The Good, the Bad, and the Best Practices for a Post-Wild West Email Marketing World Chad White Principal of Marketing Research at ExactTarget Author of Email Marketing Rules
Aug 11, 2014
The Good, the Bad, and the BestPractices for a Post-Wild West Email Marketing World
Chad WhitePrincipal of Marketing Research at ExactTargetAuthor of Email Marketing Rules
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Chad WhitePrincipal of Marketing Research at ExactTarget
Author of Email Marketing Rules
Long-time blogger – 2,500 posts and counting
Email Insider columnist for MediaPost
Former journalist at Dow Jones and Condé Nast
@chadswhite
What are best practices?
“Best practices are old-school. New-school marketing doesn’t
have best practices.”
Have you heard this?
“The best practice is the practice that is best for your business.”
Have you heard this?
“If there’s one example of a marketer successfully breaking
a best practice, then it’s no longer a best practice.”
Have you heard this?
“The best practice is what most companies do.”
Have you heard this?
“Best practices define mediocrity.”
Have you heard this?
“Best practices are those practices that generally produce the best results or minimize risk.”
@chadswhite
Adopting best practices isn’t about ticking boxes.
It’s about execution.
@chadswhite
@chadswhite
Let’s look at the GOOD, the BAD, and the BEST of
8 email marketing practices…
@chadswhite
Signup Process
1.
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Signup Confirmation Pages
2.
Signup Confirmation Pages…• Confirm opt-in was successful
• Set expectations
• Collect more subscriber data
• Secure additional opt-ins
• Engage with offers or content
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Welcome Emails
3.
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Preheader Text
4.
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Defensive Design
5.
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Mobile-Friendliness
6.
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Personalization7.
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Lenovo, welcome email — Chad, thank you for signing up. Enjoy your exclusive Lenovo offer.
Michael’s, progressive profiling email — Chad, isn't it time we got to know each other?
Olive Garden, birthday email — Chad, go celebrate your birthday with a free app or dessert!
ThinkGeek, 5/17/13 — Chad, I am your father
@chadswhite
FragranceNet, 10/7/13 — Just for you, . $10 OFF + Free Shipping*
Subway, 9/4/13 — Chad, it's time to celebrate! Any regular FOOTLONG(TM) is a $5 FOOTLONG(TM) all SUBtember(R) long. (At participating restaurants. Pricing details inside.)
Volkswagen, 2/22/13 — Chad, don't miss out on a limited-time offer on the 2013 Passat
Chili’s, 7/21/13 — 2 Coupons for Chad
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Unsubscribe Process
8.
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“Email marketing’s impressive power obscures an unfortunate truth…”
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“Poor practices are blunting email marketing’s effectiveness and keeping its ROI from being truly awesome.”
@chadswhite
Has this session inspired you to make an improvement to
your email program?
@chadswhite
If so, please share it on DFChatter or Twitter.
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