Create Email Marketing Awesomeness from Design to Delivery
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Learn how to optimize your email marketing ecosystem to improve factors like like strategy, validation, design, development and compliance - for maximum delivery.
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Create Email Marketing Awesomeness from Design to Delivery
- 1. Digital Wavefront - Your Technology Partner for multi-channel marketing Creating Email Awesomeness! Nirmal Parikh @
- 2. Ray Tomlinson Know who this is? @ Wired
- 3. Wikipedia 1971 @ Ray used this machine, a DEC-10, back in 1971 to send his first email. And, have we come a long way since!
- 4. 3.2 billion email accounts 838 billion marketing messages (2013) 3 out of 4 marketers use email marketing for retention 2 out of 3 consumers have made a purchase as a result of an email $1 = $44.25 in email ROI 400+ marketing messages per month Source: ExactTarget, Forrester, DMA, ReturnPath Fast Forward to 2013-14! @
- 5. Email marketing can be very effective It can/does influence purchase decisions and behavior Email is context-agnostic (no matter where, what, when) Email has control over us. Yes, it’s true! We have very little patience & an even smaller attention span We make decisions based on FROM names and subject lines So, What Does All This Mean? @
- 7. @ 1: Strategy There are 3 parts to an email strategy…
- 8. @ film.vic.gov.au Part 1. Your Target Audience
- 9. @ valuablecontent.co.uk Part 2 – Your Content.
- 10. @ ewaydirect.com Part 3: Your Offer.
- 11. 2: Validation @
- 12. Validation > Syntax Checking jon’_@gmail.com <valid [nirmal]@yahoo.com <valid jenny”o”smith@aol.com <not valid @ This is the most basic form of validation that checks email for syntax errors.
- 13. Validation > Spam Traps Re-activated accounts inactiveuser@yahoo.com Re-activated domains user@veryolddomain.com Classic “honeypot” addresses used for seeding donotsend@yahoo.com Investigative myemail@mycompany.com @ So, why do we validate? Well…one of the reasons is to simply to avoid spam traps set up by ISPs.
- 14. Validation > Better Delivery Ratios! Use Case A Start 100 Post-validation 100 Delivered 80 Deliverability 80% Use Case B (validated list) 100 88 80 90% @ -12 Validation is the process of “pinging” an email address w/o actually sending an email; one of the most critical things from a perspective of data hygiene.
- 15. 3: Design @
- 16. Design > Mobile @ 65% 69% 66% Source: ExactTarget, Forrester, DMA, ReturnPath Of email is opened first on a mobile device. 69% delete emails that don’t display correctly on mobile. 66% of Gmail emails are opened on mobile.
- 17. Design > Email Clients @ Client Market Share (based on March 2014 opens) Apple iPhone 26% Outlook 14% Apple iPad 12% Gmail 11% Apple Mail 8% Google Android 7% Outlook.com 6% Yahoo! Mail 5% Windows Live Mail 3% Windows Mail 2% Source: Litmus 53% Mobile email clients have 53% market share.
- 18. From Point & Click to Touch & Scroll Users are accustomed to scrolling Long-form content is perfectly OK! Single-column layout Design for touch accuracy Animated GIFs? Font sizes Design > Optimization @
- 19. @ Here are some email designs that were targeted for and maximized for mobile device compatibility. The common theme across all of them is again “long-form” content and big/bold CTAs.
- 20. 4: Development @
- 21. Standards-compliant <html></html> Email client compatibility Device compatibility Responsive style-sheets (@media queries, CSS3) Image ALT tags Plain-text alternative Email pre-header or Johnson Box Development > HTML @
- 22. Development > Respect the Inbox @ Consider feature advancements and developments with different email clients. Gmail Promotions Tab – List View Gmail Promotions Tab – Grid View For example: your promotional emails may end up in the Gmail promotions tab, but you can maximize that space by designing for grid view.
- 23. 5: Compliance @
- 24. Content Compliance Accurate FROM address Relevant Subject line Physical address of publisher and/or advertiser Unsubscribe Compliance A visible and operable unsubscribe mechanism Opt-out requests are honored within 10 business days Country and Local Legislations • Canadian Anti-Spam Laws (CASL, Jul 1st 2014) • EU Safe Harbor Policies Compliance > CAN-SPAM @
- 25. 6: Devices @
- 26. Devices > Ubiquity @5-6am 8am 6pm 8pm We live in a “multi- screen” and “multi- context” world, constantly switching devices over the course of the day.
- 27. Devices > Context @ Consider the context – when and where your emails will be read.
- 28. Devices > Form Factors @ Consider the different form factors you are targeting. From smartphones with 4-5” screens, to mid-sized tablets, all the way to laptops and wide-screen monitors.
- 29. Devices > Wearable Tech @ The Next Wave? It’s wearable computing. Your emails are going to have to be “wrist-friendly” in the near future.
- 30. 7: Delivery @
- 31. The Subject line is your Elevator Pitch. Master it. 33% of email recipients open email based on subject line alone Try special characters (vFJQRST) Keep it under 70 characters Make it intriguing but relevant Avoid spammy words and phrases FREE, mortgage, insurance, limited time, click now, open immediately, etc. And, PLEASE don't!!! USE UPPERCASE, or a lot of punctuation!!! Delivery > Subject Line Optimization @Source: ExactTarget
- 32. @http://litmus.com/resources/subject-line-checker Check how your subject line will render across different clients and interfaces.
- 33. Delivery > Tactical Considerations Aligning emails with in-home delivery of direct mail Response rates 10% - 30% higher* Acquisition costs 25% - 35% lower* Time-zone localization 9am EST, 9am CST, 9am PST Time-lapsed delivery 9am vs 2pm Weekday vs. Weekend vs. Holiday delivery @
- 34. Delivery > Reputation @Source: ReturnPath Inbox SPAM83% One of the biggest influencers of delivery is your ESP’s and/or server’s IP reputation (affecting delivery by 83%).
- 35. Sender Score https://senderscore.org Use this as a resource to check your sender score.
- 36. Delivery > Calibrating Sender Score No volume = No reputation = No Sender Score Sudden influx of email = Potential spam 30 days of mailing = +46 Reverse DNS setup = +16 Complaints > 1.5% = -40 Target: < 0.1% Bounce rate > 10% = -40 Spam trap = -40 Source: ReturnPath @ 90+
- 37. Delivery > DNS Records SPF (Sender Policy Framework) v=spf1 mx ip4:72.19.227.112 a:me-ss2-6qydu7.mailengine1.com ~all DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) _domainkey.yourdomain.com IN TXT "t=y; o=~;" k1._domainkey.yourdomain.com IN TXT "k=rsa; p=MIGfMA0GCSqGSIb3DQEBAQUAA4GNADCBiQKBgQDk2qnamPIxlqH4q44Y3ZHutl 00nv83vl5wuR+/dkrwwFqENtsf1vk68QjbblRZ/mtfwoFeQcLrsqiuqQIDAQAB“ Sender Scores of 90-100 are 42% more likely to pass DKIM - ReturnPath @
- 38. Delivery > Choice of ESPs @
- 40. Predictive Modeling > Why? @ Send fewer, more targeted emails Model after positive behavior and “look-alikes” Improve delivery Gain a better reputation & SenderScore
- 42. And That’s How You Create Email Awesomeness! @Digital Wavefront - Your Technology Partner for multi-channel marketing @
- 43. Nirmal Parikh www.digitalwavefront.com @BOSMarketer nirmalp@digitalwavefront.com @Digital Wavefront - Your Technology Partner for multi-channel marketing
Editor's Notes
- How’s everyone doing?
- Anyone knows who this is? …..He’s an iconic figure when it comes to email marketing…He’s the reason why I am able to stand up here and talk to you about email marketing…His name is Ray Tomlinson and he’s universally attributed to have sent the world’s first email.
- Ray used this machine, a DEC-10, back in 1971 to send his first email. And, have we come a long way since!
- So, let’s fast forward to the present…
- So, what constitutes this email marketing ecosystem? Well, there are several elements. Let’s focus on some of the important ones.Strategy – Audience, Offer, Content etc.Validation – Checking for syntax, spam traps etc.Design – Designing for desktop and mobile interfacesDevelopment – Art of creating the HTMLCompliance – CAN-SPAM and other industry-specific regulation if you are in healthcare, insurance or lendingDevices – Diff. form factors that you will need to account forDelivery – The art of deploying the email using an ESPModeling – Finding “look-alikes” to help improve email ROIThe email ecosystem is like an orchestra. Your email ROI depends on all of these factors working together. If you don’t you’re going to get mediocre results at best.
- There are 3 parts to an email strategy…
- Part 1. Your Target Audience > We’ll assume you have already identified your audience.
- Part 2 – Your Content. We’ll also assume that you have a content strategy in place and the content is ready to go.
- Part 3: Your Offer. You’ve already decided on your “special offer” to deliver as anincentive to encourage engagement and click-throughs.We’ll focus the rest of the presentation on the “mechanics” of the email from design to delivery. Plus, strategy is unique to each organization and not universally applicable. So, it takes a more engaged dialogue to put that in place.
- This is the most basic form of validation that checks email for syntax errors.
- So, why do we validate? Well….one of the reasons is tosimply to avoid spam traps set up by ISPs.
- And, it also improves your delivery ratios. Validation is the process of actually “pinging” an email address w/o actually sending an email. It’s one of the most critical things from a perspective of data hygiene.
- So, here’s a distribution of email clients as of March 2014 based on data provided by Litmus.
- Long form content: Give your users more of what they want, which is “Less content”Single-column layout: Try and create single-column emails and minimize the use of images. On occasion, you’ll run into some “designer-headwinds” but you should be able to make your case based on achieving maximum device and email client compatibility.Touch accuracy – What should your button (CTA) size and spacing be? You want to prevent accidental inputs so make sure your buttons are at least 60px tall. The wider the better.Animated GIFs: OL 2007, 2010, 2013 do not support. Windows Phone 7 doesn’t either. Support is better than CSS.Font sizes:
- Here are some email designs that were targeted for and maximized for mobile device compatibility.The common theme across all of them is again “long-form” content and big/bold CTAs.
- Now that you haveyour design ready it’s time to move on to the next step - Development!
- Without getting too technical, let’s review some of the considerations when creating the HTML for your awesome emails!
- Consider feature advancements and developments with different email clients.
- Canadian Anti-spam laws if your audience is up north. Or, EU Safe Harbor policies if your audience happens to be across the Atlantic.You want to consult with your legal team to help guide you.
- We live in a “multi-screen” and “multi-context” world. We’re constantly switching devices over the course of the day. Our mornings begin with our smartphones. Our work day is spent glued to our desks using our phones and laptops. And, when we come home we pretend to relax while checking email on our tablets at night while watching TV. We’ve surrounded ourselves with devices!
- We live in a “multi-screen” and “multi-context” world. We’re constantly switching devices over the course of the day. Our mornings begin with our smartphones. Our work day is spent glued to our desks using our phones and laptops. And, when we come home we pretend to relax while checking email on our tablets at night while watching TV. We’ve surrounded ourselves with devices!
- So, consider the diff. form factors you are targeting. From smartphones with 4-5” screens, to mid-sized (7”-10”) tablets, all the way to laptops and wide-screen monitors for now… I say “for now”…because the next wave of devices is at our doorstep. Can anyone guess what’s next?
- It’s wearable computing. And your emails are going to have to be “wrist-friendly” in the near future.
- This is an important milestone in the process as you prepare to send your email. This is where the “rubber meets the road”.Let’s consider a few delivery or “Inbox” optimization techniques.
- Avoid using spammy words unless you live in Nigeria and are signing off your $100m inheritance.
- You can even check how your subject line will render across different clients and interfaces.
- There are also some tactical considerations to maximize open rates.
- But, one of the biggest influencer of delivery is your reputation. And, by that I mean your ESP’s and/or server’s IP reputation.
- Let’s look at how you can calibrate for maximizing Sender Score
- Let’s look at some things you CAN do to improve your Sender Score. Setting up the right DNS records is a first step.Now, this may look/seem complicated but it isn’t. If you are using an ESP and don’t send using a dedicated IP you are okay. However, if you are sending through a vanity from url/address and using a dedicated IP, you will want to involve your IT folks to help with this setup.
- The goal of predictive modeling is to help you build “look-alikes” or “models” for the future based on historical data and interactions and delivered with a reasonable level of accuracy.
- So, what constitutes this email marketing ecosystem? Well, there are several elements. Let’s focus on some of the important ones.Strategy – Audience, Offer, Content etc.Validation – Checking for syntax, spam traps etc.Design – Designing for desktop and mobile interfacesDevelopment – Art of creating the HTMLCompliance – CAN-SPAM and other industry-specific regulation if you are in healthcare, insurance or lendingDevices – Diff. form factors that you will need to account forDelivery – The art of deploying the email using an ESPModeling – Finding “look-alikes” to help improve email ROIThe email ecosystem is like an orchestra. Your email ROI depends on all of these factors working together. If you don’t you’re going to get mediocre results at best.