Email Marketing By the Numbers E-Book

Chris Baggott

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 411

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2011

Beschreibung

Praise for EMAIL MARKETING by the NUM8ERS "At last-a book that marketers can use to gain real respect from CFOs and CEOs who care about the bottom line. Baggott, author of the award-winning blog 'Email Marketing Best Practices,' clearly explains how to make your campaigns perform measurably better. The secret's in your test results." --Anne Holland, President, MarketingSherpa "Despite its proven power, email marketing receives a fraction of the attention given to other, fancier media. This week you'll probably hear far more about mobile videocasting (or some such fashion) than you will about email marketing. You can help correct this imbalance by reading this book." --Rory Sutherland, Vice Chairman, Ogilvy Group, London, UK "Baggott's wonderful new direct marketing book is loaded with practical advice and recommendations from some of the best minds in the industry. Email Marketing by the Numbers should be read by everyone in the industry who wants to profit from acquiring and retaining customers." --Arthur Middleton Hughes, Vice President/Solutions Architect, Knowledge Base Marketing, and author of Strategic Database Marketing "Amidst the confusion and changing landscape of the Web, Baggott is one of the clear thinkers who can cut through the hype and help you understand how to drive revenues through the use of marketing technology." --Scott Burkey, Business Development Executive, Definition 6 "Baggott is the ultimate Web 2.0 entrepreneur who takes Email 2.0 to a new level. In Email Marketing by the Numbers, he gives marketers instructions for creating one-to-one conversations with prospects and customers. This book should be on the desk of every marketer in every company, big or small." --Scott Maxwell, founder, OpenView Venture Partners

Leseprobe

Table of Contents

Title Page

Copyright Page

Introduction

CHAPTER 1 - WHAT IS MARKETING’S GOAL?

LTV LESSON ONE

LTV LESSON TWO

LTV LESSON THREE

LTV LESSON FOUR

LTV LESSON FIVE

WHAT ARE OTHER MARKETERS THINKING?

CHAPTER 1 REVIEW

CHAPTER 2 - IS EMAIL THE PERFECT MARKETING TOOL?

WHAT DOES ALL OF THIS HAVE TO DO WITH EMAIL MARKETING?

FOUR REASONS WHY EMAIL IS A PHENOMENAL MARKETING MEDIUM

EMAIL IS A GREAT EQUALISER—SIZE AND BUDGET REALLY DON’T MATTER

WHAT ARE OTHER MARKETERS THINKING?

CHAPTER 2 REVIEW

CHAPTER 3 - WHAT’S WRONG WITH EMAIL?

SO WHAT’S THE BIG PROBLEM WITH FREQUENCY AND REACH CAMPAIGNS?

WHAT ARE OTHER MARKETERS THINKING?

CHAPTER 3 REVIEW

CHAPTER 4 - SUBSCRIBER ENGAGEMENT: WHAT MATTERS?

EMAIL ENGAGEMENT CHECKLIST

EMAIL ENGAGEMENT CHECKLIST: HANDHELD DEVICES

SOME EMAILS ARE MORE PRONE TO ENGAGEMENT THAN OTHERS

WHAT TO DO WHEN LIST QUALITY IMPACTS ENGAGEMENT

THE FINAL ENGAGEMENT RULE YOU MUST REMEMBER

WHAT ARE OTHER MARKETERS THINKING?

CHAPTER 4 REVIEW

CHAPTER 5 - BUILDING A KILLER DATABASE

EMAIL COLLECTION: WHAT NOT TO DO

PERMISSION AND OPT-IN ARE SYNONYMOUS

IT ALL STARTS WITH EMAIL ADDRESS ACQUISITION ...

BEYOND THE EMAIL ADDRESS

WHAT ARE OTHER MARKETERS THINKING?

CHAPTER 5 REVIEW

CHAPTER 6 - SEGMENTING FOR RELEVANCE

BASIC SEGMENTATION 101: WHAT IS IT?

WHAT BEHAVIOR SHOULD YOU LOOK FOR?

RECOMMENDED SEGMENT: THE “BEST”

THE SUBSCRIBER BASE AS AN ASSET

BUILDING VALUE

SEGMENTATION AND TARGETING METHODOLOGIES

WHAT ARE OTHER MARKETERS THINKING?

CHAPTER 6 REVIEW

CHAPTER 7 - FINDING AND CREATING RELEVANT CONTENT

WARNING: CONSUMERS WILL REVOLT AGAINST IRRELEVANT CONTENT!

HOW DO I CREATE RELEVANT CONTENT?

BUILDING OR SOURCING RELEVANT CONTENT IS NOT NECESSARILY MORE WORK

WHAT ARE OTHER MARKETERS THINKING?

CHAPTER 7 REVIEW

CHAPTER 8 - THE ROLE OF EMAIL IN VIRAL AND WORD-OF-MOUTH MARKETING

WHAT ARE OTHER MARKETERS THINKING?

CHAPTER 8 REVIEW

CHAPTER 9 - ANALYTICS THAT MATTER

WHAT SHOULD YOU MEASURE?

WHAT ARE OTHER MARKETERS THINKING?

CHAPTER 9 REVIEW

CHAPTER 10 - TESTING AGAINST YOUR GOALS

WHAT SHOULD YOU TEST?

GETTING STARTED WITH YOUR TEST

MULTIVARIATE TESTING

WHAT ARE OTHER MARKETERS THINKING?

CHAPTER 10 REVIEW

CHAPTER 11 - USING SURVEYS, FORMS, AND OTHER FEEDBACK TOOLS

SO WHAT’S THE ISSUE WITH SURVEYS?

PRIVACY

CHAPTER 11 REVIEW

CHAPTER 12 - TRIGGERS, TRANSACTIONS, AND INTEGRATION

THE EXPERTS WEIGH IN

CHAPTER 12 REVIEW

CHAPTER 13 - ARE YOU A SPAMMER?

WHAT ARE OTHER MARKETERS THINKING?

CHAPTER 13 REVIEW

INDEX

Copyright © 2007 by Chris Baggott. All rights reserved.

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.

Published simultaneously in Canada.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:

Baggott, Chris.

Email marketing by the numbers : how to use the world’s greatest marketing tool to take any organization to the next level / Chris Baggott. p. cm.

ISBN 978-0-470-12245-7 (cloth)

1. Internet marketing. 2. Electronic mail systems. I. Title.

HF5415.1265.B29 2007

658.8’72—dc22

2007002737

INTRODUCTION

BY THE NUMBERS: WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT?

Marketers, it’s time to let go. Say goodbye to intangibles and opinions. Wave adios to feelings and gut instinct—you know, that reason your boss used when you asked him why the color green would work for your brochure.

Repeat this adage with me: “Half my marketing dollars are wasted. I just don’t know which half.” Okay, it’s the last time you’ll ever say those words. It’s the last time you’ll take a leap of faith or look into your crystal ball and make a wild prediction.

I know that making marketing decisions based on feelings and intuition seems natural. And that traditional marketing, branding activities, and expensive professional services can be alluring. They’re comfortable. So comfortable, in fact, that they seem right to a lot of organizations. Here is one of my favorite lines from Thomas Paine’s Common Sense: “A long habit of not thinking something wrong gives it a superficial appearance of being right.”

Yet, there is a new era of marketing unfolding. One based on data, analysis, and what people actually do rather than what they feel or say. It’s time to say “no” to what may feel comfortable and “yes” to the facts.

As humans, we like to think we are interesting. Complex. The reality is that we typically repeat the same behavior over and over again. Take me, for example. This morning, I read the paper. I drank Starbucks coffee. I listened to my iPod while doing both. And guess what? I’ll do the same thing tomorrow.

That’s why action and behavior are such great predictors of future behavior. As a coffee drinker today, I’m a lot more likely to drink coffee tomorrow. Or, at least a lot more likely than my neighbor who never drinks coffee.

I’m continually baffled as to why so many coffee companies waste their time and money talking to noncoffee drinkers. That’s the problem with traditional mass marketing advertisements. Every time you run one of these campaigns, you’re spending most of your effort in the wrong places; hoping that if you expose yourself to a big enough audience, you’ll find a few new coffee drinkers to make it all worthwhile.

Successful marketing means compelling people to act. We don’t run ads for our health or to keep the publishing industry alive. We do it because, as marketers, we are responsible for making people do something.

Fortunately for us, this new era of marketing means lots of room for progress and improvement. It is based on the principles of relationships, metrics, and analysis. And tools like email marketing make it easy to embrace these principles.

The transition to this new marketing mindset will be tough for many marketers. Just think—by reading this Introduction, you already have an advantage.

I hope you’re ready to learn and improve. No matter what size organization you come from, how big a budget you have, or what your specialty is, all of the strategies and tactics in this book are 100 percent doable.

Ever followed those “Paint by Numbers” instructions? Even the worst artist can get awfully close to painting a Picasso. This book is the “Paint by Numbers” of email marketing. It contains the step-bystep instructions you need to accomplish your goals, create better relationships, and move your organization to a higher level.

Because this book is designed to educate marketers from all types of organizations—large companies, small companies, nonprofits, associations, religious and educational organizations, and more—I frequently refer to your audience as “constituents.” I’m hoping the term is a catchall for everyone you’re hoping to influence and build better relationships with.

As much as I like providing my own perspective in the coming chapters, I’ve also reached out to individuals at a variety of organizations who will share their personal perspectives and experiences, too. At the end of most chapters, you’ll find their unaltered words in the section titled “What Are Other Marketers Thinking?”

If you’re anything like me, you crave proof as much as you crave Starbucks coffee. That’s why I’ve also included some case studies that clearly demonstrate the power of email. What I love about case studies is that, regardless of industry or size, the tactics are relevant to nearly every organization. So take a deep breath and relax ... let go of your past marketing mentality. Are you void of feelings, intuition, and preconceived notions? Good. We’re ready to begin.

CHAPTER 1

WHAT IS MARKETING’S GOAL?

Relationships. The goal of all organizations is a better relationship with their constituents.

We (marketers) are all looking for long-term, mutually beneficial relationships. We want relationships in which our constituents overlook our minor imperfections, appreciate our subtle differences, and commit to us as much as we do to them. Sounds sort of like the ideal spouse, right?

It is impossible to do a better job explaining how we should view our marketing relationships than Seth Godin did in his amazing book Permission Marketing (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1999). With all due respect, I’ll paraphrase him: As marketers, we usually don’t approach our customers like we would approach a potential spouse, do we? No, we’re more like a drunken frat boy at his first freshman mixer. Most marketers approach customers and prospects more intent on the one-night stand than the long-term relationship. We know it’s wrong ... but we do it anyway.

A lot of good things happen when you build better relationships. People tend to stay around longer, they become more engaged, and they tell their friends about the great relationship that they’re in.

Want to argue this simple premise? Do you think marketing’s goal should be customer acquisition? Higher sales? Lower turnover? Successful campaigns to sell more widgets?

Guess what? If you focus on the relationship, all of those good things will happen.

The funny thing is that relationship marketing has more traditional roots than many of us care to admit. It’s mass marketing that is the recent corrupter.

In a letter from Rory Sutherland, vice chairman and creative director of OgilvyOne, he states: “It is the intervening age of broadcast, interruption-based communication that is out of step with today’s consumer controlled media world, and it is the people who’ve grown up in that world who find themselves most wrong-footed.”

Excellent point. Our grandfathers knew the value of relationship marketing, whether it was door-to-door selling or acting like Sam (the butcher) from the Brady Bunch. Take the time to get to know your customers as individuals. Pay attention to them. Talk to them like human beings (and show them you are a human being rather than an institution).