Hertz has a nice campaign running encouraging those that are a Hertz #1 Club Gold member to complete their account information and include their email address; effectively providing an opt-in.A few interesting messages in the message:They provide a link to... More

Hertz has a nice campaign running encouraging those that are a Hertz #1 Club Gold member to complete their account information and include their email address; effectively providing an opt-in.

A few interesting messages in the message:

• They provide a link to a 'sample' message
• They promise to only send this message once: "As we respect your privacy, we want to assure you that we won't send any future e-mails on this topic."

What are your thoughts on this approach? Are you sending 1-time opt-in messages to your account members that are not currently subscribed?

A view of the creative:


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HP Home and Home Office sent a GREAT email today with a truly 'out-of-the-box' creative design. The email jointly features a 'monster sale' (50% off and free shipping) and Dreamworks Monsters vs. Aliens movie. The design features an appropriately 'monster'... More

HP Home and Home Office sent a GREAT email today with a truly 'out-of-the-box' creative design.

The email jointly features a 'monster sale' (50% off and free shipping) and Dreamworks Monsters vs. Aliens movie. The design features an appropriately 'monster' character highlighting the monster sale.

Great design.




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Steep and Cheap had an incredibly smart, clever, and creative promotion yesterday encouraging their subscribers to follow them on Facebook. More interestingly they are actively promoting an online chat with "the people who put up the deals" - e.g. their... More

Steep and Cheap had an incredibly smart, clever, and creative promotion yesterday encouraging their subscribers to follow them on Facebook. More interestingly they are actively promoting an online chat with "the people who put up the deals" - e.g. their marketing team.

Love the idea and I even more love creative.

Check it out:


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Another example of a leading marketer who sends a lot of email failing to test the visual appearance of their message... It seems like every day I see 1-3 of these types of examples. Lately I've been wondering why there... More

Another example of a leading marketer who sends a lot of email failing to test the visual appearance of their message... It seems like every day I see 1-3 of these types of examples. Lately I've been wondering why there is such an uptick.

Is it because marketers are lean and cutting corners?
Is it because marketers have forgotten the simple best practices related to testing?
Is it because marketers don't realize they need to view their email in different email clients and browsers?

Regardless, the experience left with the end consumer is one of shock and awe... If I received a direct mail piece with this type of creative error, I would assume heads would roll. I know they would in any organization I've worked for.

Here's the creative...


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I love today's Timberland creative and the use of handwriting and 'red marker' to take an otherwise stale image and make it come alive. This type of creative treatment - taking a flat image and treating it in a way... More

I love today's Timberland creative and the use of handwriting and 'red marker' to take an otherwise stale image and make it come alive. This type of creative treatment - taking a flat image and treating it in a way that it can pop off the page and at some level feel three-dimensional is a simple, great way to help drive incremental activity on the message.

My favorite part of the design?

The blue marker with the arrow pointing off the page - as if to say - "go now, click, buy" - all of course in a subtle, not bang you over the head way.

Way to go Timberland!

Take a look at the creative:


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It has been proven over and over again that automated, targeted, and relevant email communications drive the highest ROI for marketers. Kayak.com had a nice email today announcing new capabilities with their fare alerts including options related to selecting non-stop... More

It has been proven over and over again that automated, targeted, and relevant email communications drive the highest ROI for marketers. Kayak.com had a nice email today announcing new capabilities with their fare alerts including options related to selecting non-stop flights, one way flights, and filtering by cabin. I also like the fact that you can sign for an alert based on a generic time (e.g. a month) vs. a specific time period.

Overall these types of email communications that drive incremental, automated, targeted, and timely communications are wonderful. More marketers should evaluate their own programs for where these types of campaigns could exist.

For example, other marketers could implement "alerts" tied to...

• Promotion Expiration (e.g. hours before)
• Availability for out of stock merchandise
• Availability of new merchandise in a specific product category or brand

The email creative is below:



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Sears sent a nice email today that looks great when it is opened.See below:However, when you view it in the Preview Pane in Outlook 2007 it appears quite different. See below:Let's say it together... test, test, test... There are some... More

Sears sent a nice email today that looks great when it is opened.

See below:

However, when you view it in the Preview Pane in Outlook 2007 it appears quite different. See below:


Let's say it together... test, test, test...

There are some simple things that Sears could have done to prevent this formatting snafu in the coding of the message. Further, they could have tested the email's delivery into Outlook to first see how it would appear and if it's overall appearance met the brand guidelines.

I would assume "choppy" would have failed... Less

Ah the need to test... Another example of a solid brand, in this case People Magazine, sending out an email with a glaring mistake. The mistake? Missing images...The basics of email testing:Always test that links and images resolveAlways test that... More

Ah the need to test...

Another example of a solid brand, in this case People Magazine, sending out an email with a glaring mistake.

The mistake? Missing images...

The basics of email testing:

• Always test that links and images resolve
• Always test that links actually go the destination you want vs. any destination
• Always test the appearance and functionality of the message in different email clients and browsers
• Always test variations of the message if personalization or dynamic targeting is involved

There is a lot more to email testing; however, many marketers skip the basics listed above.

Unfortunately when you cut corners you end up with results like the one below...



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I love personalization.I love triggered campaigns.I love short, time-sensitive promotions.However...If you are going to run campaigns of this type, you need to make sure that you are targeting people correctly...Alas, I don't live in Buffalo, Hartford, Burlington, Manchester, or Portland,... More

I love personalization.

I love triggered campaigns.

I love short, time-sensitive promotions.

However...

If you are going to run campaigns of this type, you need to make sure that you are targeting people correctly...

Alas, I don't live in Buffalo, Hartford, Burlington, Manchester, or Portland, Maine.

I live in Portland, Oregon!

Perhaps Expedia in their endeavor to target those closest to the above pre-mentioned cities simply chose "Portland" - not realizing that there are many "Portland's" in the United States. Including...

{via Wikipedia}
Portland, Arkansas
Portland, Colorado, a defunct city
Portland, Connecticut
Portland, a proposed city adjacent to Blue Island, Illinois and later incorporated into it
Portland, a former name for Fountain, Indiana
Portland, Indiana
Portland, Kentucky
Portland, Louisville, a neighborhood and former town in Louisville, Kentucky
Portland, Maine
Portland-South Portland-Biddeford metropolitan area
New Portland, Maine
South Portland, Maine, adjoining Portland, Maine
Portland, Michigan
Portland, Missouri
Portland, New York
Portland, North Dakota
Portland, Ohio
Portland, Oregon
Portland metropolitan area
Portland, Pennsylvania
Portland, Tennessee
Portland, Texas
Portland, Dodge County, Wisconsin
Portland, Monroe County, Wisconsin

Here's the creative:

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Not to rant on the lack of testing in today's emails, but here's another classic example...Subject LineMicroStrategy Direct, Nov. 2009:  MicroStrategy 9 is the most significant release in a decadeBody ContentIssue 1 | March 2009Funny... I didn't realize it was... More

Not to rant on the lack of testing in today's emails, but here's another classic example...

Subject Line
MicroStrategy Direct, Nov. 2009:  MicroStrategy 9 is the most significant release in a decade

Body Content
Issue 1 | March 2009

Funny... I didn't realize it was November 2009 already...

Marketers! Test your emails - please!


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As an email strategist we can often be heard educating our clients on the value of automated, triggered messages. These types of messages can be as simple as a "Welcome" message, to as complex as a "Lapsed, Multi-buyer, Web-only Purchaser"... More

As an email strategist we can often be heard educating our clients on the value of automated, triggered messages. These types of messages can be as simple as a "Welcome" message, to as complex as a "Lapsed, Multi-buyer, Web-only Purchaser" message. Regardless, each automated message has the opportunity to be highly targeted to a subscriber based on a specific state they have reached in respect to how they are interacting with you.

From a results standpoint, these types of messages often have the highest results and return.

We also tend to have a "set-up and forget it" mentality with these messages, which can be problematic if, as an example, images included in the message are removed or expired.

West Paw Design, an online retailer of dog apparel, beds and toys, has a really nice automated "Thank you for updating your profile" message that unfortunately succumbed to this error.

Take a look below and you will see several product images that are no longer working.

The Lesson: Set-up as many automated messages as you can that make sense; however, also setup an ongoing process to test and validate that these messages that you've 'set-up and forgot' are still performing as expected.

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I received a GREAT survey from Timberland today. In addition to gathering some additional customer data, they specifically are soliciting feedback on new, not yet available, women's footwear. How many brands have you known that engage in very expensive, very... More

I received a GREAT survey from Timberland today. In addition to gathering some additional customer data, they specifically are soliciting feedback on new, not yet available, women's footwear. How many brands have you known that engage in very expensive, very time-intensive, and very resource intensive efforts to conduct customer research?

Many.

Don't get me wrong, at times this level of engagement is absolutely appropriate; however, other times it's not...

Overall, Timberland is taking advantage of the power of email and web to solicit some initial feedback on several new products. The feedback they'll receive will be cheap (the cost of an email and a web survey), fast (they'll have it in minutes), and not that intensive (a few days vs. weeks to months).

As a subscriber I'm then left with the impression that Timberland cares about my input - thus building a much stronger affinity to their brand. Further, they incented me to participate by offering me a token promotion - 10% off my next online purchase; thus making it more likely for me to participate vs. simply deleting the message.

Are you soliciting customer feedback? If not, you should.

Here's a glance at their creative:


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I feel like I'm on a 'testing' crusade... every day I receive 20-30 emails from various marketers; some good, some not so good. What continues to be surprising is the amount of emails that I receive that have something inherently... More

I feel like I'm on a 'testing' crusade... every day I receive 20-30 emails from various marketers; some good, some not so good. What continues to be surprising is the amount of emails that I receive that have something inherently wrong with the email.

Today's winner of this prize?

Lucky Brand

As a loyal Lucky customer, I was wearing my Lucky jeans the other day, I was dismayed to find this morning's email image broken.

Solution: It is really simple to avoid these issues. Step one is to simply test the email prior to sending it - most importantly, test the email in different email clients and browsers, as your testing results may vary.

Take a look at the creative below... If you don't notice it right away, focus in on the feet of the people in the image - a bit off, wouldn't you say?


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Sometimes I receive emails from marketers and I have an overwhelming desire to call them up and offer our creative services for free because what I'm looking at is such a missed opportunity. I actually followed through on this impulse... More

Sometimes I receive emails from marketers and I have an overwhelming desire to call them up and offer our creative services for free because what I'm looking at is such a missed opportunity. I actually followed through on this impulse recently with a fellow 'expert' in the space who writes a weekly email newsletter that is well published and horribly designed. Unfortunately he couldn't take me up on the offer due to internal politics, but I'll save that story for another time...

Today's email from Enterprise Rental Car is an example of that overwhelming desire...

Take a look at the creative:


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Yes, even email marketers make mistakes... but this one could have easily been avoided with a little bit of testing....The MistakeThe classic "Dear {blank}," - the {blank} being the absence of the first name of the subscriber receiving the message.The... More

Yes, even email marketers make mistakes... but this one could have easily been avoided with a little bit of testing....

The Mistake
The classic "Dear {blank}," - the {blank} being the absence of the first name of the subscriber receiving the message.

The Email Marketer
Constant Contact

The Solution
Fellow Email Marketers, please, please test your messages before deploying them!

See my previous posts on this topic:
Spiegel - Why do marketers not QA their emails?!?
Marketing Sherpa - Subject Line and Body Confusion
John McCain: One Step Forward, One Step Back

I could add the obligatory plug for our small business solution, Yesmail Direct, but that would be too much...

Take a look at the creative:




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Many websites have the ability to 'shop by' all sorts of different methods...Shop by priceShop by department or categoryShop by brandShop by genderBuckle, a multi-channel retailer specializing in casual apparel, footwear, and accessories, has the ability to 'shop by color'.... More

Many websites have the ability to 'shop by' all sorts of different methods...

Shop by price
Shop by department or category
Shop by brand
Shop by gender

Buckle, a multi-channel retailer specializing in casual apparel, footwear, and accessories, has the ability to 'shop by color'. Taking it to the next level, they had a fantastic email last week touting their 'green' product line with the ever desirable pitch to be "Irish for a Day".

I love the fact that the sales links take you directly to the 'green' products.

A nice, clever way of sprucing up a standard promotion and leveraging the fact that St. Patrick's Day is only a week away.

An example of the creative is below:

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Check out this subject line from gDiapers:  go ga ga for new little g pantsHard not to open an email with a subject line like that!Check out the creative:... More

Check out this subject line from gDiapers:  go ga ga for new little g pants

Hard not to open an email with a subject line like that!

Check out the creative:

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If you haven't had the chance to visit the new Skittles.com site - now is the time.The brand has completely revamped their site in a way that fully embraces the world of Social Media. For starters, the home page now... More

If you haven't had the chance to visit the new Skittles.com site - now is the time.

The brand has completely revamped their site in a way that fully embraces the world of Social Media. For starters, the home page now has a widget like device in the upper left corner that features the standard navigation, a rotating image, and other legalese (or "gobbledygook", as they reference it).

Each navigation element is fully integrated with a different social media leader.

Products Navigation: Direct links to Wikipedia's page on each product
Media Navigation: Direct links to YouTube for video and flickr for photos
Chatter Navigation: Direct links to Twitter
Friends Navigation: Direct links to Facebook.

In fact the only page that is actually Skittles hosted content is the "Contact" navigation.

The strategy is bold. Skittles has effectively said that they will use the respective social media sites to publish content updates and to interact with their consumers. Given that they have over 585,000 Facebook friends it will be fun to watch the strategy unfold. Less

Such a shame that a great promotion and partnership message could be so horribly treated...Yesterday Tide TotalCare and The Limited partnered to offer a nice promotion: $30 off your $100 purchase or $20 off your $60 purchase for the next... More

Such a shame that a great promotion and partnership message could be so horribly treated...

Yesterday Tide TotalCare and The Limited partnered to offer a nice promotion: $30 off your $100 purchase or $20 off your $60 purchase for the next two weeks and receive a free sample of Tide TotalCare. The offer is valid online or in-store. To redeem the offer you have to make a purchase at The Limited.

Given that the email was sent to Tide's subscriber list, I'm sure the partner negotiations between the two groups were significant. It is a shame that more companies don't consider partnership opportunities via email; however, the T&C's tend to get in the way of making it easy.

So we have a great promotion and a great partnership - no easy feat.

Yet, despite these items the email completely bombs due to the horrible 1990 designed creative...

Am I wrong? Take a look and let me know your thoughts on it.


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Steinmart is running a nice tie-in with the Salvation Army this week.  Essentially when you bring in a clothing donation to Steinmart for Salvation Army they will give you 4 coupons good for 20% off any one item. As Steinmart... More

Steinmart is running a nice tie-in with the Salvation Army this week.  Essentially when you bring in a clothing donation to Steinmart for Salvation Army they will give you 4 coupons good for 20% off any one item. As Steinmart is using email exclusively to drive subscribers into their physical stores, this is a great further incentive to help people visit the store initially. The coupons then reinforce the need to come back. I'm sure Steinmart, like many offline retailers know that once someone is physically in the store the chance of them purchasing goes up exponentially.

It is always smart to find ways to link your program to great causes. Too few marketers do it successfully. This is a great example of one doing it well.

A copy of the email is below:

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Today Newport News launched a nice campaign driving new sign-ups for their new Femme Chino line. The call to action, pretty simple: Enter today to be one of the first 100 to receive a free pair of new Femme Chinos.There... More

Today Newport News launched a nice campaign driving new sign-ups for their new Femme Chino line. The call to action, pretty simple: Enter today to be one of the first 100 to receive a free pair of new Femme Chinos.

There are several pros and cons with a campaign of this type:

Pros

• A lot of new information will be collected on existing subscribers and potentially new subscribers who are specifically interested in the Femme Chine line.
• Indication of who is the most responsive to their emails - by speed to respond. An interesting targeting segment for future campaigns - "those most likely to open first"...

Cons

• Many of those signing up may simply be doing so because there is a free give-away - diluting the value of those that sign-up tied to real interest.

A hosted version of the email can be found here and a screen shot below:

The sign-up form is here.

After signing up they promised a follow-up campaign letting me know if I won. It would have been nice to have received the follow-up campaign immediately, but as of an hour after signing up it still hasn't arrived.

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