Statistics show that approximately 10% of email recipients will check their email on a mobile device. Not too big a splash, right? Should you be worried about the experience those 10% have if it means completely rethinking your approach to email design? Before you write off this segment of viewers, let’s take a closer look at that 10% statistic. Your target audience most likely checks their inbox at multiple locations including their desktop and mobile phone, meaning that of your total audience, the percentage checking email using a mobile device at least some of the time may be closer to 40%. That’s a number that should cause you to pause and consider.

Achieving Mobile Friendly Design

If 40% of your subscribers check at least some of their emails on a mobile device, then it makes sense to give them an easy and readable experience. That used to mean creating a separate mobile version or trying to deal with inadequate HTML displays. But these days, most smartphones can display HTML coding without issues.  People without good HTML rendering capabilities generally only check urgent emails on their phones, saving other correspondence for the desktop.

Reading and Clicking

So then, what should take top priority when designing an email with mobile users in mind? The short answer: screen size and touch capabilities. Because your emails must display on small phone screens, you’ll need to increase the size of both your fonts and your clickable buttons. The goal should be for users to read every element of your email without increasing the overall size, thereby hiding certain elements from view.

Touch capabilities should also play a role in your design strategy. As more and more people click with their fingers instead of with a mouse, you’ll need to allow more room between clickable elements to accommodate clumsy digits. Small changes like these won’t greatly impact the design of your email as it appears on a desktop, but it will vastly improve the experience your mobile audience has.

With the custom email design capabilities of eConnect Email, you can create your own custom email templates that will display beautifully no matter how your audience receives them. Our experienced design team can help create mobile-friendly email campaigns and can also help you gauge their effectiveness using our detailed reporting functionality. No matter where email takes you in the future, eConnect Email will keep your campaigns running efficiently in order to deliver stellar results, every time… guaranteed!

Think about the marketing emails you receive in your in-box each day. How do you decide which ones are worth the time to read and which ones go in the trash? If you’re like most people, you probably look for messages that do one of three things:

1) offer you a great deal
2) tell you something useful
3) entertain you

The people who subscribe to your email list are no different. Let’s take a look at four ways to create a newsletter your customers will want to read.

Have a Recipient in Mind

Who receives your emails? Chances are you know someone who fits the demographics of your target audience. Maybe it’s women in the workforce like your sister, men who play golf like your dad, or parents of young children like your best friend. Try to have a face in mind as you’re writing your newsletter and ask yourself what they would enjoy reading. What deals make them look twice, what tips will catch their interest, and what will make them laugh? Leverage user demographics to help you create a concrete picture of who you’re sending your messages to.

Be Relevant

Once you know who your audience is, choose topics that are relevant to them. What will make them sit up and take notice? Because your email list consists of people who have opted to receive more information from you, you know that they’re loyal customers, so treat them that way. Notify them first about specials and sales, offer them exclusive coupons and let them know they’re important to you. In addition, include information that will be useful to them right now, such as seasonal tips and ideas.

Be Personal

Instead of treating your newsletter as just another article, be a little less formal and let your personality shine through. Win the trust of your recipients by helping them relate to you or making them smile and then give them something they can take with them like an idea or a special coupon. Also, if you’re an eConnect Email client make use of the dynamic content feature to further personalize your campaigns based on demographics.

Keep it Short

No one has time to read dozens of thousand-word newsletters every day. Say what you need to say as concisely as possible and your audience will be more likely to stick with you.

eConnect Email is here to help you as you develop your personal email newsletter style. Our email creation and testing tools will help you professionally craft each email campaign you send. Using our email templates, campaign wizards, inbox preview, and dynamic content tools, you can communicate your ideas clearly and concisely, keeping your readers engaged and wanting more…

You’d never begin a project that you knew was going to fail, would you? Yet every day, email marketers doom their email campaigns to failure simply by not taking the time to learn about and avoid common mistakes. When you build safeguards against the most commonly made email marketing mistakes, you can ensure that the highest possible percentage of your emails are received, read, and acted upon by your target audience. Let’s take a look at the top four mistakes email marketers make.

Failing to Plan

Do you know who you’re sending to? Have you decided what you want to accomplish? Have you developed a procedure for how to accomplish your campaign goals? The answers to these questions will be the basis for your email marketing strategy. Without a cohesive strategy in place, your messages will fail to keep your target market engaged.

Purchasing a List

Not only is it unethical to send marketing messages to people who have not requested to hear from you, but it can also land both you and your email marketing service provider on a blacklist. Purchased lists also have high bounce rates due to invalid addresses, and any messages that do get through often go straight to the spam folder. In the end, not only have you violated the trust of the recipient, but you’ve gained little to show for it.

Taking Permission for Granted

Even if someone gave you their email address when they made a purchase, that doesn’t mean they want to receive your daily, weekly or monthly email offers. Keep your transactional email list (emails used to send receipts and order confirmations) separate from your marketing list. Marketing lists should be built using double opt-in procedures and should be carefully maintained to ensure unsubscribe requests have been honored immediately. I would recommend using an email service provider (ESP) like eConnect Email that has built in list cleansing tools that automatically handle hard bounces and unsubscribes requests.

Acting Like Spam

If you think that using capital letters and exclamation points will help people notice your email, think again. All they’re likely to earn you is a trip to the spam folder. In general, avoid hyping up your subject lines and content, and instead focus on providing useful, genuine information to your readers.

Avoid these four common mistakes make by email marketers and you’ll be well on your way to creating a successful email marketing campaign. As you work toward developing a plan and keeping it on track know that if you have any questions we’re always here to help.

Ever wonder when the best time is to send your emails to your subscribers? Our March Newsletter will give you some incite on time and other practical tips to getting your emails opened and read. With Spring just around the corner there are so many good reasons to send out great emails!

As always, let us know if you have any questions or suggestions, we are always happy to hear them!

For This Month’s Email Marketing Tips & Tricks – CLICK HERE

It’s happened to all of us. You hit an “I Agree” or “Subscribe” or “Buy” button without reading the fine print, only to discover that you’ve inadvertently signed up for a monthly newsletter, weekly promotional flyer, and daily deal alerts, all without intending to. When the first email arrives, you franticly click the unsubscribe button only to be told that your request may take up to a week for processing and that in the meantime you will continue to receive daily emails until your request is processed.

While you can hope that these experiences don’t happen to you on a regular basis, they should spur you to think about your own email marketing practices. With a little effort, you can create an experience that lets your subscribers know you care about their preferences by giving them the right to choose.

• Automate Your Unsubscribe Feature

When a customer wants to unsubscribe, let him. You’re not going to win any brownie points by making him wait 7-10 days or by trying to convince him at the last minute to stay. Instead, these tactics will encourage him to report you as spam. eConnect Email automatically handles unsubscribe requests (immediately) and we also provide you with a suppression feature so that you can prevent emails addresses/ domains from subscribing to your mailing list.

• Let Customers Make Their Own Decisions

When you give a customer the option of signing up for your various newsletters, resist the urge to pre-select options for them. Allowing customers to choose the contact options themselves will reduce the number of people who sign up accidentally and then become frustrated when they receive unexpected emails.

• Offer Detail Modification Options

Can your customers modify their contact details and subscription preferences easily? A customer should be able to update his email address or unsubscribe from one newsletter while continuing to receive others. With eConnect Email you can give your subscribers the ability to manage their contact information and subscription options through the preference center. Giving customers the opportunity to choose will make them more likely to remain on the lists they want rather than unsubscribing altogether.

Giving your customers the opportunity to choose their preferences and to say good-bye if they so choose will leave a positive impression in their minds about your company. Even if a subscriber opts out of your list, he’ll be more likely to buy from you later if you haven’t irritated him with your list management practices. By taking advantage of the easy list management options available through eConnect Email, you can create a positive experience for your customers.

Ever wondered how email messages get flagged as spam? For every email campaign you create, there is a possibility that up to 20% of the emails you send will wind up flagged as spam. The responsibility can be shared by indiscriminate spam filters and poorly constructed newsletters, but the bottom line for businesses is determining what factors will doom your email campaign to the spam folder and how you can prevent it from happening.

Even legitimately requested confirmation emails can be tagged as spam if they make these mistakes:

1.     Include too many references to typical spam topics.

Spammers love to entice readers with free stuff, making lots of money, mortgage pitches, urgent information and money back guarantees. When a spam filter detects this wording in an email, it assigns point values for each reference. If you must refer to these topics, use them sparingly in order to stay under the “This is spam” limit.

2.     Incorporate spammy wording or formatting.

Phrases such as “free gift,” “once in a lifetime,” or “click here” all receive spam points, especially when written in all caps or accompanied by lots of exclamation points. Test your email for effectiveness using eConnect Email’s inbox previews tools to evaluate each message for spammy red flags.

3.     Fail to use recipient’s full name.

Most mail servers will give you a free pass out of the spam folder if you have been added to the user’s address book, if they have emailed you, or if you use their full name in your email. By requiring recipients to provide both first and last names when they sign up for your newsletter, you can ensure that your messages reach their inbox.

4.     Purchase an email list.

This is the cardinal sin of email marketing. Not only is it unethical business practice, but it will also result in lots of bounces and spam complaints. Instead, collect your emails using double opt-in procedures to ensure that the majority of your customers will be expecting your newsletter. At eConnect Email, we take your email list seriously, and we’ve provided a variety of tools that will keep it up to date and targeted, including custom fields and demographics, individual contact histories, suppression lists, and effective list cleansing.

5.     Fail to include an unsubscribe link

The CAN-SPAM Act of 2003 requires businesses to include a working unsubscribe link in every email. The link also benefits you by helping target your email list toward those customers most likely to read and remember your messages.

Takeaway

Spam filters hold the power of life and death for your email marketing campaign, but you can stay on their good side by acting upon the five suggestions above when putting together your next email campaign.

As we put the holidays behind us and face a new year, most businesses have decisions to make about their email marketing campaigns. Heavy advertising and shopping seasons mean email list expansion, and now that you have all those new subscribers eagerly awaiting your newsletter, the question of how to keep those subscribers happy must take top priority. List growth usually means a corresponding growth in your bounce rate and a drop in your open and click through rates, especially if you keep operating the same old way you always have. But by doing a little tweaking, you can ensure that your new subscribers remain just as happy as your original ones have been.

• Reduce Volume

Your original subscribers may have been thrilled to receive a daily or weekly email from you, but those who signed up on a holiday whim might not be so excited to have their inboxes full of your promotional emails. As your list grows, the number of people who can be considered casual readers grows as well, meaning that you’ll need to change your sending strategy in order to keep them interested. Consider reducing your volume to bi-monthly or even once a month in order to keep from overwhelming your subscribers. Or, use eConnect Email’s list segmentation feature to choose which subscribers want daily emails and which ones would prefer less frequent emails.

• Monitor Bounces

Large email lists inevitably include bounces, but a high bounce rate eats up valuable time and space and can cause headaches for you and your team. eConnect Email helps you keep your lists clean by monitoring and immediately handling hard bounces and unsubscribes. At the end of the day our goal is to ensure successful deliverability of your email.

• Optimize Subject Lines

If your unsubscribe rate is high and your open rate is low, the problem could be a subject line that fails to connect with readers. Subject lines should look enticing without appearing spammy. Avoid using multiple exclamation points or subject lines that don’t tell the reader what the email contains. Opt instead for short, concise wording that offers something of value to the reader.

• Optimize Content

Take a hard look at the content of the emails you send and ask whether they look appealing and make sure your emails contain information your subscriber will want. If you’re sending daily emails full of fluff, your readers will quickly become frustrated. Take advantage of the email creation tools offered by eConnect Email to test templates, images, and design before you send.  How about trying a A/B Split Test to see what engages your subscribers?

A new year means new opportunities for growing your business through email marketing. Use the above suggestions to ensure you’re connecting and keeping your subscribers engaged.  Do you have a question or suggestion, let us hear you thoughts!

We’re constantly asked by our clients “what’s the best time to send my email campaign”. Our friends from across the pond, Pure360 have identified patterns in consumers’ responses and below you will find an infographic depicting their findings and recommendations.

Choosing the right day/ time to send your email campaigns can have a huge effect on the overall results.  This being said, we recently published a blog article on this exact topic.  To read our recommendation on the best time to send your email campaign click here.

Is your email marketing program in need of a redesign? If you haven’t evaluated your marketing practices since last year, then it’s time to ask some pertinent questions about your marketing objectives and strategy. Consider these best practices and start your new year off on the right foot.

1.     Craft Your Welcome Letter as a Marketing Email

Don’t settle for a run-of-the-mill boring welcome letter. Instead, use it as an opportunity to start building a solid relationship with your subscribers.  Invite your subscribers to connect with you via social media and include links to additional content about your products/ services. Need help?  We’d be happy to give you some pointers or help you craft and design an effective welcome email.

2.     Use Emails to Follow Up on Cart Abandonment

Cart abandonment rates are astonishingly high, but you can draw some of that lost business back by using emails to follow-up with customers who bailed out before buying. Remind them of their selections and use the email to cross-sell or up-sell. You can also give them the opportunity to leave feedback or offer an incentive for them to come back and complete the purchase.

3.     Use Split Tests to Achieve Higher Open and Click Rates

If you don’t test various options, then you’re essentially guessing what will entice readers.  Split Testing allows you to choose the most effective subject line, call to action, images, and copy for every email campaign.

4.     Give your Subscribers Options

Give your readers the chance to unsubscribe, modify details, or change email preferences without jumping through hoops. Making this process easy leaves a sweet taste in their mouth even if they choose not to remain on your mailing list.  With eConnect Email’s list management options, you can stay on top of subscriber information and make sure your emails reach their intended destinations.

5.     Integrate Social Media with Your Email Campaign

With the rise of social media you’ll want to make sure you adapt your email campaign to the new landscape. You can increase your overall reach by giving your subscribers the opportunity to share your campaign on the various social networking websites (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.).

As you rethink your email marketing initiative, take advantage of the tools and solutions available with eConnect Email in order to further engage and interact with your subscribers.  If you have any questions or there is ever anything we can do to help you out let us know!

The explosion of social media and mobile devices has proved to be a game-changer for email marketing. While email marketing is alive and thriving, strategies must change to capitalize on consumer behavior in order for companies to leverage their email marketing campaigns most effectively.  As we look back over 2010, we can note the shifts in online behavior and use those to project the coming trends for email marketing in 2011.

1. Consumers want real-time value.

The ability to post instant updates, tweets, and comments have trained consumers to expect those things from marketing campaigns as well.  You can begin incorporating real-time value into your email marketing by tracking customer behavior on social networks and using that data to create automated campaigns that deliver relevant messages based on triggers and auto-responders created with eConnect Email.

2. Mobile versions increase in popularity.

Some experts predict that 2011 will see mobile device sales outperforming PC sales for the first time in history.  Because people check email on mobile devices more frequently than ever before, you’ll need to make sure your email templates/ campaigns are designed to accommodate these users.  Curious how your email campaign will display within a specific email system or mobile devices?  We’ve got you covered, check out Inbox & Mobile Previews, a premium feature available within eConnect Email.

3.     Social media takes center stage.

2010 was the year social media came into its own, and 2011 will be the year that it takes center stage in a wide variety of marketing efforts, including email marketing. You can incorporate you social media efforts into your email marketing campaign by including links to Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites within your email campaigns. You can also include eConnect Email’s built in social sharing tools which will allow your subscribers to share your email campaigns via Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google Buzz (talk about expanding your reach).  Now also available is a feature that allows you to integrate a Facebook “Like” option into your email campaign, the whole process takes less than 10 seconds!

4.     Social media gives back.

Not only can you use email to help promote your social media efforts, but you can also begin using social media to increase email opt-ins. By placing opt-in opportunities on your Facebook fanpage and in your Twitter posts, you can increase the number of overall subscribers.

5.     Dynamic content becomes the norm.

As people share their opinions and product review information, they’ll become more likely to expect businesses to incorporate this data into their marketing campaigns. Using eConnect Email’s Dynamic Content tools will allow you to create a one-to-one email marketing experience which will keep your subscribers engaged!

As email marketing sets sail in 2011, businesses will need to embrace social media and look for tools that will enhance and engage your subscribers like never before.  eConnect Email can help you stay on course by giving you the tools you need to meet and exceed user expectations every time.