Admail’s Accu Trak delivers key information to help you determine what is or isn’t working in your campaigns. Recently I attended the Marketing Sherpa Annual Conference, during one session the presenter said: While vast amounts of information and tracking that information are available, sometimes you have to ask yourself “Do I really need it?”. Clients many times want to track every minute detail to the moment of yes, Analytic Paralysis. Just because you can think of it does not always mean you can use it. Sometimes it really boils down to having a better understanding of what is in front of you.

A prime example of this is, another seminar I recently attended with an “E-mail Marketing expert” told the audience that email marketing was getting tougher because one; Open Rates where falling and two; excess junk in recipients inboxes.

Let’s cover open rates first. The fact open rates are falling isn’t that email marketing is not working it is that the technology has changed. In 2005 Microsoft began blocking Images by default and other email software makers have since followed suit. Many of you I am sure have noticed the Load Images buttons on your email browser or, the “Problems viewing this page click here” link in email header’s.

Opens historically have been tracked by an embedded 1×1 pixel image in HTML emails. What this meant was, once an email was touched upon in a preview window or opened briefly by the recipient – a message was sent back to the sender that the email had been “Opened or Viewed” – but not necessarily read. Therefore as users migrated to the new email client software opens appeared to be  dropping. Which isn’t all bad! What it does mean is that you are now seeing a truer picture, of who is actually reading your emails. Many times people view this as a delivery issue or their email program has become ineffective which isn’t the case!

Before you throw the baby out with the bath water take a look at your click through these are true readers and they moved from the body of your email to your web site for more information.

If you really want to drill down on your ROI either use the Click Through email address to match back on your transactions or upgrade to the Admail.net Custom Fields to pass a campaign Source Code to your shopping cart, you can even tie it into your Google Analytics. But, don’t forget to ask yourself do I really need it or what am I going to do with the number once I have it. Order more widgets?

Information overload can bog you down – if sales are off over analyzing it won’t fix the problem – but a fresh approach can. I have been involved in target marketing for close to thirty years and one thing is for certain what Works – Works! I repeatedly see people and businesses get myriad in statistics that some Guru recommended.  For decades Mutual Funds and Wall Street Analysts have used the disclaimer “Past performance is not a guarantee of future results”. Don’t become a victim of Analytic Paralysis!

The second point, “excessive junk mail” you have a perfect leg up with Admail.net our robust delivery system provides you the perfect options. Send your email during the day or early evening if you are marketing to consumers. If you are working across different time zones use the Interest Groups to break out your members by time zones or use Target Filters to break up your list member by State. For tips and information visit our FAQ section on Email and Spam Blockers.

FACT:
In five seconds or less, your company’s email subject and content will determine whether a customer decides to keep your newsletter or update;  Or flag-it as SPAM.

Try to be deceptive or coy and all of your future email will be trashed. Customers want the facts and it is your responsibility to give it to them. Make the Open-or-Delete decision easy. A well thought out email strategy is a vital part of any traffic-driving effort, and we see a close connection between email frequency and the use of multiple email marketing channels and traffic.  But I am getting ahead of myself; The topic of this post, 5 Seconds You Can’t Afford To Waste!

Can your email answer these questions in two seconds or less?

Who is the e-mail from?

• Keep it familiar.

What’s in it for me?

• Keep your Subject focused.

What do you want me to do?

• A clear course of action.

ACTIONS:
Write clear, not cutesy, subject lines. State the value proposition there, and build on it in the snippet/pre-header text (the first line of text in your message).

State the Details with a clear course action in your email:
Moms (and other shoppers) want to know prices and final costs up front, both the discount and the amount of money saved, not just the percentage off. Some said they were frustrated to find out how expensive shipping was after clicking on the offer and going all the way through the checkout process. That builds distrust in your future messages.

Keep your subject focused, we all know that one of the most important parts of an email campaign is the subject line and everyone is trying to come up with the perfect one.

Here are four subject lines that you should never use in your campaigns or transactional emails. Not only do they violate best practices, but in some cases they break the law. The CAN SPAM ruling states that for any commercial email, you must have your subject line relate to the content of the email.

Subject Line #1 – Hi, My name is Paul
Subject Line #2 – I need your help, please?
Subject Line #3 – Bob, I haven’t received your shipping address yet.
Subject Line #4 – Bob, Please accept my sincerest apology.

These gimmicks to trick the recipient into opening an email are a bad idea. It may raise curiosity, however, when the recipient opens the email they’re going to feel tricked and unsubscribe or worse report your email as SPAM, because these subject lines most likely will not relate at all to the  body copy. You may trigger complaints and attract  the FTC attention for violating CAN SPAM rulings. Subject line #3 is particularly onerous; it seems like the sender is trying to get more information from the recipient. Because it’s personalized, the recipient may actually give it!

CONCLUSION:
Be clear and concise make sure your subject leads the reader to the body of your email. Keep the first portion of the email’s body easily identifiable with your company identity, brand and purpose. It is critical to provide a link to your website in the first paragraph–this lends credibility to your offer and ease of use for your customer. Remember, consumers and business professionals today are bombarded with useless misinformation. They will appreciate (and become more loyal) if you’re accurate and to the point, even if they aren’t placing an order today.

When using your Admail Email Builder Templates with Images – IE 8’s default security setting will ask you “Do you want to view only the webpage content that was delivered securely” and the answer is “No”. If you say yes the unsecured Images in your Template  (photos, logos, etc) will not load and you will find yourself stuck!  See sample screen shot below.

Microsoft Internet Explorer 8 just say No to security warning!

1. Does my subject line entice readers to open?
   They are the most important 8-10 words in your campaign. Make sure yours is a clear, concise introduction that entices your readers to take a look inside.
2. Am I making the most of the preview pane?
   At first glance, many of your recipients will just see the first few inches of your campaign, so make your point and your brand standout, also assume they may not see your graphics USE TEXT!
3. Is my email easy on the eyes?
   With simple, intentional font and style choices, you’ll help grab and keep your readers’ attention.
4. Does the message come through, even if the images don’t?
   Since many email clients don’t automatically display images, balancing yours with text will help you make your point in any display possibility.
5. Does this email have a personal touch?
   Whether it’s with a personalized greeting, warm tone, or specialized content, make sure your email feels like a conversation with people who know you, not a blinding “blast”.
6. Does my email need to be gender specific?
   Fact: Women read, men scan bullets & images – the List Builder “Signup Form” lets you ask and Email Builder “Target Filters” help you target your audience – it only takes a few seconds to ask. For help contact Customer Service.

One question I often hear from clients is “Does text email work?” and invariably I tell them “Text is King.” Why do I say this? Text emails are less likely to be BLOCKED and if the content of the email is important to the recipient it can be just as effective–sometimes even more!

The following is a well thought-out example of a text email newsletter and its layout can be used as guide for non-technical applications as well. The top section summarizes the information covered in the email newsletter. Then the  body offers excerpts and highlights with a link to a more in depth story posted on a website.  There are advantages to leting your website do the heavy lifting, especially with rich media and critical placement of content. In addition to having  more control, articles on your website can prove to be valuable for increasing search engine traffic.

MySQL Newsletter
February 2008
newsletter@mysql.com

Articles in this newsletter:

Highlights:
- Letter from Mårten Mickos, SVP, Database Group, and Rich Green, EVP, Software, Sun Microsystems
- Letter from Jonathan Schwartz, CEO & President, Sun Microsystems
- Press Release: Sun Microsystems Announces Completion of MySQL Acquisition
- MySQL and Sun World Tour
- MySQL and Sun Community Townhall
- Gartner News: Analysis on MySQL Acquisition
- MySQL Conference and Expo 2008 – Register Now
- White Paper: MySQL Enterprise for Managed Hosting & SaaS Providers
- Case Study: Alstom Selects MySQL as a Database Standard for Power Plant Monitoring
- MySQL Jobs

New Product Releases:
- New Release of MySQL Community Server 5.1.23 (Release Candidate)
- New Release of MySQL Community Server 5.0.51a (GA)
- New Release of MySQL Workbench 5.0.14 (Beta)

Hints & Tips:
- Article: A Q&A Session with Mårten Mickos about the Sun Acquisition
- Article: MySQL Information Schema Plugins: the best kept secret of MySQL 5.1
- Article: Reporting MySQL Internals with Information Schema plug-ins
- PlanetMySQL Blog Posts
- PlanetMySQL Blog: Using Events to Manage Table Partitioning by Date: Wrap-up
- PlanetMySQL Blog: PlanetMySQL Blog: Spring cleaning in MySQL supported platforms
- PlanetMySQL Blog: MySQL Cluster Features – What They Are, What They Do
- PlanetMySQL Blog: Analyze This

Events:
- Live Webinar: MySQL Guide to Choosing an Embedded Relational Database (EMEA)
- Live Webinar: MySQL Crazy Data Formats and Multiple Data Sources? Taming Your Messy Mashups

Training, Consulting & Certification:
- Consulting: MySQL Architecture & Design (2+ Days)
- Training: MySQL Performance Tuning (4 Days)

Sun & MySQL Privacy Policy Notice

Highlights

Letter from Mårten Mickos, SVP, Database Group, and Rich Green, EVP, Software, Sun Microsystems

Today, MySQL proudly joins forces with Sun Microsystems, the leading provider of platforms for the Web economy and the largest commercial open source contributor. We thank you – our customers, developers and community members – for your trust and continued support. Our commitment to you is that MySQL will continue to be a leader in the open source community and now, as a part of Sun, we will provide a new level of innovation, service and support.

Read the Letter:
http://mysql.com/news-and-events/sun/marten_mickos.html

Letter from Jonathan Schwartz, CEO & President, Sun Microsystems

Today is a big day for Sun and the MySQL community. We have closed our acquisition of MySQL AB and proudly join forces with this open source icon and the company behind the world’s most popular open source database. Sun already is the leading provider of platforms for the Web economy and the largest commercial open source contributor. As of today, Sun also is a formidable player in the $15 billion database market. We thank you – our joint customers, developers and community members – for making this possible.

Read the Letter:
http://mysql.com/news-and-events/sun/jonathan_schwartz.html

Press Release: Sun Microsystems Announces Completion of MySQL Acquisition

Sun Microsystems, Inc. today announced it has completed the acquisition of MySQL AB, developer of the world’s most popular open source database, for approximately $1 billion in total consideration. Sun also unveiled the immediate availability of MySQL’s complete portfolio of products and enterprise services backed by its 17,000-strong global sales and services organization and its extensive international network of authorized distribution channels. Sun now provides a single, secure choice for customers and developers seeking to put MySQL into deployment on a global basis.

Read the Press Release:
http://mysql.com/news-and-events/sun/

MySQL and Sun World Tour
February – April

We see more and more clients using text again. Since many email programs block images, this is not surprising! If you do not have the time and resources to develop a well planned HTML layout so your email looks professional, both with and without images, it can make you look bad. Text emails are a simple alternative that allow you to focus on your content and what you have to offer.