View
1.722
Download
2
Tags:
Embed Size (px)
DESCRIPTION
Citation preview
10/1/2013
1
State of the State of Email Marketing
Karen TalaveraPresident, Synchronicity Marketing
Karen Talavera, President of Synchronicity MarketingProviding enlightened email marketing coaching, training and consulting since 2003
• Who is Karen?Nationally‐recognized email marketing expert, educator, writer, speaker and thought‐leader
• DMA Email Marketing lead training instructor since 1999• Member Email Experience Council, Only Influencers• Top 100 Women in Ecommerce 2012 (WE magazine)• Yoga teacher, writer, international traveler living in south Florida
2
About Your Speaker
10/1/2013
2
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.
Source: SmarterTools presentation give at Hosting Con 2011
3
Scale of Online Marketing Communication Channels
• Worldwide, there are about 2 billion people online with a total of 3.4 billion email accounts– On average 75% are consumer accounts, 25% corporate
Source: The Radicati Group Email Statistics Report, 2012‐2016
Global Email Channel Size
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.4
10/1/2013
3
Email’s Global Penetration Rate• The 3.4 Billion worldwide email accounts represent more than 60%
of the population of the “more developed” countries as defined by the UN– 35.8% use the English language
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.5
Source:: Litmus
Email Marketing Is THRIVING
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.6
10/1/2013
4
US Internet Population Almost At Saturation Point
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.7
Fast Facts: Email in the US• About 79% of the Adult US population – or 189 million Americans ‐ are
online in the US (this is 95% of US adult internet users) (eMarketer)
• 83% of people online say email is their primary reason for using the Internet (Price Waterhouse Coopers)
• 61% of adults send and receive email daily (Pew Research Center Internet and American Life Project)
• 65% of Internet users age 15 and older made a purchase in response to receiving an email marketing message (Exact Target)
• About two‐thirds of emails sent by companies to consumers are promotional; the remainder are transactional or administrative in nature (DMA)
• The annual US commercial email volume is expected to double between 2010 and 2013 from 420 to 840 billion messages/year (Forrester Research)
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.8
10/1/2013
5
Increasingly Mobile
• 60% of all email is now opened initially on a mobile device (Litmus)
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.9
• Top channel for promotional/marketing messages sent from companies granted permission
Source: ExactTarget 2012 Channel Preferences Survey February 2012
10
Consumers Prefer It For Marketing
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.10
10/1/2013
6
Email Has High Trust Factor• Compared to other both mass and targeted marketing
channels, email ranks higher in trust
Source: North American Technographics Interactive Marketing Online Benchmark Survey 2010 – US Online Adults
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.11
Yet Subscribers Demand Relevancy• Marketers need to do a
better job on frequency, segmentation, and relationship building
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.12
10/1/2013
7
Relevancy Defined• What exactly is relevancy anyway?
“The intersection of content and context that is metered by frequency”‐ David Daniels, CEO of The Relevancy Group
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.13
• Although email is growing as preferred, trusted channel for promotional/marketing communication, it islosing ground to text and social media for personal communication
Source: ExactTarget 2012 Channel Preferences Survey February 2012
Communication Preferences AreEvolving
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.14
10/1/2013
8
• 66% of consumers have made at least one purchase as the result of an email marketing message
Source: ExactTarget 2012 Channel Preferences Survey February 2012
Do They Buy From Email? Of Course!
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.15
Economic Impact is HUGE• Email Marketing generated
$63.1 Billion in 2011 sales compared to $57.8 Billion in 2010– Social Media‐driven 2011 sales:
$31.9 Billion– Total Internet Marketing‐driven
sales 2011: $576 Billion• Email‐driven sales expected to
exceed or at least match social media‐driven sales through 2016– Both will grow at expense of
offline DM (Source: DMA)
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.16
10/1/2013
9
• For every dollar spent on email marketing in 2012 marketers achieved $28.50 in return
• Email's ROI index is 70 percent higher than any other direct‐response marketing channel
DMA
• Email generates 1% to 2.5% of sales for 18.7% of all retailers in the survey
• 11.1% of online merchants count on email messages and campaigns to drive more than 25% of total sales
Internet Retailer
Highest ROI Of All Direct Channels
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.17
• According to the DMA’s annual Response Rate study for 2012, the average purchase value from email is double that of direct mail:
Most Cost‐Effective Of All Direct Response Channels
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.18
10/1/2013
10
Marketers Rate Highly Effective For a Variety of Objectives
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.19
• Email is crushing social media when it comes to new customer acquisition and is second only to organic search– In last four years online
retailers have quadrupled the rate of customers acquired through email
Source: Custora E‐Commerce Customer Acquisition Snapshot June 25, 2013
Email Also a Top‐Performing Channel for Acquisition
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.20
10/1/2013
11
• The recession slashed marketing budgets and motivated more businesses than ever before to move dollars online due to low cost of entry
• Majority of Small Businesses rely heavily on email and social media as low‐cost ways to promote themselves
• 25% of small businesses using social media marketing; 60% using email
Channel Use Flourishing Due to Cost‐Effectiveness
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.21
Email Budgets Continue to Rise• StrongMail survey found two‐thirds of companies plan to
increase spending on email marketing, more than any other online channel
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.22
10/1/2013
12
Email Budget Distribution
• Almost one third of email marketing budgets are allocated to Email Service Providers (ESPs)
• Most email marketers outsource to an ESP vs. use a home‐grown software or delivery service
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.23
With Rapid Growth Comes Volatility
• Despite rapid increases in the total number of email addresses, email address turnover has remained constant at about 30%
– Every year about 25% of all email addresses become undeliverable due to subscriber address changes
– The average organization’s email list experiences 60% growth in combination with 25% attrition (mostly from unsubscribes) per year, for a net growth rate of 35% per year
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.24
10/1/2013
13
Integrating With Other Channels
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.25
Email Is Not Without Challenges• According to the
2012 EEC Email in Action Report, competing for online time/attention and resource constraints top the list of email challenges
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.26
10/1/2013
14
But Is Continually Evolving• Ongoing innovations and recent changes in both consumer use
and email technology create challenges AND opportunities
• Video• Dynamic Content
• Mobile and “mobile triage”
• Foldering• Shrinking time and attention span
• Send‐time• Behavior‐driven algorithms
• Predictive modeling
• Greater Anti‐spam measures
• Structured inboxes (Gmail tabs)
• Growing volume
Inbox Landscape
Response Optimization
Tools
Creative Innovations
Access Devices & Habits
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.27
How We Got Here
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.28
10/1/2013
15
Why Permission?
• Permission=Recognition=Trust=Engagement
• The email box is perceived as personal space ‐ intrude uninvited, and you may not be welcomed back
• Cost of receiving email is borne by both sender and recipient
• Spam has created suspicion, caused measurable harm, and made consumers defensive
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.29
Why Permission Is So Confusing
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.30
10/1/2013
16
Consumers Value Consent and Relationships
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.31
Permission email marketing is an advertising medium which facilitates interaction between organizations and
individuals who have given their permission
to receive promotional messages and other information via email
Organizations (Senders)
Email Address Owners
(Recipients)
Permission Email Defined
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.32
10/1/2013
17
Permission
CONSENT A person consciously
agrees to receive email CHOICE
Subscribers choose
frequency, content and
format preferences
CLARITYThe sign‐up
process is easy and non‐deceptive
CONFIRMATIONThe sign‐up process is
acknowledged and verified
CONTROLThe subscriber may adjust or stop the flow of email at any time
CANDORThe sender of
each communication is
clearly and honestly identified
The Six C’s of Permission
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.33
Degrees of Permission2x
Opt-In
Confirmed Opt-In
Pre-Checked Opt-In
Opt-Out
Spam
Constitute 100% opt‐in, self‐initiated action and affirmative consent
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.34
10/1/2013
18
What is Opt‐Out?• Also known as “negative option”
• At the lower end of the permission scale
• Requires no action before being added to a list• Opt‐out requires recipient to take an action if they don’t want to
receive email rather than requiring an action if they do
• Status quo for offline marketing, but online is different • the cost of postal mail is paid by the sender, but the cost of email is
shared by sender and recipient
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.35
A Step Up: Pre‐Checked Opt‐In
• Subscriber joins through a pre‐checked box or pre‐determined condition of registration/membership– May or may not realize he is being added to a marketing list– Be conscious of “division of permission”
• Proceed with caution; can be considered– Sneaky: “I’m going to sign you up anyway just in case you decide not to”– Desperate: “I might not get enough sign‐ups any other way”– Lazy: “It’s just easier this way and I’ll get more names”– Hard sell: “I’m going to flood you with enough offers that you’ll have to eventually buy something”
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.36
10/1/2013
19
Pre‐Checked Opt‐In Example #1• National Geographic
– Example of good pre‐checked box clarity
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.37
Pre‐Checked Opt‐In Example #2• Movie
Tickets.com– Good use of
multiple opt‐in requests
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.38
10/1/2013
20
• The key to solid permission is not whether a box is checked or un‐checked, it is
Clarity!• If using a pre‐checked box for email address gathering:
» Is it clear to the subscriber that they’ll be receiving marketing emails above and beyond functional emails?
» Do they know what to expect? What the marketing email messages will look like?
» Do they know how often marketing emails will arrive?
• Clarity is enhanced by asking subscriber to affirmatively grant permission by taking a definitive action ‐ like checking a box
• If you want the clearest permission, do not pre‐check boxes
Pre‐Checked: Good or Bad?
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.39
Confirmed Opt‐In• Email address owner grants explicit permission by taking a
self‐initiated action to receive future email communications from a known sender
• A confirmation from the list owner is provided either via• A return email message
• A web page
• When no further action is required, this process is known as “single opt‐in”
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.40
10/1/2013
21
Single Opt‐In Example
• Clear Benefits Statement
• Not asking for too much information
• Custom Data gathering
• Un‐checked boxes
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.41
Single Opt‐In Confirmation
Source: Blue Hornet 2013 Consumer Email Study
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.42
10/1/2013
22
Double Opt‐In• The “gold standard” in email marketing
– Better‐qualified subscribers– Higher response rates– Lowest opt‐out rates– Better deliverability; least problems
• Makes fraudulent sign‐ups impossible
• Email address owner gives and confirms explicit permission to receive future email communications
• User must take a confirming action required by list owner:– Click on link in confirmation email message
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.43
Double Opt‐In Step 1: Invite to Join• Ducerus, College
Planning Services for Parents and Students
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.44
10/1/2013
23
Step 2: Send Confirm Request
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.45
Step 3: Subscriber Confirms• Clicking on confirm link leads to web page
acknowledging confirm action
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.46
10/1/2013
24
Step 4: Send Sign‐Up Confirmation• This welcome message
completes the subscribe process by confirming subscriber has verified their sign‐up, welcoming them, and commencing “onboarding”
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.47
Step 5: Onboard/Provide Access
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.48
10/1/2013
25
Double Opt‐In: Quality over Quantity
• Double opt‐in may result in fewer registrations, but the tradeoff for quantity is more responsive names, higher open rates, lower deliverability issues and better reputation
Source: Marketing Sherpa Email Marketing Benchmark Guide 2010
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.49
Permission Affects Not Only Deliverability, but also RESPONSE
• A study by Merkle found 52% of respondents will delete an email from an unrecognized sender without opening it– ISPs now monitoring consumer inbox behavior and this can impact your future deliverability, or put you in junk folder
• Responders said about 40% of permission email is actually valuable, while another 40% is deleted without being read
• Why?– No permission = zero trust, poor relevancy, and low or no recognition
of sender
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.50
10/1/2013
26
Components of a Successful Program
List & Data –Building &
Management
Technology
Legal Compliance
Offer & Messaging Strategy
Design & Content
Testing
Metrics & Analytics
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.51
Four Areas Needing Ownership
DatabaseOffers,
Messaging & Content
Deployment Analytics
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.52
10/1/2013
27
Ownership Areas: Database1. Database (List)
• Inventory:• Number of records• Database management/segmentation ability• Subscribe/unsubscribe processes
• Assign Responsibility:• Subscribe/unsubscribe process/audit (and overall Legal Compliance)• Frequency controls• Suppression (opt‐out) file• Data correction• Overall list hygiene
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.53
Select & Map Permission Practices by Channel & Source
Select Allowable Permission Practices• Single opt‐in?• Double opt‐in?• Pre‐checked?
Map by Channel• Email• Mobile• Blog
Map to Contact Data Sources• Email Addresses• Mobile numbers
• Postal Addresses
Monitor & Audit
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.54
10/1/2013
28
Ownership Areas: Offers/Messaging2. Offers and Call‐to‐Action Strategy
• Inventory:• Consider Past offer performance• Life‐stage specific offers• Partner/affiliate offers• Legal terms and conditions
• Assign Responsibility:• Map offers by objective• Map offers by customer life‐stage• Offer approval• Retired offers• Offer progression• Maintain “Offer Stable”
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.55
Ownership Areas: Content3. Content & Creative
• Inventory:• Copywriting resources (internal? Agency? Freelancer?)• Graphic design resources• HTML layouts/templates• Content itself (see Content Library Inventory slide)• Administrative functions/boilerplate language
• Assign Responsibility:• Design & graphic standards compliance• Copywriting• HTML coding• Proofing (including technical/link tests)• Image Rendering
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.56
10/1/2013
29
Join/Subscribe
• Free information• Sweepstakes• Premium
Buy (hard offers)
• Savings• Fee Waiver• Convenience/speed
Onboarding/Welcome
• Show and tell• Teach, inform• Sneak previews
Develop Offer Stable, Strategy• Different offers work better in certain channels and for specific objectives
Resell/Upsell
• Exclusive Discount• Gift w/purchase• Deadline
Retain/Grow
• Interactive Tools• Useful information• Exclusive savings/incentives
Reactivate
• Interactive Tools• New Information• Behavior‐driven reward
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.57
Ownership Areas: Deployment4. Deployment & Deliverability
• Inventory:• System for processing/managing bounced messages• Problem resolution for failures• ISP Relations• Reputation score
• Assign Responsibility:• Service bureau oversight• Frequency rules• Bounce processing working as intended• Authentication• Reputation management
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.58
10/1/2013
30
Ownership Areas: Analytics5. Performance Tracking, Measurement & Analysis
• Inventory:• Response tracking capability (delivered, opens, click, redemption, conversion)• Reporting• Analysis/comparison system• Past performance benchmarks/history
• Assign Responsibility:• Campaign response measurement• Key metrics/performance indicators• Channel analysis/attribution• ROI analysis
© Direct Marketing Association & Karen Talavera. All rights reserved.59
List Growth, Management & Optimization
Austin Bliss, PresidentFreshAddress, Inc.
10/1/2013
31
Austin Bliss• Speaking at shows since 2003• Awarded “Rising Star” award by DMEF• Past Chair, EEC List Growth Roundtable • President & co‐Founder, FreshAddress
• Email Database Services Company• Founded in 1999• Exhibiting here at EEC
Agenda
List Growth
Starting Clean
Staying Clean
10/1/2013
32
What’s the easiest wayto grow an email list?
10/1/2013
33
10/1/2013
34
Find & Keystroke
Buy
Scrape/Extract
Why Not?• The addresses have no “permission”• It may break laws• It WILL contain spamtraps
Outcomes:• Low/no performance• Angry recipients• Blacklisting • Kicked off your ESP
10/1/2013
35
So what’s the SAFE way to build your email list?
Get people to • Opt‐in• Volunteer• Give Permission
…You Have To ASK!
10/1/2013
36
Ask!• Website
• Paper (order form, etc.)
• Phone (customer orders, etc.)
• In Person (POS, check in, etc.)
Can I Have Your Email Address?
10/1/2013
37
Not all emails are created equal!
• Deliverable (non‐bouncing)• Accurate (reach the right person)• Primary (at the right email address)• Permission (volunteered)
Easy
Beneficial
Safe
Three Components To A Successful ‘Ask’
10/1/2013
38
10/1/2013
39
Easy
Beneficial
Safe
Three Components To A Successful ‘Ask’
Value… WIIFM?
Make sure there is an ONGOING value exchange
10/1/2013
40
10/1/2013
41
10/1/2013
42
Easy
Beneficial
Safe
Three Components To A Successful ‘Ask’
Reassure
How you will use their email addressHow you will use their email address
How you will protect their privacyHow you will protect their privacy
10/1/2013
43
10/1/2013
44
10/1/2013
45
List Growth ‐ Recap
Ask and…
• Make it EASY (KISS, say why)• Provide a BENEFIT (wiifm, sample) • Make it SAFE (reassure, give control)
… Is There More You Can Do To Build Your List?
Ask EVERYWHERE!
10/1/2013
46
Postal Mail
Name Address EmailJoe Smith 15 Shire Street, New York, NY 10024
Sarah Watson 643 Main Street, Palm Springs, FL 33406
Ken Chapman 514 Broadway St., Los Angeles, CA 90079
Austin Jordan 13 Green St., Salem, NH 03079
Email Append
10/1/2013
47
d) A Welcome Email is sent to your customers to confirm deliverability and confirm permission.
a) Send your postal database in for processing.
b) Your file is matched against vendor’s database. Make sure it is 100% opt-in!
e) The enhanced file with deliverable email addresses is sent back to you.
c) Suppressions are run.
Email Append
10/1/2013
48
Google Adword
10/1/2013
49
Landing Pages
10/1/2013
50
Agenda
List Growth
Starting Clean
Staying Clean
10/1/2013
51
• Lowered response rates
• Inadvertently abandoned prospectsLost revenuesOpens door for competitorsCustomer dissatisfaction
• Wasted marketing effort and expense
• Risk of being blacklisted
Typos Are A Problem
10/1/2013
52
Typo Prevention ‐ Design
Vs.
Typo Prevention ‐ Design
10/1/2013
53
Typo Prevention – Double Opt‐in
List protected but customer lost
10/1/2013
54
• Simple software code can enforce RFC standards
• More advanced software and services can filter out invalid addresses
• The best services and APIs can actually notice and correct typos in real‐time
Typo Prevention – Services
…Caught and Corrected before it entered their database
Typo Prevention ‐ Services
10/1/2013
55
Agenda
List Growth
Starting Clean
Staying Clean
10/1/2013
56
Stop Fearing Unsubscribes!
If someone wants out, let them … and make it easy!
But all is not lost.
10/1/2013
57
Over 50 million people changed their email address this year
– Switched Jobs– Changed ISPs– Graduated from School– Abandoned b/c of spam– Corporate rebranding– Etc.
Run Regular List Audits
10/1/2013
58
Question Assumptions
Get A Backup
10/1/2013
59
• Just like NCOA, but for your email list
• 6‐15%+ Update Rate
• Ideal for large (100k+) lists of bouncing or inactive email addresses
• Pay per email address recovered
Use Email Change of Address (ECOA)
Try Postcards
10/1/2013
60
Final TakeawaysAsk!
Improve your ‘ask’1. Easy2. Beneficial3. Safe
Invest in your growth– Ask EVERYWHERE– Consider vendors– Prevent typos
No email address is forever– Allow unsubscribes– Do routine list audits– Get an alternate address– Consider ECOA or postal recovery
My “Ask”
10/1/2013
61
Thanks!Austin [email protected](617) 965‐4500
www.freshaddress.com@FreshAddress
Understanding Your Subscriber: Data Analysis Fundamentals
Phil Davis, CEO, Rapleaf
10/1/2013
62
IntroductionPhil Davis, CEO
About Rapleaf
• Technology-based consumer data company
• At least one data point on 80% of all U.S. emails
• Over 30 demographic, purchase and interest data fields
• Highest coverage and accuracy in the industry
www.rapleaf.com @rapleaf
• Email marketing veteran• Launched digital agency• 15 yrs experience in data
driven DM
Understanding Your Subscribers
• Data driven marketing provides the science that drive direct mail
• It’s time to apply lessons learned from direct mail to improve email and digital marketing
10/1/2013
63
Perfecting the Customer Experience
Great companies provide great customer experiences.
Customers with great experiences spend more money.
The Traditional In-Store Experience
10/1/2013
64
The Email Experience…
The Customer ExperienceKick off your email campaign by making a great first impression.
• Create a experience for your new customer.
• Differentiate your brand by providing for an engaging experience with each communication.
10/1/2013
65
A customer signs up for your email list
First Impressions
Who is [email protected]?
First Impressions
10/1/2013
66
131
Male
FemaleMarried Female
w/ Kids
Use 3rd party data to get to Know your Customer
I’ve lived in my
house 10 years
I’m a Mother
I am a High
Earner
I’m a bargain shopper
I buy baby products
I live in the
Northeast
Listen to the data to better understand your customer?
10/1/2013
67
Create a Great First Impression
Armed with the right data.
Ongoing Optimization
Continue to:• collect behavioral data• use data to optimize your
marketing campaigns.
10/1/2013
68
Customer Data Sources• Who is this customer?
– Demographic Data• How do they interact with
the brand?– Purchases– Email responses– In-store behavior– Social interactions– Web analytics
• Greater customer engagement• Differentiate your brand in the inbox • Greatly improve your open and conversion
rates• Consistent multi-channel experience• Improve sender reputation scores
Benefits of Data Driven Campaigns
Purchase Data
3rd Party Data
Behavioral Data
10/1/2013
69
Challenges with Data
Budget
Different Platforms Consolidating Data
Different Levels of Sophistication in Data Analysis
6 Ways You Can Use Data to Improve Your Email Program
10/1/2013
70
1. Clean email address
2. Customize Subject Lines
Personalized email subject lines using data see 26% increase in open rates.
Married Female w/ Kids
Fun links for singles
10 restaurant chain your kids will love
10/1/2013
71
3. Customize Content
Personalized email content using data sees 30% higher clickthrough rates
4. Customize Image (and Content)
Gender Based Email
Gender Based + Marital Status
Increase Engagement !
Jane, Tired of holiday shopping for your loved ones? You deserve it: Treat yourself to a day of relaxation at ABC Spa: $25 o $100 purchase.
John, Looking for a way to show your wife just how much they mean to you? Treat them to a day at ABC Spa. She deserves it. $25 o $100 purchase.
10/1/2013
72
5. Customize Formatting
41% of consumers buy more from retailers who send personalized emails
6. Create automated customer profiles
10/1/2013
73
Other ways to create campaigns that convert:
• Customized Offers• Personalized Call to Actions• Landing Page Relevance• Engaged Social Interaction• Upsell/Cross-sell Automation
What should that Nordstrom’s email have been?
10/1/2013
74
Q & A
Any questions
?
Email Content Marketing in the New Marketing Democracy
Chris MarriottVP & Principal ConsultantThe Relevancy Group
10/1/2013
75
Who Am I?• As agency ad‐man spent a decade
working for agencies such as Ogilvy & Mather
• Worked at one of the first ESPs, Digital Impact; ultimately ran world‐wide services for Acxiom Digital
• Board member of multiple technology start‐ups and industry conferences
What We’re Going to Cover
• The New Marketing Democracy• Can Email Help you “Win Election”s in the New Marketing
Democracy?• What is Content? Where Does it Come From?• The 7 Rules of Content Marketing
10/1/2013
76
Say Hello to the New Marketing Democracy
• Power to the people– Everyone can contribute; – Everyone has influence;– Everyone has a voice.
• Empowered by digital channels,people now “vote in” for the winners & losers in the battle for their hearts, minds & wallets —& THEY decide when & where these “elections” are held
In the New Marketing Democracy
• Consumers trust each other more than they trust you
• Online conversations…– Persist…forever– Immediately global &
potentially hyper‐local
• Word of mouth… amplified by Internet & mobile
10/1/2013
77
In the New Marketing Democracy
• Non‐linear accounts for 1/3 of mass‐market TV viewing
• Media glut = tuning out– Between 30–50% of users have spam
blockers– At least 20% have pop‐up blockers– 58% regularly delete the tracking
cookies
• People don’t share ads… they read & share things that interest them…
Sources: Ramsey Report eMarketer Oliver Wyman
Understanding the Challenge
“Google always gets me everything I want, whenever I want it, so I don’t have to pay attention until it’s convenient for me”
Media hyper-saturation+ Time-shifting technologies+ Selective filtering
Consumers who choose to remain“unaware” until they inform themselves
Your marketing is a faucet with each customer’s hand on the spigot
10/1/2013
78
Marketing Democracy in Action
"recommendations from others" and even "consumer opinions posted online" significantly outrank TV, radio, print, and online advertising on the trust scale
73% of consumers say positive customer reviews make them trust a business more (up from 58% in 2012)
So when your prospect is in the store, will they remember this?
or this….
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GURvHJNmGrc
They’ve Got Their Own Web Site
10/1/2013
79
Marketing Democracy On Facebook
How To Win Elections• Remember every interaction
(and learn!)– Know where I’ll be seeing you– Whenever & wherever I see
you, recognize me & treat me like an old friend
• Seek to understand & predict– Build strategies around me– Remember what I’ve already
told you– Know what I might – & might
not – be interested in at that moment
The “Groundhog Day”theory of marketing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hq5jZrFTbE
10/1/2013
80
159
Can Email Help you Win Elections in the New Marketing Democracy?
How Important is the Email Channel? We Asked!
Question Asked: What are the primary ways that you stay aware of a brand or store online that you have purchased from and continue to purchase from online? (select all)Source: The Relevancy Group, LLC Consumer Survey, n=1052 1/13, United States Online Consumers Ages 13+
15%5%
10%13%
19%22%22%23%
38%41%
0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45%
Not sure
Via ads, messages or apps on my mobile device
Brand information on Social Networks
Online social recommendations from friends, etc.
News stories in a paper, magazine or online news sites
Ads on the Internet
TV commercials
Face to face recommendations from friends, etc.
The brands own corporate/brand web‐site
Email marketing messages
Primary Ways Post Purchase, That Buyers Stay Aware of and Engage with Online Stores and Brands
Pct. of US Online Shopping Consumers Survey Respondents
10/1/2013
81
Each channel has its own hurdles in regards to engaging the marketing democracy, and email is no exception
• In theory, an opted‐in customer should represent someone who has “turned on the faucet”
• In practice, you face that moment of truth every single time someone opens his or her email and sees one of your emails in the inbox.
• At this point, consumers can turn on the faucet (open the email), or keep it turned off (ignore or delete your email)
10/1/2013
82
To Mail or Not to Mail?
• How do you keep customers engaged between transactions?• The time between transactions could be anywhere from 2
weeks to 12 months!
This Guy Has the Answer!
10/1/2013
83
The Permanent Campaign!
• Successful email marketing goes beyond selling products at a great price– Hammering with “buy now” messaging quickly turns to noise – Savvy email marketers find ways engage customers between
purchases– Leaders create messages that don’t hard sell
• Winners create the content that keep customers engaged between transactions – Reviews, promotions, rewards, special sales to share, forums to
connect with other customers
166
What is Content?Where Does itCome From?
10/1/2013
84
What is Content?• Today it’s often viewed as the association of a brand with popular entertainment—branded entertainment
10/1/2013
85
What is Content?
• However, any approach that focuses on branded content can be very expensive!
What is Content?• 60 Years ago branded content was a new idea…
10/1/2013
86
What is Content?• Today some companies—like Whole Foods—assume they have the burden of creating original content
77%!!
Biggest Content Marketing Challenge
10/1/2013
87
Is This Where You Find Content?
This Is a Better Place to Start
Your Customers Your Team
10/1/2013
88
Content Is Everywhere!
CatalogsExtensive product selection- Sorting tools (low to high,
bestselling)
ContextInformation to assist shoppers
- Product Selectors- How to’s
- Unexpected uses for same product
ConversationsForums for customers to connect with
the brand and with each other-Reviews, blogs, user videos, social
(SWYN)
Content is Everywhere you Look
• Customer reviews (remember, consumers trust each other more than they trust you!)
• Videos that educate/demonstrate• Webinars• White Papers• Product purchase guides• Sponsorships• Promotions and contests• Mobile Apps
10/1/2013
89
B2B Content Marketing Usage (by tactic)
Let’s Start With The Obvious
• Some product and service categories are inherently more interesting than others– Automotive, travel, apparel vs. laundry detergent
• The more interest a consumer holds in a product or service the easier it is to create content
• “That’s just the way it is”– Thomas Pfeiler (my father‐in‐law)
10/1/2013
90
Catalogs
Catalogs
10/1/2013
91
Context
Context
10/1/2013
92
Context
Conversations
10/1/2013
93
Conversations
Conversations
10/1/2013
94
187
The Seven Rules of Email Content Marketing
Rules of Email Content Marketing1. Never say “buy now”—if that was the objective we’d call it
“content selling”2. Understand your audience to ensure that tone and
substance of your content sits correctly with the subscribers you already have, or want to attract
3. Engagement is your goal—top of mind awareness is your reward4. It’s ok to ask for things other than a purchase—information,
contest entry, feedback5. Reviews and pictures are very relevant content—and can be
crowd sourced from your list! (yes, I hate that term too)6. Don’t try to compete with publishers—your job is to inform, not
entertain (though it’s a lucky strike extra if you are also entertaining!)
7. Always be prepared to react to “I’m now ready to buy” signs
10/1/2013
95
1. Never say “buy now”, if that was the objective we’d call it “content
selling”
2. Understand your audience
10/1/2013
96
3. Engagement is your goal—top of mind awareness is your reward
4. It’s ok to ask for things
10/1/2013
97
5. Reviews and pictures are very relevant content
6. Don’t try to compete with publishers—your job is to inform,
not entertain
10/1/2013
98
7. And Finally, Always be Prepared
Getting Started
• What’s your purchase cycle?• What would your subscribers value?• What’s already “lying around”?• What role can automated campaigns play?• What are the “buying signs” for what you offer?
10/1/2013
99
Questions? The Relevancy GroupConnect - [email protected]
203-856-1296Connect on Twitter @csmarriott
Produce Engaging Creative–Every TimeWacarra YeomansDirector, Creative StrategyResponsys, Inc.
10/1/2013
100
Reaching the Inbox: What Subscribers (and the ISPs) Really Think of your Email Program
Melinda PlemelReturn Path
10/1/2013
101
Training Goals
• Understand the rules of reputation and engagement in the email ecosystem
• Steps to take improve
reputation and avoid filtering
Agenda• Email
• Why it’s Important• Reputation
• What is it • Why it matters• What can you do
• Spam Filtering• Engagement
• Why is it important• Challenges
• Trusted Network• What can you do to improve engagement and reputation?
10/1/2013
102
Email is perfect for developing loyal and active subscribers.
But what good is it if your subscribers never see it?
10/1/2013
103
No Inbox. No Click. No ROI
The Main Players• The Email Marketer• The ISP or Mailbox Provider• And The End User
In fact, 1 in 5 emails sent never sees the inbox!
10/1/2013
104
Good money down the drain
Why are my emails being blocked?
10/1/2013
105
Sender reputation drives inbox placement and therefor, response.
I’m a rock star. This guy
can’t get anything done.
Reputation
ISPs use your sender reputation to make
filtering decisions. A poor reputation means, your email will get filtered.
10/1/2013
106
Heading• Text here
Reputation is the leading factor impacting inbox placement.
6%
17%77%
What is Reputation?
10/1/2013
107
Reputation is a set of metrics based on your sending behavior
1. Keep complaints to a minimum
10/1/2013
108
Marketing Emails
Generate the Most
Subscriber Complaints
What can you do to reduce complaints?
• Manage the registration process so that it meets your subscribers expectations
• Always respect unsubscribe requests
• Recognition
• Understand that content/program relevancy impacts behavior
• Conduct complaint analysis
10/1/2013
109
Sign up for Feedback Loops
• AOL http://postmaster.aol.com/Postmaster.FeedbackLoop.php
• Bluetie http://feedback.bluetie.com/• Comcast http://feedback.comcast.net/• Cox http://fbl.cox.net/• Fastmail http://fbl.fastmail.fm/• Hotmail
https://support.msn.com/eform.aspx?productKey=edfsjmrpp
• Open SRS http://fbl.hostedmail.com/• Synacor http://fbl.synacor.com/• Rackspace http://fbl.apps.rackspace.com/• RoadRunner
http://feedback.postmaster.rr.com/• Terra http://fbl.mail.terra.com.br/• USA.net http://fbl.usa.net/• Yahoo! http://yahoofbl.senderscore.net/
2. Keep your subscriber list healthy and clean
10/1/2013
110
Unknown Users
Spam Traps
10/1/2013
111
60% of all emails received by spam traps are sent from commercial marketers.
How do I keep my list clean?
1. Know and Monitor your Unknown User Rate
2. Collect good data up front
3. Grow Your List Organically
4. Monitor Bounce Logs for high unknown user rate or Spam Traps
5. Remove Bad Email Addresses Immediately
6. Keep an eye on blacklists
7. Review Offline Email Entries
8. Be cautious when using list vendors
10/1/2013
112
3. Maintain a solid Infrastructure
4. Sending Permanence
10/1/2013
113
Stay put and build your reputation
5. Message Quality
10/1/2013
114
Test Campaign RenderingSee how your content behaves in every desktop, webmail and mobile email environmentQuality AssessmentIdentify content issues that would affect your inbox placementSpam Filter TestingGet spam scores and filtering results before your deploy your email
What can you do?
6. Engagement
10/1/2013
115
Why is engagement so important?
10/1/2013
116
50 Shades
of Graymail
But there are some challenges
10/1/2013
117
Slightly Different Goals• Email Marketer
• Increase ROI• Increase Opens/Clicks• Keep their subscribers
happy
• ISP• Keep their systems
safe• Keep their
subscribers happy• Everything Else
Each ISP has their own rules that are used to determine inbox
placement
10/1/2013
118
Spam Filtering: A Cat and Mouse Game
10/1/2013
119
• Most sophisticated systems for measuring Engagement• Trusted community
• The power of this is and this is not spam• The greater the community is involved the more
likely for inbox placement. • The less the community is involved, the more
likely for bulking or filtering• List Hygiene is key
• How active are the subscribers with the mail• Email Marketer’s data
• Open/Clicks/Conversions
• ISPs/mailbox provider data• Who is the mail being sent to?• How much time do they spend reading ?• Do they move messages (tabs)• Time to deletion• Who is the end user?
The Trusted User Community
10/1/2013
120
Yahoo!: Spam vs. Not Spam
0.38%
0.21%
0.19%
0.53%
0.08%
0.16%
0.22%
0.13%
0.29%
0.31%
0.11%
0.25%
0.00% 0.10% 0.20% 0.30% 0.40% 0.50% 0.60%
Business
Education
Entertainment
Finance
Groups
Home
Jobs
News
Real Estate
Shopping
Social Networking
Travel
Average Yahoo! “Not Spam” Rates by Industry
What Subscribers are Really Reading (Or Not)
1. Messages read, then deleted
2. Messages deleted without being read
3. Messages replied to4. Frequency of
receiving and reading a message from a source
10/1/2013
121
Sender Reputation Data – the Microsoft Spam Fighter’s Club
Smart Network Data Services
https://postmaster.live.com/snds/
10/1/2013
122
Gmail, Engagement, and the Priority Inbox
• Social Features – how much mail from that sender is read by the recipient?
• Content Features – what headers or recent terms are used that are correlated with the subscriber engaging with the email?
• Thread Features – how has the user interacted with the thread so far?
• Label Features – how is mail labeled?
How Gmail Priority Inbox Works
10/1/2013
123
Spam and Not Spam a major indicator of
wanted and unwanted email
.01% ‐ .1% is an Acceptable Complaint
Rate
Gmail: Spam vs. Not Spam
Primary (Default) ‐ person‐to‐person conversations and messages that don't appear in other tabsSocial (Default) – messages from social networks, media‐sharing sites, online dating services, and other social websitesPromotions (Default) – deals, offers and most other marketing emailsUpdates – personal, auto‐generated updates including confirmations, bills, receipts, and statementsForums – messages from online groups, discussion boards and mailing lists.1% is an Acceptable Complaint Rate
Gmail: Tabs
10/1/2013
124
AOL Mail
What can you do to improve engagement and your reputation?
10/1/2013
125
39% of Marketers Remove Inactive Subscribers to Improve Deliverability
Use Data to Define the Lifecycle
Re‐Engagement Opportunity
10/1/2013
126
Be Pro‐Active in Messaging to Non‐Responders
• Recognize the change in interest• Provide options (preferences, anyone?)• Encourage them to re-engage• Revisit subscribe benefits• Provide clear and easy unsubscribe• Honor those choices!
Create Killer Content Using Data to Understand What Resonates (and What Doesn’t)
Website Page Views
Email Content Click Detail
Facebook Posts with the Most Likes/Shares/
Comments
Tweets with the Most Re‐Tweets
10/1/2013
127
Use a Recency‐Based Segmentation Strategy to Identify Changes in Subscriber Response
Group A Group B
• 0-30 Days• 30-90 Days• 3-6 Months• 6-12 Months• 12-18 Months• 18+ Months
• 0-30 Days• 30-90 Days• 3-6 Months• 6-12 Months• 12+ Months
Review
10/1/2013
128
Components of Reputation
• Complaints
• List Hygiene
• IP Permanence
• Infrastructure
• Message Quality
• Engagement
How to Improve Reputation• Complaints
• FBLs and remove• List Hygiene
• Keep it clear• Remove Unknown Users• Monitor for Spam Traps
• IP Permanence• Stay put and repair
• Infrastructure• Review and monitor
• Message Quality• Test
• Engagement• Send relevant and engaging content
10/1/2013
129
How to Improve Engagement
• Ensure you are mailing to the most active users and purging aged/inactive subscribers
• Be relevant! Ensure your messages are striking a chord with your subscribers and peak their interest
• Segment your mailstreams
• Remind your users to add you to their address book
10/1/2013
130
10/1/2013
131
The Answer is Always, “It Depends” – So Test It!
Ryan Phelan
• Prior Industry Experience– Vice President, Strategy at BlueHornet– Director, Email Marketing & Acquisition at Sears
Holdings– Responsible for East Coast Operations at
Responsys
• Thought Leadership– DM News : Email Gets Personal (Cover Story)– Keynote address – March 2012, EEC12– Ranked as one of the top 40 Digital Marketing
Strategists in the country by OMI– Co‐Chair of the EEC– Member of:
Ryan PhelanVice President, Global Strategic Services
10/1/2013
132
“ OMG Honey, look atthat compellingsubject line ….totallymade me open it”
This is more like it…
10/1/2013
133
Tier 3:Advanced
Tier 2:Medium Complex
Tier 1: Foundation programs
Existingprograms
Persona development, cluster analysis, next logical product, behavioral \attitudinal segmentation, dynamic messaging, shopping cart abandonment,
preference center phase 2, social messaging
Video in email, creative testing, promotional optimization, triggers, win‐back, preference center, social media
Testing & Reporting
Welcome, transactional messaging, opt‐down, acquisition, promotional, attrition
Optimize programs based on easy changes (Low Hanging Fruit)
Testing & Reporting
Testing & reporting
Email Program Development
1,000Consumers from across the United States
10/1/2013
134
Nearly49%of respondents have an email
account for emails they rarely intend to open
Lesson: Ensure that when you ask for an email address, you make the reason very compelling
2013 Acxiom Digital Impact Consumer Digital Behavior Study n=1,006
268
When an email is saved to be read
later, 60%never read it
Lesson: Make your CTA immediate, urgent, laced with benefit and time sensitive in email
2013 Acxiom Digital Impact Consumer Digital Behavior Study n=1,006
10/1/2013
135
Lesson: 21% to get updates and 13% because they love the brand269
40% of consumers sign
up for email to receive discounts
2013 Acxiom Digital Impact Consumer Digital Behavior Study n=1,006
270
36%of
respondents check email, social media and texts beforedoing anything else after they wake up
2013 Acxiom Digital Impact Consumer Digital Behavior Study n=1,006
Lesson: Think about your message and test the optimal time of the day to send your message.
10/1/2013
136
Lesson: Test when you send and be wary of complex CTA in the morning.271
21% check their email before breakfast
2013 Acxiom Digital Impact Consumer Digital Behavior Study n=1,006
Consumers have shifted their consumption and are active at the very start of the day
Lesson: Try testing in the evening or even Friday evening for retail based business.2013 Acxiom Digital Impact Consumer Digital Behavior Study n=1,006
10/1/2013
137
273
Things are tiny in the morning…
Lesson: If you have to pinch it, you’re doing it wrong. Track mobile opens and design a template.
2013 Acxiom Digital Impact Consumer Digital Behavior Study n=1,006
274
Phone calls, texts, browsing the internet and email are the top uses for
smart phones
Lesson: Lesson: Track statistics for your consumers that are consuming email on a mobile device.
2013 Acxiom Digital Impact Consumer Digital Behavior Study n=1,006
10/1/2013
138
Lesson: Track statistics for your consumers that are consuming email on a mobile device.275
The shift in consumption is increasing based on consumer need for and ease of access
2013 Acxiom Digital Impact Consumer Digital Behavior Study n=1,006
276
Consumers don’t see silos, they see devices
Lesson: Consumers have adopted more devices and marketers have to be truly Omni‐Channel
2013 Acxiom Digital Impact Consumer Digital Behavior Study n=1,006
10/1/2013
139
Lesson: Capture and track the mobile opens of your subscribers and implement a template277
91% of consumers check email on their mobile phones
2013 Acxiom Digital Impact Consumer Digital Behavior Study n=1,006
278
…25% of those that use iPhone Passbook used it to access coupons
Of those that use iPhone Passbook (33%), 22% use it for Movie Tickets…
Lesson: Try linking a coupon for a sale or event to the Passbook functionality and then track use
2013 Acxiom Digital Impact Consumer Digital Behavior Study n=1,006
10/1/2013
140
279
72%of consumers read email when they are bored…
…29%read email while in the bathroom
Lesson: Don’t make your email creative boring –inspire, delight and amaze
2013 Acxiom Digital Impact Consumer Digital Behavior Study n=1,006
QUIZ: WHICH TEST WON?DMA2013 | Email Testing in the Digital Age
10/1/2013
141
Which Test Won?
Up or Down Arrows
Which Test Won?
Up or Down Arrows
10/1/2013
142
Which Test Won
Which Test Won
10/1/2013
143
Which series won?Images Courtesy of:
Which series won?Images Courtesy of:
10/1/2013
144
CHALLENGES OF THE EMAIL MARKETER
DMA2013 | Email Testing in the Digital Age
The email marketer’s challenge
• More subscribers• More data• More email
• More targeting• More expectations• Poor attribution
10/1/2013
145
What do we struggle with
You’re not alone…everyone struggles with email
Chart 4.21 Email campaign element testing and optimizationWhich of the following email campaign elements do you routinely test to optimize performance? Please select all that apply.
86%62%
58%48%47%46%
44%44%
42%32%
26%
Subject line
Call‐to‐action
Message (eg greeting, body, closing)
Days of the week sent
Layout and images
Time of day sent
Landing page
Target audience
Personalization
From line
Layout and images specifically formobile viewing
Other
None of the above
Source: ©2013 MarketingSherpa Email Marketing Benchmark Survey Methodology: Fielded December 2012, N=264
2%
2%
Message (e.g. greeting, body, closing)
10/1/2013
146
Why do we care?
• Campaign on 10/17– 166 individual
email segments
– 84 were tests
Images Courtesy of:
Does this look bad???
The highlighting worked…for a while
Images Courtesy of:
10/1/2013
147
Testing Challenges
We don’t (as an industry) know how to test
Types of TestingA|B Testing• Testing one element against a control
Multi‐Variant• Testing multiple elements against a control
Local Control Groups• Isolation of a population on a campaign level to see % of lift
Universal Control Groups• Isolation of a permanent population to see percentage of lift over time
10/1/2013
148
A|B Testing
Cons• Populations must be equal• Time periods must be
significant to judge results• Limited to one variable so
extended testing can be long
Definition• 2 email creative that are
identical but with one element changed in one version
Pros• Simple testing that is built
into most email platforms• Systems usually handle
division of population• Results are easy to
understand and act upon
Multivariate Testing
Cons• Populations in each group
must be equal• Most email populations do
not have enough equal parts to be statistically relevant
DefinitionUsing one region in multiple email creative with changes in each sent to equal populations to determine a better performing email
Pros• Multiple elements can be
tested at the same time
10/1/2013
149
Local Control Groups
Cons• Sometimes hard to manage
from a population• Some people that are
active/buyers will not get a message
• Must involve pre‐planning
DefinitionIsolation of a small but significant population from an email campaign to see what happens with their behavior against those that received an email
Pros• Can show the influence that
and individual email has on a campaign level
• Population must be reflective of the entire list
Universal Control Group
Cons• Isolation of a population
means that some customers don’t get an email
• Hard sell internally• Must educate various groups
internally
DefinitionIsolating a population over a longer period of time to see what their behavior is against those that receive email
Pros• Gives email a true ROI
number
10/1/2013
150
CONFIDENCE INTERVALSDMA2013 | Email Testing in the Digital Age
Sample Size DeterminationThere is no perfect answer in determining sample size. It is a trade‐off between sample size and the difference between A and B it is important for us to detect.
Acxiom presents a chart (as seen below) to help clients find their optimal balance.
300
The smaller the difference we want to be able to detect, the greater the required
sample size
10/1/2013
151
Example Confidence Interval
• We have some results from an A/B Test:o How much confidence do we have in these estimates?
o Do we feel comfortable enough in the observed gain of .3% to switch
to B?
– It’s all about Sample Size when considering confidence in Response Rates.
301
Example Confidence Interval
• The 95% Confidence Interval indicates we are 95% certain the RANGE of the interval captures the True response rate
• We observed B as 0.3% greater than A.
• We can now use our confidence interval for the difference (B – A) to establish how tight that 0.3% difference is based on our sample sizes
• The range includes A being .8% greater than B all the way to B being 1.4% greater than A. With this wide range of possibilities, taking action based on our estimates becomes very dangerous
302
10/1/2013
152
Example Confidence Interval
• Let’s say we have the same results, but instead of results based on samples of 1,000 each, they are now based samples of 50,000 each.
• We now have more evidence, due to our greater sample size. This results in greater belief in our results (estimates), and hence tighter intervals
• We still observe B as 0.3% greater than A, however now we can now conclude B is greater than A by between 0.1% and 0.5%.
303
THE RULES OF TESTINGDMA2013 | Email Testing in the Digital Age
10/1/2013
153
buck∙shot mar∙ket∙ingn. Marketing without a plan, clue, intelligent design or path toward success
Rules for Testing
1. What needs to be tested2. Get a plan3. Execute the test4. Report on the results
10/1/2013
154
What needs to be tested
• To develop a plan, take time to define what’s broken– Mobile creative– Subjects– CTA– Lifestyle images vs action images– personalization– Audience/Segment– Landing page– Discount type
Get a Plan
1. Develop a plan that lasts from 1‐3 months1. Set rules for populations
1. What determines a valid population2. What is success in each test
1. What is the KPI that will be judged2. Define from prior test/campaigns what the range of KPI success
exists3. Determine the right amount of time to build a significance to
achieve the desired KPI4. What are your exclusions5. Get extra pairs of eyes – make it a team effort
10/1/2013
155
One point to remember about the plan
• Does the result really prove the point?– Always work to validate your
testing– Sometimes thing “win”
because they’re different• Recognize the “shiny objects”
Images Courtesy of:
Execute the Test
• Define equal populations• Define the optimal timeline for response and adhere to it• Monitor results• Verify that the test has been carried out
10/1/2013
156
Report on the Results
• Each test should have a post‐mortem report– Reason– Goal– Creative– Population– Results
• Should be one page per report and stored• How does the result inform the next test
1. Track results1. You must be able to track testing results2. Determine who’s on the strike team to examine results
EXERCISESDMA2013 | Email Testing in the Digital Age
10/1/2013
157
YOU NOW ALL WORK FOR
…AND GET PAID $1,000,000 A YEAR(SO DON’T SUCK)
• Come up with a testing plan for this creative
Images Courtesy of:
10/1/2013
158
Small Groups• Define what you could test (10 things
over 3 months)– Cannot be subject line– Why are you testing it
• Define how you would test it• Define the audience• Define the exclusions
Assumptions• Customer is a male• 42 years old• Lives in Half Moon
Bay, CA• 20 miles south
of SF• Single
Teams will present their testing plan to the group. Best one, wins something gooooooood.
Go…now…be smart
10/1/2013
159
Conclusion
• Think about your testing plan• Find equal populations• Test things that move the needle• Stop testing only subject lines
Questions?
10/1/2013
160
© 2013 Acxiom Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
Ryan PhelanVice President, Strategic [email protected]
Thank you!
Keep the learning going. Follow me on twitter@ryanpphelan@acxiom
APPENDIX
10/1/2013
161
Example Confidence Interval
321
How did we get the confidence intervals?
Confidence Interval for one proportion:
Test A = 0.015 +/‐ 1.96*SqRt ( (0.015 x 0.985) / 1,000 ) = 0.015 +/‐ 0.008 = (0.7%, 2.3%) Test B = 0.018 +/‐ 1.96*SqRt ( (0.018 x 0.982) / 1,000 ) = 0.018 +/‐ 0.008 = (1.0%, 2.6%)
Confidence Interval for difference between two proportions:
Test (B – A) = 0.003 +/‐ 1.96*SqRt ( ((0.015 x 0.985) / 1,000 ) + ((0.018 x 0.982) / 1,000) )Test (B – A) = 0.003 +/‐ 0.011 = Test (B – A) = (‐0.8%, 1.4%)
10/1/2013
1
10 Cool Ideas to Test or Steal
Stephanie Miller
VP, Member Engagement
DMA
1
10 Cool Ideas1. Be shocking.2. Don’t believe your test results. Be data‐driven in all things.3. Send a welcome series.4. Keep your data clean. Combine offline and online data.5. Celebrate your best customers.6. Don’t be so serious.7. Personalize.8. Hype the Holidays.9. Invest in your people10. Ignore everything you heard in this workshop.
2
10/1/2013
2
Tourettes Action Fools the Spam Filter
3
61% Click Increase!
Was it the “skinny” mobile design?
4
10/1/2013
3
Take 2!
Clicks were exactly the same on both
versions.
5
Zulily Welcome Series
6
10/1/2013
4
DOI Data Is Perfect. Right?!
• 100% Double Opt In
• 1,000 Invalid Confirmation Message a DAY
• Sources with 2‐5% undeliverable
7
Welcome Back, Active
Checker‐In!
8
10/1/2013
5
Don’t be So Darn Serious.
9
Personalize
10
Increase In Repeat Visits/Purchases
Highest Engagement Rates
10/1/2013
6
Hype the Holidays
11
Permeate the Season
12
10/1/2013
7
Never Assume SWYN
13
Choice: By the Piece
14
10/1/2013
8
Stop Selling, Already. Be Human.
15
Make Collection of Email #1
16
10/1/2013
9
Content Rules.
17
Resources/Inspiration
• DMA Advance Blog & Email Experience Council
• Only Influencers (Membership Required)
– http://www.onlyinfluencers.com/
• Why Email Rocks! From Mark Brownlow– http://www.email‐marketing‐reports.com/basics/why.htm
• Exact Target Swipe Files– http://pages.exacttarget.com/resources/HolidayInspirations
18