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MAXIMIZING E‐MAIL

Mark Davis

BlackbaudDirector Enterprise Internet Solutions

Friday, January 13, 2012

www.netwitsthinktank.com

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DON’T CONF US E COMM UNICAT ION CHANNE L W IT H G IV ING CHANNE L

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direct mailother offlineemail

PREFERRED GIVING CHANNEL

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79%

Source: 2011 donorCentrics Internet & Multichannel Giving Benchmarking Report

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prefer emailprefer another channel

PREFERRED COMMUNICATION CHANNEL

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69%

Source: The Cygnus Donor Survey 2011

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WHAT ARE WE DOING?

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S UCCE S S F UL E MAIL MARKE T ING

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“Attention is a bit like real estate, in that they're not making any more of it.

Unlike real estate, though, it keeps going up in value.”

Seth Godin, Seth Godin’s Blog

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FOUR KEY STEPS TO EFFECTIVE EMARKETING

Segment

Develop

Send

Test

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Step One:

Segment

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• Think about your overall goals

• Reflect on how email enhances yourmulti-channel marketing strategy

• Decide who to target and when- Age- Member / Non-member- Participant/Non-participant- Interests

• Get permission (or at least understand what it means to have it)

AS YOU BEGIN…

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• Start with a calendar

• Think about the types of messages you send

• Include every office that wants to send messages

• How can messages be combined or complement each other?

• What data do you need to collect to improve your coordination?

ESTABLISH A PLAN

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• Click-through rates 2x as high first 30 days*• Open rates (7%) and click-through rates (80%) increased**• Provide value• Connection

• Without relevant content, risk:- Level of engagement- Lack of attention- Decreased response- Weakened relationship

*MarketingSherpa "Email Marketing Benchmark Guide 2008”

**MailerMailer 2010 Email Marketing Metrics Report

• *2009 eNonprofit Benchmarks Study, NTEN & M+R• **MailerMailer 2010 Email Marketing Metrics Report

DELIVER TARGETED CONTENT

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UDM ALUMNI NEWSLETTER

Audience Open rateSchool of Architecture 23.5%

Engineering Grads 18.9%

Non-Personalized 1st Paragraph 11.9%

School of Architecture

Engineering Grads

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Step Two:

Develop

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VOICE AND TONE

“Just as you have a unique set of fingerprints, you also have a unique voice…”

Source: Barbara ScottTheRovingEditor.blogspot.com

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FIND YOUR VOICE

Familiar Passionate Honest Authentic Reflective

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CHOOSE YOUR TONE

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MARKETING YOUR MISSION 101

•What do we want from people?

• How do we reach out to people?

• Where/how do we let people participate?

• What is given in exchange for support?

Product

Place

Price

Promotion

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THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND WITH DESIGN…

• Design for the preview pane —align content to the left

• Avoid calls-to-action within images

• Avoid large blocks of text — work toward “scan-ability”

• Link to a web-based version of your email at the top

• Test emails in multiple browsers before sending, including:

- Internet Explorer

- Firefox

- Safari

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NOT ALL ABOUT THE PICTURES

• Only 19% of your newsletter gets fully read

• 35% of readers scan only a small part, often just the first two words of the headline

• 67% of readers completely skip introductory text at the top

• Average amount of time readers spend after opening: 51 seconds

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DESIGN GUIDELINES

■ Consistent, recognizable send-from address & subject

■ Look remains consistent from issue to issue

■ Tell A Friend and Donate links above the fold

■ Excerpt-style newsletter, with monthly headline feature

■ Headlines and features change from month to month

■ Speaks to reader through clear calls to action

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DESIGN GUIDELINES TEMPLATE

• Top-priority links & branding consistent from month to month

• Headlines & graphics change, but general dimensions stay the same

• Color scheme may change, but structure is consistent

Feature #1

Feature #2

Feature #3

Branding

PersonalizationIn this Issue

Graphic & LeadStory Copy

Second Headline

Graphic & SecondStory Copy

Donate Link

First Headline

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Source: Morgan Stanley http://www.slideshare.net/CMSummit/ms-internet-trends060710final

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• 64% of executives read majority of email on mobile devices

• Include a compelling call to action in the first 15-25 characters of your subject line

• Avoid “top heavy” images in the design

• Use “alt-tags” on images

• In addition to testing email browsers, test messages in handheld devices

blackberry

Source: Marketing Sherpa

DESIGNING FOR MOBILE DEVICES

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Step Three:

Send

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CREATE COMPELLING MESSAGES

Recognizable “From” or “Sender” address

Creative, descriptive & invitingsubject line

Concise, relevant content

Compelling call to action

Supporting landing page(s)

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RECOGNIZABLE “FROM” OR “SENDER” ADDRESS

If readers don’t recognize you, they are likely to flag your message as spam.

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HOW IMPORTANT IS THAT HEADER?

• 80% of respondents decide whether to click on the "Report Spam" or "Junk" button without opening the actual message

• 73% based that decision on the "From" name

• 69% based the decision on the subject line

Source: Email Sender and Provider Coalition (ESPC) study

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SUBJECT LINE “DO’S”

• Limit the subject line to 25-35 characters

• Avoid using "$", "!" and ALL CAPS in the subject line

• Personalize whenever possible

• Colon Power: Use it to place the most important key word first

• Remember, “the best subject lines tell what is inside; the worst subject lines sell what is inside.”

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CONCISE, RELEVANT CONTENT DESIGNED TO BE READ ONLINE

Even though you aren’t paying printing costs, you can’t skimp on careful writing.

Excellent content is important!

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CREATING A COMPELLING CALL-TO-ACTION

• Your call-to-action should compel your readers to do something

• Give readers a sense of excitement and urgency

• Use specific, action-oriented language

• Say it early and repeat often

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• Answer What + Why + Where (or When)

• Instead of images, use table cells with background color

• Include it early, then again

• Track where clicks occur (www.nonprofit.org/donate#intro)

CALLS TO ACTION

Not Compelling Compelling

Speak up now Speak up now to stop the bloodshed in Syria

Donate now Donate now to feed those starving in Somalia

Register Register to ride in honor of cancer patients

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USE LANDING PAGES TO BOOST RESPONSE

• Keeps email content more concise and interesting

• Lets recipients learn more before they must decide to take action

• Easier to track interest of recipients

• Creates a consistent message across all marketing vehicles

• Improves search engine optimization

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Step Four:

Test

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TEST TO MAKE IT BEST

• What are your goals?- More readers- Engagement- Donations

• Common metrics- Web traffic- Open rates- Click-throughs- Conversion

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ELEMENTS TO TEST

• Subject Line- Length, call to action,

personalization• Call-to-action- Placement, number, urgency of

language, font/color• Graphics- Position, complexity, style

• Landing pages- Pre-population of forms, length,

navigation options

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PICKING A WINNER

• Send all email at the same time:

- 10/10 then 80

• Make clear notes about what you're testing

• Wait at least 48 hours before declaring a winner- 75% of people will open an email in the first 28 hours; the remaining 25% may take several days

• The more you test, the more you'll learn – be sure to use what you learn!

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We know what you’re thinking….

“easier said than done!”

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FIVE THINGS YOU CAN DO TOMORROW

• Audit one of your emails for the four Ps. - Is your value proposition

clear?- How about Place and

Price? (If youwant someone to do something, you need these!)

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FIVE THINGS YOU CAN DO TOMORROW

• Plan a single item to test in your next email. - (Hint: The subject line

is easy and sometimes has dramatic results!) 2

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FIVE THINGS YOU CAN DO TOMORROW

• Check your next (or last) email in a different browser.- Bonus points for

a mobile device! 3

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FIVE THINGS YOU CAN DO TOMORROW

• Write (or rewrite) your welcome email.- Does it offer

something or motivate a next action? 4

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FIVE THINGS YOU CAN DO TOMORROW

• Create a new segment to test in your next campaign.- Try a completely

unique message to people who have given their email address but never taken action.

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THANK YOU!

Please feel free to contact me:

Mark.davis@blackbaud.com

@mcdavis7

843-654-2575