When healthy discussions take place in the Email Industry, they tend to give birth to new ideas.  Collectively, we reinforce these ideas by sharing them with our peers through blogs and commentary.  One such discussion covered the collection process of email addresses.   Specifically, the topic was discovering more efficient ways to streamline the collection process among disparate legacy collections systems (many of which have been in place for years).  Morgan Stewart of ExactTarget delivered an excellent piece recently, aptly Three Rules for Email List Growth and Simms Jenkins of Brightwave Marketing penned two articles on ClickZ that may interest you.   Those articles inspired me to share a few thoughts on “future” list growth strategies; enhanced and accelerated through financial institutions.

 

The size of your list matters, but so does the quality.   And as your budget to grow your list increases or decreases, finding ways to replace unsubscribed addresses becomes more important than ever, because you run the risk of lower returns from your email channel.  To potentially erase these deficits, we must create ways to replenish lists with sterile data and accelerate list growth.   Economically speaking, with respect to list sizes, a sustained upward/downward trend in list sizes may be a key economic indicator of the overall health of the email industry. 

 

That said, financial institutions carry vast amounts of data on users’ purchase behavior.  Your institution knows how often you travel, which retail stores you frequent, and how much you spend annually at your favorite restaurants.  Additionally, they keep track of your verified email address.  Because financial institutions collect this type of data, the list growth challenge may be overcome by forward-looking credit card companies, who in my opinion will eventually become chief suppliers for approved merchants who seek to build a permission based opt-in list of highly relevant verified email addresses. 

 

Financial Institutions, key to buoyant List-Growth

 

The term co-registration makes me want to cringe, given that sometimes the collection process may not often deliver the desired results for the merchant in terms of relevancy.  The challenge here is often that new subscribers generated through co-registration agreements;  are not as engaged with your site/brand/products/services as someone who signed up at your own site.  But if you are fueled by enhanced engagement, automation, clean data and profound relevancy, then imagine this:

 

When you receive your credit card statement via email, you will immediately link to a list of approved merchants with whom you have conducted business. These merchants have already applied, were approved, and gave explicit permission to the credit card company to collect and confirm opt-in email addresses on their behalf.  When subscribers receive their monthly transactional statement, they can navigate to a dedicated landing page that is devoted to approved merchants based on past purchase behavior.  The list of approved merchants will be featured, and subscribers will be asked to indicate whether they wish to receive incentives and/or immediate benefits from any or all of them. When you check a box next to a certain merchant, you give your financial institution the right to send your email address directly to your selected merchant to begin a welcome series, confirming the original incentive.

 

This type of list growth strategy is advantageous because of its relevancy, engagement potential, high credibility, and verifiably clean data.  By registering people through an established, credible online identity (financial institutions), this method not only propels the email collection process, but ensures highly relevant and actively engaged subscribers. Merchants will be able to better assess cadence if their delivery messages resonate with subscribers, because subscribers generally respond favorably from merchants they’ve recently conducted business with.

 

Application Process for Merchants

 

Invitations will be sent to pre-approved merchants by Financial Institutions.  These approved merchants will enter into a partnership with the credit card company and will pay the credit card companies a fee, either for each email address collected, or perhaps a performance based annual fee.  Approved merchants may also be given the option for priority placement on the master merchant opt-in preference page during the collection process. 

 

Whenever a subscriber checks a box, the financial institution will forward the email address to the merchant.  If the consumer chooses to use a different email address, a verification of that email address will the responsibility of the financial institution, thereby ensuring that the merchant receives clean data.  For example, let’s say you shopped at Nordstrom three times last month, and also purchased an airline ticket with the same credit card.   Assuming Nordstrom and the airline are approved merchants, and based on your activity with the card over the past month, you may see a list of these merchants organized either by how often you shopped, or by the amount that you spent.   If you don’t already receive email newsletters from your preferred merchants, the option will be made available to subscribe by merely checking a box. I envision that some financial institutions may have several approved merchants for you to select.  If, for some reason, you have previously opted-in to receive newsletters from your desired merchants, the option to subscribe will be unavailable (“grayed out”) and the next most relevant merchant will be accentuated.

 

Of course the consumer will have the option to “opt-in/out” of the entire process.  For instance, consumers may be able to choose an option like “don’t offer me any information on 3^rd party email.” In addition, policies for “safeguarding” merchant applications will vary among financial institutions.  Financial institutions will need to exercise diplomacy in their efforts not to disregard merchants who operate purely as brick and mortar businesses.  By the same token, institutions must not exclude merchants who conduct all their business online. 

 

Merchants, Financial Institutions, and Consumers Benefit

 

As is often true in life, all the parties involved with email list growth wonder, “What’s in it for me?”

 

For approved merchants, along with faster list growth, verifiable data, and higher subscriber engagement, various elements provide the potential for optimal relevancy.  Clean data and better engagement lead to higher inbox placement rates, which links to better ROI.  In addition, with list attrition hovering at 30 percent, this method of email address collection is a great way to accelerate list growth for high profile merchants. 

 

For financial institutions, this is one more level of data that they can harness to profile consumers.  Additionally, it offers a significant revenue stream, based on any number of revenue models, regardless of whether financial institutions charge an annual fee or a “per email address” fee.  The question that credit card companies must consider is “Which financial model will merchants feel most comfortable with?”

 

For consumers who don’t yet receive emails from merchants that they frequent, these emails can become a great way for them to capitalize on incentives.  I think incentives can come in a couple of different formats.  Wouldn’t it be great if merchants offered an immediate rebate on their portion of the bill?  So, upon signing up, you’ll receive an immediate credit of $10.00, for example.  Or better yet, give the consumer the option on incentives.  For example, receive an immediate rebate of $10.00 now or get 20% off your next purchase.  Whichever option the consumer chooses, the merchant will send a welcome message confirming that the subscriber has opted in and to receive the chosen incentive.  Being informed of special offers from their favorite merchants will entice subscribers to “opt-in.”

 

The performance of any list growth and retention strategy depends on the quality of data.  The better the data is organized, and the more closely it aligns with the content generated by the merchant, the better any retention marketing program will perform.  Fine tuning your lists and using “reputable” co-registration techniques will generate more revenue from segments.  Using sophisticated list growth strategies such as these prevents email delivery from deteriorating and will have a dramatic lift on engagement. 

 

Questions: What about joint accounts?  Credit Card legislation? Is the concept too reminiscent of Big Brother? Which merchants get invited first?  Which financial institutions will step forward?  These are the questions that will need to be addressed as advancements in email list growth processes mature.

 

Further acknowledgements to Matt Vernhout  of Thin Data for his “smackdown” before publication.   

 

As always Terms and Conditions may applyJ 

 

Fred Tabsharani

Port25 Solutions

@tabsharani

Whether there are dozens or hundreds, the email messages that arrive daily in your inbox vie for a share of your time and attention.  Because of persistent issues with spam, messages face continued scrutiny.  In order to appeal to subscribers, messages must be authentic, carefully crafted with a specific purpose in mind.  The question is, what kinds of messages will catch subscribers’ attention and resonate with them?

 

One type of authentic email messaging is laced with charitable goals and good intentions. Subscribers find the idea of charity emotionally appealing, and they will gain satisfaction when they know that proceeds from purchases of your product or service will ultimately benefit other human beings in need.  The wisdom of partnering with a charity and creating inspirational messaging cannot be overstated.  Charity-related messaging has a proven positive effect on overall brand awareness which transcends generic “sales event” campaigns.

 

The Higher Purpose

 

Buried deep within every organization is a sense of purpose.  That sense of purpose is a voice that reverberates through the minds of conscientious employees.  The voice should be a constant reminder to an organization which perpetually asks, “What is the higher sense of purpose for our company?

 

Created by Dr. Abraham Maslow more than 50 years ago, a sense of purpose is the highest form of self-actualization. Creating email messaging with a higher sense of purpose and aligning your emails with a charitable organization will allow you to develop intimacy with your subscribers.  Advancing, the focus is no longer on a conversation with your subscriber, but instead, there is a deeper connection because both brand and subscriber are working together to reach a common goal associated with a relevant charitable organization.

 

Respected Subscribers = Fewer spam complaints

 

By respecting your messaging, you respect your subscribers.  Rather than bombarding them with mundane “30% off Campaigns,” inform them about noble endeavors, events and/or goals your organization has genuinely organized with your charitable partner. With consistent focus on your charity, the spotlight moves away from your subscribers and gravitates toward your organization’s higher purpose.  In turn, your subscribers will naturally have a higher sense of loyalty and respect toward your brand. Cultivating this type of relationship between your subscribers and your brand will undoubtedly reduce spam complaints and have a positive effect on deliverability.

 

Case studies show that when companies link a purchase to a charitable contribution, awareness increases dramatically.  As subscribers become aware of your charitable intentions, the fewer spam complaints you will receive.  In turn by activating Social Media as an extended channel, brands will dramatically enhance the overall awareness of your efforts by offering greater exposure and endorsement. Charitable efforts yield emotional stories which ignite passion for brands.

 

Play Host and Connect Emotionally

 

Let’s recall that abundance comes from good feelings that result when each encounter in the universe is based on good intentions.  When an organization plays host to a charity, your brand is developing a higher esteem for itself. By extending appreciation toward the charity, your brand becomes a conduit between your subscribers and the charitable organization.  The intention of giving allows your brand to communicate via email on a higher frequency than competitors who are not linked to a charitable cause. Imagine when a few of your subscribers donate directly to your charitable partner through a direct link from your email.  What ensues is a mutually beneficial negotiation with your charitable organization which will actively pursue recipriocation because your subscribers made direct donations, attributable to your brand.

 

The Impact of Charitable Marketing

 

Besides the increased brand awareness, and impact on credibility and consumer perceptions, charitable marketing has also proven to help the bottom line. There are numerous case studies on charitable marketing, but one stat that stands out above the rest is this:  In a recent study by Cone and Duke University found that 87% of consumers said they would switch from one brand to another comparable brand based on its association with a charitable cause.  Also, when consumers were aware of a given company’s charitable efforts, they consistently rated the company more highly in terms of trust, endorsements, bonding, and innovation.

 

So, what’s the best way to align your brand with a charitable organization? Ask your subscribers!

 

The opportunity exists further to develop greater intimacy with your subscribers simply by surveying them? Whittle your list to four and ask your subscribers, which charity they would like your brand to be associated with?  Again, by allowing your subscribers to choose the charity, you are empowering them to make significant decisions about the future of your organization; which is the highest form of respect.  

 

This article was inspired by Melinda Krueger of Ogilvy One.

 

Fred Tabsharani

Port25 Solutions, Inc.

@tabsharani

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Usually, before a couple marries, they engage in hundreds of intimate, layered conversations, in an effort to establish realistic expectations and build a foundation for a successful marriage.  The same principle can and should apply in the context of a business partnership.  As with any partner, in business or otherwise, at the outset of each relationship is a set of clearly defined goals.  Also, and very often unexpectedly, misunderstandings occur and can lead to a painful breakdown in communication, which often leads to resentment and, at times, permanent separation.

At the Email Insider Summit last week, it became evident that, after four exciting holes of Golf on Sanibel Island, it was time to abort because of heavy rain. What followed was a conversation that was far more engaging than golf: it was a conversation that transpired between Jeremy Swift of BlueHornet, Dave Baker of Razorfish and myself about why marketers leave ESPs.

Reason 1: Unrealistic Expectations

According to Dave, the relationship between a marketer and an ESP usually begins to deteriorate after about 18-24 months.  The “marriage” between ESP and marketer goes through a honeymoon phase, during which everything is promised by the ESP to the marketer, including, but not limited to, increased deliverability to the inbox, cannibalistic pricing, dedicated professional services teams and streamlined integration.  Because of the mission-critical nature of email marketing, if these expectations are not satisfactorily met, a breakdown in communication occurs. As a result, resentment ensues, leading to separation and, ultimately, divorce. This course of events has negative effects for both parties; communication breakdowns leave the marketer feeling bewildered and the ESP scrambling to find another client.

What to Do:

Set proper expectations.  Account Managers and professional services teams at competent ESPs must set clear, realistic guidelines outlining what the client should expect over the course of the relationship, including a well defined timetable.  Milestones should be clearly defined at the beginning, and once they are met, they should be celebrated.  Sometimes ESPs can get into a mischief where if the client is hooked, they can capitulate and ultimately flip on pricing since the cost of switching would be prohibitive.  But, as with more casual relationships these days, it’s easy to switch.  Clients don’t have to sign on until death do they part.

Reason 2: Lack of Dedicated Account Management

Let’s face it. The growth trajectory of the email industry is such that providing an adequate support infrastructure is challenging for ESPs.  According to Jeremy Swift of Blue Hornet, marketers are frustrated with the overall lack of highly skilled customer service representatives and attention to detail from ESPs.  This is a direct result of the prolific growth of the industry.  Additionally, the lack of ability to scale efficiently is a direct result of the organizational challenges ESPs encounter.  The inability to allocate enough competent account managers to proactively service client accounts leads to bitter disappointment. ESPs are forced to confront several questions, such as “Should we offer platform training? Are there costs involved? Is there an active support community that clients can instantly engage with?”

What to Do:

The industry will face continued realignment/consolidation, and ESPs must be prepared to deal with this natural turbulence.  To counteract these effects, if you are an ESP that vows 24/7 customer service, you must ensure that someone is available at all times to provide feedback. This is necessary because marketers will test and track the level of service they are receiving, including the response time of support queries. With 150+ ESPs to consider, it’s a definite buyer’s market, and clients will seek timely resolutions, robust platform features, and more importantly personal references.  Outstanding customer service will ensure that your ESP stands out positively to clients in the midst of an increasingly crowded field.  Just as in marriage, prompt, clear communication is the cornerstone of a successful client/ESP relationship.

Reason 3: Insufficient Complementary Services

At the Email Insider Summit last week, we learned that venture capitalists and angel investors will partner with competent ESPs and offer highly relevant complementary services that are congruent to the ESPs core group of offerings, such as social, mobile, database management and the ability to scale globally.  Proficient ESPs may have dedicated in-house design teams, professional services teams, technicians, and deliverability consultants that work harmoniously on behalf of clients.  On the other hand, if an ESP has disparate and/or contrasting services, the relationship will be erratic and communication will suffer due to additional points of failure. This again leads to added frustration and more aggravated clients.  Finally, as a point of reference, if an ESP’s platform does not offer social media integration and/or the user interface is too rigid or complex, marketers will likely withdraw, resulting in “divorce.”     

What to Do:

When shopping for a new ESP, carefully weigh these aforementioned factors and identify if they align with your marketing objectives.  It’s important to understand explicitly what these services mean by asking the right questions. Before entering this type of relationship, it’s crucial to understand how the ESP’s services will be executed in the grand scope your email initiatives.  For example, a good technical services team should help define your requirements and might offer a customized roadmap as you accumulate advanced data points from your subscribers.  For instance, they might ask you to tag each link in your creative with an acronym, to locate a micro segment that is highly profitable on your list. It’s important to know who you are as an ESP and as a client.  Clone your bright spots, and play to your strengths.

Arranged Marriages will likely Fail

Finally, remember that collaborating effectively with your ESP should alleviate some pain points. Through effective collaboration, you should be able to determine which complementary services you currently need, and which of those you will require in the future. Finally, arranged marriages don’t work well in the Email Industry.:) You’ll want to take your ESP out for a test drive and evaluate the product in your own environment. Test driving different platforms will lead to a more confident option in a long term partner.  It’s important that you know what you are getting into before you make a commitment to “marry” a particular ESP. But as with marriage, if you take proper precautions before committing, you will pave the way to a long and successful relationship.        

Special Thanks to Dave Baker of Razorfish, Jeremy Swift of BlueHornet and Christy Barret Weymouth of ExactTarget for their contributions.

Fred Tabsharani

Port25 Solutions, Inc.

@tabsharani

In Inbox Reserve parts one and two, we discovered how socially centric preference centers and subject lines will lead to dramatically higher engagement and lower spam complaints. In part III below, we'll identify challenges that are inherent with acquiring a subscribers social data points and what the benefits are to your brand once harnessed.

Challenge:  Develop a Preference Center Marketing Program

The challenge for today’s brand marketer is to find ways to seductively charm subscribers to fully or partially divulge their social media credentials through an intuitive preference center.  Some subscribers will immediately acquiesce, while others will be more sensitive and allow the brand only a partial glimpse into their social networks.  For example, B2B focused subscribers may prefer to provide only credentials of their LinkedIn network and not necessarily Facebook or Twitter.  Future preference centers will allow you to prioritize which social networks you want linked to a given brand.

For this concept to work, marketers must demonstrate to subscribers the value of this initiative. Those subscribers who opt-in will glean more value and insight through their network associated with a given brand, because knowing what transactions are taking place with their social networks is in most cases desired.  Once brands amass these nuggets of data; designers, engineers and email marketing specialists will collaborate to produce instinctive methods of engagement while furthering your brands credibility.

Brands must take a proactive approach with subscribers to induce them to release this essential data.  A strategic marketing program targeted towards this master preference center with strong calls-to-action should be integrated into your marketing mix.  This marketing program should primarily focus on the features, benefits and value of updating socially centric preferences.

 

Emphasize Value and Benefits

One way to galvanize a brands subscriber base is to highlight reasons “why” updating your preference center is so valuable.  In your email marketing program, dedicate sends that emphasize the real value of managing and sharing social media credentials.  Market your preference center through other channels as well. Read Stephanie Miller's stellar post on why earning permission is divine.

Future marketing programs for updating preference centers should illustrate value–based notifications of activity within a subscribers given network: For example, in the email message itself give subscribers the option to choose from a host of alert notifications such as:

• Alert me when a member of my network makes a purchase from this brand
• Alert me when a member of my network signs up to receive newsletters from this brand
• Alert me when a member of my network reviews a product from this brand

This type of socially centric messaging will echo well with subscribers and will develop an affinity not only your brand but just as importantly your preference center.  These notifications will go "prime-time" and will replace the current generic “marketing messages” we currently receive.  Messages of this nature could be an excellent resource for winning back dormant subscribers.  

Furthermore, your subscribers might want to be immediately notified if a person from their network reviewed a nearby restaurant?  By giving your subscribers “night-vision” into their social networks, brands will have a simpler time summoning subscribers to release this coveted information.   Benefits to brands include far fewer defections from list segments, increased engagement, an awakening to dormant subscribers and significantly fewer “spam complaints.”

Immediate Benefits to the Brand

Credibility- As discussed throughout this series, socialized messaging of this nature provides a more intimate user experience.  It permits a subscriber to feel that the message is about their social ecosystem first and about the brand second.  It authorizes subscribers and their network to indirectly promote your brand, through a more relaxed conversation. 

Reduced Costs- Socialized messaging, will significantly reduce a brands’ overall operating expenses, because of a higher engagement index, fewer spam complains and better inbox placements rates.  Socialized messaging will increase sender reputation which reduces message handling costs including more relaxed human filtering steps with a given brand.  

Validation through Engagement- The ability to quickly connect with your peers before clicking the purchase button will soon be the “de facto” model for how to validate a purchase through a given brand. Acquiring validation from your trusted network means that an emotional and financial investment has been made on behalf of your friends and colleagues.  With a swift chat session with members of their network, your subscribers will discern information about a featured product/service, which accelerates immediate gratification for the purchaser.  Building a subscriber centric brand will add considerable value to your existing customer base and through crosshairs will magnify brand integrity.  Your feedback on this series is valued.

Fred Tabsharani

Port25 Solutions, Inc.

@tabsharani

As outlined in Part I of Inbox Reserve, “Why Email must Reverse Engineer Social Now,” future engagement metrics and delivery patterns will be based on how subscribers’ social networks interact with a given brand.   Disclaimer: The strategies outlined below are congruent and/or complementary with advanced “opt-in” best practices.  It is safe to say that behavioral targeted messaging may not achieve the same level of granular social activity that a contemporary preference center would.

Inbox Reserve II: Socialized Subject Lines

Using fresh social data points gathered from an advanced preference center, future marketing based messaging will place your friends’ names or actions in the subject lines of emails associated with a given brand.  These personalized subject lines are a key tool for increasing your brand’s ability to engage subscribers, dramatically increase open rates and manufacture a better delivery reputation.  When you have targeted promotions that build value around this concept, connoisseurs of your brand will flock to this preference center.  Once there, they can opt-in to receive real-time notifications (or weekly digests, if they prefer) that tell them when members of their social ecosystem have taken “definitive” action involving a given brand.  Moreover, once permission is granted, subscribers will also see their friends’ images dynamically inserted into a well-designed email creative. They’ll be able to click on the images and ask their friends’ opinions of a product before making a purchase.  Here are two “plain” examples of future subject lines based on social activity within your network:

·         Real-Time-Notification:   Mark from your network just purchased     Sees Candies at 30% off…

·         Weekly Digest:              14 members of your network purchased                                      Sees Candies? Find out who!

Inbound, highly transparent subject lines of this nature are inherently credible. Their success further supports the theory that curious subscribers are also the most engaged.  Informed subscribers who choose to receive these types of messages are far more likely to engage because these notification are about your network first and the brand second.  Therefore, these subject lines seem more valuable and relevant to the subscribers.

Ever get a notification from Facebook that a certain friend of yours commented on your status?  You are much more likely to react positively to that message as opposed to a “brand first” subject line offering you a product at 30% off.   Moreover, you are less likely to click the “report spam” button because you are more loyal to the people in your network.

Reduced Spam Complaints

The most compelling reasons for brands to earn network permission from subscribers is that it dramatically reduces spam complaints.  Socialized email notifications are important because they prioritize a subscriber’s network first and the brand second. First, it’s far more palatable for a subscriber to open an email message with a friend’s name in the subject line and a friends’ picture in the creative because it creates a perception of relevance and allows for a far more customized experience. For example, if I were a subscriber and received such a message, I would probably refrain from clicking the “report spam” button because my main focus is on my network.  Secondly, personalized subject lines will cause your open rates and engagement index to skyrocket, enhancing your brand’s deliverability reputation.  ISPs will take notice of reduced spam complaints and brands will begin to see a higher inbox placement rate, resulting from more positive actions taken with this type of email. 

Notifications and creatives of this nature are packed with relevancy.  Testimonials from members of a social network will influence subscribers’ purchasing decisions, which will drastically diminish the chances of a user clicking the “report spam” button.  The benefit is increased engagement, as network buddies chat about potential purchases. This leads to more delivered mail to the inbox.  Second Disclaimer:  It’s important that we try not to associate this concept with Facebook page suggestions, simply because there is a monetary investment element in place here.  Members of your social network invested quality time in making a determination about a product or service and gave explicit permission to opt-in and receive exclusive messaging of this type.  So, it’s unfair to be skeptical because of earlier social media spam-related growing pains. 

In Part III of Inbox Reserve, we'll discuss the challenges brands will have in leveraging an advanced preference center and share some of the immediate benefits to any given brand; which include added credibility, reduced costs and subscriber validation. 

Fred Tabsharani

Port25 Solutions, Inc.    

@tabsharani

 

   

Today I received a spam message from a saleperson. It was like many others that I receive, except that I immediately noticed how respectful the tone was. Then at the end of it, he tells me that I should reply to his email so that he can show his boss that his respectful spam is more effective than the other spam I get. 

I know for a fact that this guy purchased my name off a list. I never contacted him or asked to receive anything about his services.

I thought to myself, "This is clever. I'm not going to fall for it, but I bet a lot of people feel guilty and write back to this guy."

From: ***** ******
To: Joshua Baer
Subject: Please answer a quick question for me.

Dear Josh,

As promised it's been a while since I contacted you and a lot has happened here at Layered Technologies. But my own respectful approach has not changed. I certainly do not want to waste your time, or annoy you with lots of cold calls.

[more about their services]

Out of respect and a desire not to spam, you will be the only recipient at your company. Help me prove to my own management that this respectful approach is what people want by shooting me a quickie email letting me know if you do or do  not have projects in these areas.

Thank you in advance and have a great year,

*****

***** ******
Enterprise Sales Executive
Layered Tech

I wrote back to him with a simple reply:

Take my name, phone, and email off your list.

He wrote back to me offended, and in not so few words called me an asshole:

Josh I looked up my records to be sure I haven't over contacted you. It looks like the last time was 7/09. Since it's a very respectful note and it's been 7 months since I last made a contact attempt I wonder are you always so friendly or do I just bring out the best in you?

You have been removed from my list.

This is the first time I've ever felt like I was being reprimanded for not being polite in how I unsubscribed!