"Quality is not an act. It is a habit." -Aristotle
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Improve Your Online Small Business Profits
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In the email industry there are always concerns that email
is losing its effectiveness. Today I'll review 6 top email
marketing myths and address their validity.
1) Social Networks are making email less relevant.
False
If you've ever registered for a Social Network you'll
notice that they always ask for your email address.
And how do these networks communicate with you?
Email, of course!
What's more Social Networks often ask for your email
address book so they can email your contacts.
If email was being replaced by Social Networks, would
these networks rely on email so heavily to communicate?
No. Email remains the top communication tool online.
Surveys show that Internet users still engage in email more
than any other online application. According to a Pew
Internet & American Life Project survey 91% of Internet
users between the ages of 18 and 64 send or read e-mail,
far more than visit any social network.
While Social Networks are a great new source of traffic
for marketers, do not believe for an instant that they
are replacing email.
2) Mobile marketing trumps email.
False
A point often highlighted is the younger generation
constant uses of mobile devices to communicate. But
once these individuals start work they become tied to
a computer and desk just like the rest of us.
Guess what?
Once you're at a desk with a PC you use regular old email.
What's more most individuals with mobile devices don't
appreciate your promotions.
Data plans cost money and getting interrupted for a
promotion on your mobile device has a much more
negative impact than positive one.
Stick with regular email marketing for now. Sure, mobile
devices are growing in popularity but most mobile users
have a PC as well. Don't fall for the hype that mobile
marketing is essential to your success.
Email remains a critical online promotional tool. Use
mobile marketing as an adjunct, when appropriate to
your email marketing.
3) Email deliverability continues to challenge email marketers.
True
The DMA recently reported declines in delivery rates. ISPs
constantly implement tougher and tougher standards for
getting email through to their users.
For example just this January, Yahoo! announced on their
blog the use of three blocklists administered by Spamhaus
to filter their incoming mail. They also have taken steps
to stop all mail sent from dynamic IP addresses.
If you're still trying to use a desktop mailer to send out
your emails, you will be stopped cold by the updated
Yahoo! filter.
Now more than ever it is clear that if you're looking to
email your prospects and your customers, you need to use
an email service provider (ESP).
ESPs handle your list management for you, removing
undeliverables and unsubscribes promptly - an essential
part of good delivery. They also continually monitor their
delivery and work with ISPs to ensure their email goes
through. They do the hard work so you don't have to.
If you aren't using an ESP, be sure to check out our own
SendFree.com autoresponder and list mailing services -
http://www.sendfree.com
4) Update coming to CAN Spam Act of 2003
True
While no major changes are anticipated, there is
discussions that Congress is going to change the
unsubscribe ruling.
Currently, emailers have 10 business days to remove
a name from a list. It is expected lawmakers will reduce
the time to three days to honor opt out requests.
Make sure the your email marketing is prepared for this
upcoming change so you're not caught breaking the law.
5) Hispanics have higher open response to email
True
If you're looking to expand your customer base, 2008 is
a great time to consider translating your emails and web
site into the Spanish language.
Here are some quick stats that make reaching out to the
Hispanics community very attractive.
* Size: 16.5 million (37% of total population)
* Growth rate (new users coming online): 12% per year
* Median income: $40,000
* Hours spent online: 9.2/week
* Welcome email from companies they know: 11 x/month
( Non-Hispanic consumers only open these emails 7.4 x/month)
Yes, you read that last point correctly, the Hispanic
marketplace is more receptive to email marketing than the
general population.
If you are going to tap into this rapidly growing online
group you need to be aware of two points.
1.Beware of online translators. They do not provide a good
translation source.
Rather invest in a hiring a translator who knows the
language and the culture. Consider using a service such
as elance.com or getafreelancer.com to find a good cost
effective translation solution.
2. Understand the cultural differences and preferences of
the Hispanic population so you can modify your emails
and translated site accordingly.
Consider reading the study done by CapturaGroup and
Idiom - Connecting With the US Hispanic Market Online
http://www.capturagroup.com/CapturaGroup_Idiom_Connecting_USHispanics_Online_June2006.pdf
6) You do not need to bother testing or tracking.
False
Email marketing success is all about testing and tracking
results.
If you are not testing to see what ads and messages
generate most traffic and sales you are loosing business.
Just this week, one of our CustomLead (http://www.customlead.com )
advertisers contacted me to remark on how many great
new leads he was collecting for his email list. He said his
response in January has been much higher than in the fall
and he wanted to know if we were doing anything
differently.
I informed him our CustomLead services were working
exactly the same and reminded him that he had changed up
his ad copy at the beginning of January.
The result of the ad copy change was a 3 fold increase in
the daily leads he was collecting for his offer to build
his list. He was astonished that an ad copy change could
make such a difference.
Here are the 2 ads:
Old Ad -
Great Opportunity to Make Money on Auto Pilot!
We close all sales. Contact us for more details and be sure
to confirm. $1200 Start Up Investment Business!
New Ad -
Collect YOUR share of the exploding Moneyline Pool tonight!
The faster you take action the MORE MONEY you will
earn as hundreds of people are forced to join below YOU
in real time!
Having been in the email marketing business for 10+ years,
I'll tell you first hand - ad copy, email copy, landing page
copy can all dramatically effect your results.
Notice how the old ad is restrictive and focuses more on
making the prospect confirm and acknowledge a large start
up cost.
The new ad focuses on the benefits - easy, fast and effective.
The result is the new ad pulls in more leads and
interestingly these new leads are purchasing at a
higher rate than those leads from the old ad.
Benefit rich ad copy and email messages will always out
pull ads and messages that focus on features and
restrictions!
If you're looking to improve your results in 2008 start
running some tests. I bet you'll find certain ads, offers
and landing pages pull in better results than others.
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Abbie Drew
DEMC Editor
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