CONSTANT CONTACT 2006 Live! Seminar Series€¦ · Fractions of pennies per email Teach Best...

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2006 Live! Seminar SeriesCONSTANT CONTACT

EMAIL MARKETING POWER

Session 1:

Why Invest in Building Relationships?

How Technology has Made it Affordable for Smaller Businesses to Communicate

Getting Started

Understand the Basics Before Starting on Your Strategy

Email Marketing 101: Why and How it Works



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“If I build it they will come”Understanding the power of email marketing turns dreams into reality…

All small business owners have dreams…

Why Invest in Building Relationships?

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Why Invest In Relationships?

Because When Nurtured They Multiply

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How Technology has Made it Affordablefor Smaller Businesses to Communicate

The Allure of New Business

Every business knows they need to keep relationships going, but how much time and money does it take?

In the past, the investment included significant amounts of both time and money.

Technology has changed everything…

Marketing Focus Opportunity

Find

Convert

Keep

Find

Convert

Keep

Businesses tend tofocus on acquisition

Revenue and profit are generated by repeat customers

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Direct Mail vs. Email

Email marketing changed the economics, making relationship marketing viable for small businesses

Technology Impact

Why Does Email Work?

Because people open emailfrom businesses they know and trust…

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And Simply Delete Everything Else

Junk email

Unsolicited and unwanted email

Email from an unknown sender

Dubious opt-out (if any)

Getting Started

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Getting Started

It’s a 3-Step Process…

Step 1: Building Your List

Step 2: Convert Leads to Customers

Step 3: Keep Customers Coming Back

Step 1: Building Your List

Build Your List Where You Connect!Website SignupService or

Sales CallsNetworking Events

and MeetingsTrade Shows

Customer & Prospect Database

In-store Guest Book

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It Can Take Time…

On average, it takes 7 touches for a sale to occur.

Some buy right away

Others research and try

Some show interest but are not ready

Make every contact count!


One-time touch

Unlikely to ReturnInterested (Buy Later)Not Now (Maybe Later)No Interest

Immediate Purchaser Immediate Purchase

Communications Impact

Unlikely to ReturnNo Interest

Capture Interests& Communicate

Interested (Buy Later)Not Now (Maybe Later)

Immediate &Follow-on Purchases

Immediate Purchaser

Ongoing Interaction

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The Value of a Customer

You’ve already paid for themIt’s 6-7 times more expensive to gain a customer than to retain a customer1

They spend moreRepeat customers spend 67 percent more2

They are your referral engineAfter 10 purchases, a customer has already referred up to 7 people2

Sources:1 Harvard Business Review2 Bain and Company, 2002

AcquisitionCost

Price Premium

Referrals

ReducedOperating Costs

IncreasedPurchases

Base Profit

So bring them back more often!

Profit Growth Over Time

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

TIME

PR

OF

IT


Time is Money!

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Session 2:

Permission and List Building

Delivery and Blocking

Targeting and Segmentation

Format and Frequency

Subject Lines

Email Marketing Tips: Strategy and Techniques



Permission and List Building

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Permission – What is It?

Types of permission

Explicit: Opt in from your website or storefront

“Join our mailing list”

Single vs. Double Opt-in

Implicit: Requests for information / registration forms, existing customer relationship

Note: Always make sure to ask for permission when collecting information

Be a Trusted Sender

Remind recipients why they are receiving an email from you at the beginning of each message

Include unsubscribe or one-click opt-out line

Immediately handle unsubscribes (CAN-SPAM Act)

Monitor your email frequency

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Spam – What is It?

Spam or Unsolicited Commercial Email(no relationship / no permission)

List purchase, CD-ROMs

Directory crawling

Email appending

Don’t do it!While it may seem tempting,it will have a negative impacton your business.

How fresh are your email addresses?The one-year test

Maintain contact at least quarterly

How clean is your email collection policyUnchecked signup boxes

Clear statement on email address use

Don’t blur lines of communicationSending promotions to customers signed up for systems updates

Hot Industry Topics

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Case Study: Girls Learn to Ride

List Size: 10,000Open Rate: 36%Location: National, based out of California Customer Since: 2002www.girlslearntoride.com

Runs snowboarding, skateboarding, and other “extreme sports” clinics for young women across the country.

Sends a monthly e-newsletter and announcements about upcoming events

Uses the Interest Category feature to segment lists by geographic region and sport.

Started with 250 emails and now is at 10,000

How Do They Grow Their List?

“Join my email list” sign-up box on website

Website Contests—give away snowboards, tickets to concert, etc. to get people to join

Give prizes to active members who forward the newsletter to friends and get them to sign up.

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Discussion

What are other creative ways to grow your list?

Can you think of an offer or incentive to get sign-ups?

Can you encourage your customers or members to spread the word?

Can you run an internal contest to get all your employees involved?

Are you collecting email addresses everywhere?

Are there organizations or businesses you could cross-promote with?

Delivery and Blocking

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Individual filters

Challenge response systems

Blocking (industry average is 19.2%*)

Blacklists (significant range with regard to quality)

Whitelists

Sender Authentication

Feedback Loops

Blocking & Filtering

* Source: Return Path

What is a SPAM Complaint?

A spam complaint happens when someone on your list clicks a button identifying your mail as unwanted

Alternate way to unsubscribe

No longer interested in your content

Don’t recognize your name / brand

Don’t remember subscribing

By accident (while junking all the real spam)

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Email Services – Why Use One?

Make it EasyManage your database (subscriptions, bounces, unsubscribes)

Templates make creation of professional-looking campaigns easy

Maximize delivery

Are AffordableStart as low as $15 / month

Fractions of pennies per email

Teach Best PracticesEmail best practices are built right into the service (unsubscribe management, from address verification, & physical address appending)

Online educational seminars

Email Service vs. Outlook

Standard Email Programs(e.g. Outlook, Hotmail)

Limited # of emails sent at one time

No formatting control

List break up more susceptible to filters

No cohesive branding

No tracking and reporting of email results

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Email marketing services automate best practices

Provide easy-to-use templates

Reinforce brand identity

Email addressed to recipient only

Manage lists – adding new subscribers, handling bounce-backs, removing unsubscribes

Ensure email delivery, tracks results and obeys the law

Email Service vs. Outlook

Targeting and Segmentation

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A “Winning Strategy” Includes:

Setting objectives

Collecting contact information

Determining message format

Creating a schedule

Building professional communications

Analyzing results

Continuously refining your strategy!

Setting Objectives

Define objectives: “I want to…”

Motivate purchases

Enhance customer / brand awareness

Interact with my customers

Increase event attendance

Bring visitors back to my website

Obtain donations for my nonprofit

Use objectives to determine:

What information to collect

Communication type

Communication frequency

Measuring success

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Collecting Contact Information

Collect email addresses and permission at every customer contact point:

Website

Guest book

Order form

Customer support or inquiry calls

Tradeshows or events

57% of consumers will fill out a card to receive email alerts when asked to by a clerk at a local small business.

Source: Transact Media Group

Add your own logo and message to subscribers.

Use data collected to send your customers only what they want

Learn about your customers’interests

Collect names to personalize emails

Determine your own interest categories and other data required.

Gathering Your Contact’s Interests

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Case Study: Staffing Advisors

List Size: 1,500Open Rate: 51%Location: Washington, DCCustomer Since: 2004www.staffingadvisors.com

Independent staffing broker that helps solve staffing problems in the DC area

Started with 400 subscribers and now has 1,500

Believes in offering quality information“I share the best thinking and research I can find…”

Recipients forward email newsletters to friends

Many people sign up via Staffing Advisors website

How Do They Segment Their List?

They create 3 newsletters—targeting 3 different groups

• HR job listings

• The Staffing Alliance of Maryland Employers

• The Staffing Advisor(includes current research and articles relevant to recipients)

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Discussion

What are other creative ways to segment your list?

1. By industry, product category or usage?

2. Region or Sales Rep?

3. Type of communication desired or frequency?

4. How can you use private categories?

List source

VIPs

Format and Frequency

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Determine Appropriate Format

NewslettersFrequency: monthly / quarterly

Lots of educational content (typically non-promotional)

PromotionsFrequency: bi-weekly / monthly

Focus on promotion / limited content

2, 4, 6 product promotions, coupons

AnnouncementsFrequency: event-driven

Promotional or educational with targeted message

Invitations, new products, special events

Frequency & Delivery

How often to sendCreate a master schedule

Include frequency in online sign-up “Monthly Newsletter”

Coordinate timing for maximum impact

Newsletters (monthly / quarterly)

Announcements / Event Invitations (as needed)

When to sendWhen is your audience most likely to read it?

• Day of week (Tuesday & Wednesday)

• Time of day (10am to 3pm)

Test, test, test

Maximum impact with minimum intrusion

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Subject Lines

Getting Email Opened

The “From” line

Use a name the recipient will recognize

• Include your company name or brand

• The clearer the better

The shorter the better

Be consistent

60% of consumers say the"from" line most often determines whether they open an email or delete it.

Source: DoubleClick

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Getting Email Opened – Cont.

The “Subject” Line

Keep it short and simple

• You have 3 seconds or less

• 30-40 characters including spaces (5-8 words)

Incorporate a specific benefit

Include your brand

Capitalize and punctuate carefully

Example: Typical spam “From” and “Subject” lines

The Don’t Dos

The words: free, guarantee, spam, credit card etc.

ALL CAPITAL LETTERS

Excessive punctuation !!!, ???

Excessive use of “click here”

$$, and other symbols

No “From:” address

Misleading subject lines

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Subject Line Exercise

Refer to page 2:5 in your workbook…

Exercise:Come up with 5 potential subject lines for your email campaigns.

Constant Contact Business Partners

Now, before we break…

Need help with your email marketing?

Constant Contact Business Partners are the answer! We can connect you with the partner who is right for you. Ask us today!

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Session 3:

Creating Compelling Content

Evaluating Your Campaign Results

Content Tips and Ideas, Interpreting Results



Creating Compelling Content

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Getting Email Read

The Email “Body”Provide relevant valuable information

Be clear and concise

Use appropriate graphics

Use white space effectively

Include “Call to Action” links

Create sense of urgency

Capitalize and punctuate carefully

Proofread

“The fact that [some people] wantto help, for no other reason than because they like to help, turnsout to be an awfully effective wayof getting someone’s attention.”

Malcolm Gladwell - The Tipping Point

Focus on the contentIt’s not about you

It’s about what you know

Trade useful information for attentionWill they talk about it when out with friends?

Will they look forward to your next communication?

Narrow your focusBe an expert

Relevant & Valuable Information

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Two Different Approaches

Case Study: Blue Penguin Development

List Size: 4,500Open Rate: 48.5%Location: Hopkinton, MACustomer Since: 2002www.bluepenguindevelopment.com

Blue Penguin develops customized, interactive, high-quality e-newsletters.

Sends a monthly email newsletter about email newsletters

Expresses personality of business, uses a informal voice

Good mix of content and humor

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Case Study: Sarasota Film Society

List Size: Just under 5,000Open Rate: 38%Location: Sarasota, FLCustomer Since: 2004www.filmsociety.org

Nonprofit runs a film house that shows art films and host-related events

Their philosophy: “It’s all about content. Keep it short, sweet and useful. You need to deliver value.”

Sends a weekly e-newsletter to his entire list

Membership grew 20% after they started using Constant Contact

What Creative Content Do They Include?

Descriptions and reviews of new film releases and show times

Links to trailers and websites of new films

Information about local restaurants(dinner and a movie!)

Announcements of interesting events held in conjunction with films they are showing

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Getting Your Emails OpenedUsing Creative Promotions

Case Study: Rothmans

List Size: 1,764Open Rate: 45.9%Location: New York City Customer Since: Sept 2003www.rothmansny.com

A men's clothing store specializing in formal and casual business attire.

Relies on email to promote further new arrived items and clothing trends.

Preferred customer list receives specials

Sends bi-monthly promotions with coupons

Sales generated per campaign $5K - $10K

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Case Study: Jack-Tar American Tavern

List Size: 950Open Rate: 43%Location: Marblehead, MA Customer Since: 2005www.jacktarmarblehead.com

A classic New England tavern that specializes in creatively-prepared American fare

Relies on email to communicate with customers in a timely, consistent, and personal basis

Sends weekly email announcements and/or promotions

Started a loyalty program and has grown “Admiral Club” membership to 1,000

What Creative Promotions Do They Use?

“Beat the Clock” emails

• Order at 5:15 pm, pay $5.15

• Order at 6:25 pm, pay $6.25

“We’ve missed you” emails to Admiral Club members with coupons for 25% off certain menu items

Announcements about special events and unique dining opportunities

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Content Exercise

Refer to page 2:7 in your workbook…

Exercise:Answer these questions about your business, your customers, and your interests.

What are the top five questions that your customers ask?

What articles have you read recently that you found very interesting?

Who were the most interesting customers that you helped in the last six months?

What made them interesting?

What problems will your customers be encountering in the next year?

What will you be doing to solve these problems?

Email Checklist

Ask yourself before you send:

Are you prepared to handle inbound email responses and questions?

Have you used appropriate graphics while also making good use ofwhite space?

Have you proofread the "From" line, "Subject" line, and email copy thoroughly?

Have you previewed and sent yourself a test mailing?

Have you checked all links to be sure they work properly?

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Evaluating Your Campaign Results

Evaluating Your Results

Why does email bounce?

Email addresses are no longer valid

Servers are down

Mailboxes are full

Email is blocked

Clean bad addresses out of your list!

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What influences the open rate?

From / Subject line

Delivery day / time

List overuse, age, or quality

Watch your trends over time


Why did people click through?

Call-to-action

Copy

Offer

What were they interested in?

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High unsubscribe/opt-out rate?

Overcommunication

Poor targeting


Forward to a Friend

Export data

Save as Interest Category

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Case Study:Boston Public Library Foundation

List Size: 1,500Open Rate: 49.3%Location: Boston, MACustomer Since: 2002www.bplf.com

Promotes Library exhibits, event series subscriptions and special events

Sends a monthly e-newsletter, internal board communications and announcements about upcoming events as needed

Majority of their marketing and communications is sent via email

Uses the open and click-through data to save as new lists to send follow-on targeted messaging to RSVP, sponsor or donate

Constantly Refine Your Strategy

Date sent & time of day

From & Subject lines

Email format

Content quantity & quality

Calls to action

Recipient feedback

Fine tune your communication strategy over time!

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Additional Resources

Learning CenterFrom live and recorded webinars to daily live product tours, the Constant Contact Learning Center is the place to find all the resources you need to successfully create and send a great email campaign

Email Marketing Hints & TipsOur monthly email newsletter featuring email marketing insights from CEO Gail Goodman will help you create great campaigns, increase your open rates, build your list, and be the best email marketer you can be.

ConnectUp! User CommunityMeet others - like you - to share and gain insights on email marketing and other topics you care about. Read and post to the discussion boards on issues that matter to you.

Referral ProgramDo you know people who can benefit from the value Constant Contact has to offer? Get rewarded for sharing Constant Contact with your friends and colleagues andsee them get rewarded too!

Constant Contact Cares 4 Kids

Who is eligible?Any organization that is a non-profit that provides social or educational support to children.

How do I get started?Recipients must be sponsored by an existing Constant Contact customer or partner (Business Partner or Global Partner), or an employee of either of the Partner programs. Accounts are donated by Constant Contact with the expectation that sponsors will volunteer their time to assist with initial set-up and the first email campaign produced.

Visit the Cares4Kids program to get started at www.cares4kids.com.

www.cares4kids.comThe Constant Contact® Cares4Kids program assists community-based non-profit organizations that help children build the fundamental skills they need to succeed in their communities and in life. Cares4Kids program recipients receive free use of a Constant Contact account for their organization.

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Evaluation

How was your day at the Constant Contact seminar?In the back of your workbook, you will find an evaluation form. Please take a moment to fill out this form, as it will help us better tailor our future seminars to meet your needs.

Thank You!

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