, clear and convincing Welcome Message.

Can’t view the video? Try viewing it on YouTube.

In this month’s BrontoFire, DJ and I analyze welcome emails from the following big-name online retailers: NewEgg, Sierra Trading Post, Coach and John Deere. This simple yet very compelling message facilitates an immediate relationship with your consumers. Subscribers like to be recognized, thanked and embraced by a brand.

View our lively discussion on Welcome Messages today.

Next month, we’ll highlight online retailers implementing Preheaders.

Kimberly Snyder and DJ Waldow
Account Managers at Bronto

In our quest to achieve business objectives and to increase ROI, we often lose sight of the customer experience. We’re caught over-sending, using personalization incorrectly, not utilizing segmentation, or not effectively tracking customer behavior. All of these things add to a poor customer experience. We’ve devalued how important the role of customer experience should be in email marketing.

Here are just a few examples of low hanging fruit that can improve the customer experience.

• Over-sending to your customer. Did your customer set preferences for frequency? If not, have you considered offering your subscriber that option? It’s key to allow your customers to tell you how often they are going to receive your marketing. If you have set frequency expectations, don’t abuse them. Respect your customer’s inbox, by doing so you will have a positive return.
• Personalization used incorrectly. A colleague recently received an email that addressed her with her last name only. It seems the sender didn’t verify that the personalization they were using in fact targeted the first name. It may seem small, but to the recipient, it’s the first tell-tale sign that your message isn’t going to be relevant to them.

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“Email Blast” - the one phrase in email marketing that raises the hair on my arms. I equate it to the internet version of a space shuttle launch. I guess email is sent into space (kinda), but the terminology still does not fit.

I spend the majority of my day working with clients discussing email marketing best practices, innovation, and strategy. During this time I hear and see the term “email blast” more than I care to admit.

Below are snippets of actual client emails I’ve received:

• “We’ve been doing email blasts for 10 years and…”
• “…compare individual blasts to other blasts…”
• “…sending direct mail and email blasts to customers…”

And client phone conversations I’ve had:

• “I just sent out today’s email blast…”
• “Hey DJ, can we review the blast results? Read the rest of this entry »