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Hi Vincent,
Thanks for that. I was getting confused and thought your website was another. (got too many site that I am trying to remember) Your site looks good and with valuable info, so I will provide a link to your site from mine.
I am giving my next practical course on e-mail marketing (half-day) in Centurion on 7th February.
I designed this course (one of my most popular offerings) as there is so much on e-mail marketing coming out of the USA, yet much of which is not relevant to the South African scenario.
There are many differences (particularly that we just won't read the loooong e-mails that the Americans will lap up.) Our legislation about e-mailing is also very different.
So we take many of the great suggestions of the US gurus, and put them into a South African context. I also include a lot of my experiences with e-mail marketing (which is my main form of marketing); and tell you how to get results as well as what pitfalls to watch out for.
Ryss, I agree with the post that Ann has made, but I see you are based in Cape Town and likely to far from Pretoria to attend her course, which btw I would recommend anyone to do. Therefore I would quickly try to give you a few pointers.
Email Marketing crash course
Factors
Carefully aimed arrow
I cannot place enough emphasis on target marketing when it comes to online marketing. You need to understand your market to prepare the content for maximum conversions. Therefore it is highly recommended that you have a proper SMO strategy in place in order to obtain the best possible demographics of your recipients. This can be done with datamining on your site and during signup.
If you do not have demographics it is fine but your conversion rate drop dramatically.
Having a good understanding of your target market will ensure that you understand the needs and interests of your target market when you write your email.
From Field
Avoid using just an email address in the from line. Rather make use of a descriptive personal name, e.g. company name or company name + description. This also depends on how the person is familiar with you. If it is on a personal name basis, then use your personal name, however if it is company avoid using your personal name. SPAM has programmed people to look at the From address and immediately decide if the mail is SPAM or not. In other words use a familiar name for the From field.
Subject Line
By far the most important field. It will make the difference between your email being viewed or deleted. Ensure that the subject has a personal tone from the receiver’s perspective. It can be descriptive regarding your intention but it depends on the purpose of the mail. A personal, relaxed email is much more effective and it starts with the subject line. Teasers can also be effective but avoid the word FREE and uppercase characters.
To Field
Try to use the proper name and avoid impersonal email addresses. Make the person feel it is addressed to them.
Salutation
If you know the name of the person use it here. E.g. Dear Jack, Hello Jack, Good morning Jack. Avoid the use of Hi unless you are very familiar with the receiver and use use the surname if you are not at all familiar with them.
First paragraph
An email’s first paragraph should be short and to the point. It will determine if the reader will continue reading or simply delete. I am not a supporter of sales letters as I have seen to many being deleted, rather use an informal way to promote your objective. Sales letters with Headings that sell, works in printed media not electronic media. Do not SHOUT!!! People hate being shouted at. If they reached your first paragraph they are already reading. Use headings but once again, don’t SHOUT!! The first sentence is a break point between delete and continued reading. Give it a lot of thought and think about what they want to see. Again keep it informal, to the point and short.
Content
If the reader reached your content part of the mail, it means there is interest in your objective. Now provide more information with links to your website. Do not write all the information, just enough to generate interest for a click through. Remember a email conversion = click through. Use bullets for points that matters, but keep information to the minimum although you shouldn’t be to concerned about length here it is more a case of once again getting a click through. Again keep the conversation flowing. Include a call to action.
Last paragraph
If the reader stuck through to the last paragraph it means you haven’t converted them yet. This also means it is your last opportunity to convert them. Try to have some solid and attractive conversion sentences here. Include a call to action.
Signature
A signature is essential. Make it personal but include all contact information here. This should probably be the most formal part of the email.
Landing page
The landing page for an email is the crucial part of the whole process. Have a topic related page specifically designed for the email. This page is the final conversion point. Just a warning. DO NOT design a complete new page, design a page within your site’s framework. A lot of people make the mistake of designing sole standing splash pages that are separate from the rest of the site. People want to know more about you and they will want to click through to other parts of your website.
Tracking
Utilize some kind of tracking for your website. Even if it is just by including a 1x1px image that reads from your site. If you do not have tracking, you have no idea of how successful the campaign is, or how to improve on previous campaigns.
Unsubscribe
Include an unsubscribe functionality.
Testing your emails
Check spelling.
Check all links
Test the email in both HTML and text format
Absolute no, no’s
Do not use a Yahoo or Gmail account to send the mail.
Do not use small fonts. Keep font size to 10pt max 12pt
Avoid upper case
Use exclamation marks sparingly
Keep paragraphs short and to the point.
Do not send advertising
Avoid using to many images. Specifically, do not use all image emails! When using an image include the alt tags with an appropriate description.
Ryss, this was written of the top of my head. I seriously suggest you reading more on the subject or attend a course at least. Email marketing is by far the most important marketing strategy any business can employ to utilize as acquisitions, retention and conversion method. There are also legal issues you need to be aware of.
From reception to management training, assertiveness, accountability or interviewing skills, we have a wide range of training workshops available for you! www.stafftraining.co.za
Hi All
What do you guys consider a good return on mail shots?
Very good stuff in this thread.
Though one should consider the following before conversions are compared:
1. Is the email is opt-in
2. Is there a relationship with the opt-in list
3. Is it a cold list (no opt in)
4. Is it from affiliates
All scenarios will give a completely different answer.
Generally speaking on conversion to SALES:
1. Opt-in will depend on what they opted in, if the data is NOT 100% related the % of conversion fall. Some of the best marketers don't ever count on more than 1% conversion. Not in the past and even worse now when no one trusts no one. Some of the best direct response professionals that know what they are doing and made multi millions in this business, don't count more than 2% if they get more the better. I know on the net you will find people saying stuff like 30% and 70%, those claims 99.99999% of the time are BS. Best I ever did was 12% and the list fell into "relationship" category. Then you can get very high conversions in EXTREMELY focus niches (fans of XYZ) that don't need convincing that XYZ is a good thing and the service/product/information is EXTREMELY rare.
2. If there is relationship in the opt in list for a long time = you have had these people on your list and gave them tons of good info and trust was built with time and they know you are good in your business, then your rates of conversion will be much higher than the 2%, maybe 5% or 10% if you are lucky and extreme niches with little info again conversions go up because there is not much choice around, but still in the assumption that you have relationship and trust which takes time (in years) to build.
3. Cold list no opt in. Ok, this is funny because the only number I ever heard of here -- as I don't deal with spammers -- was some 5 years ago when a colleague of mine did a marketing test on a cold list of affiliates, by him sending the email not the affiliates selling the product and the conversion was more like in the rates of spam........ like 1 person purchased out of like 30,000 emails. And that was only because they people did not identify his email address to the product and his writing style (that is what came down to after the affiliates did a survey). Obviously this is bad conversion and no go.
4. Conversion from emails sent from affiliates will immensely depend on their relationship with their clients and database as detailed above and of course the better the relationship and more rare the data the higher the conversion. Now with affiliates it will also depend on the training they get from you and copy of letters. If they don't get help from you the owner and the correct copy to send out, the rates can falls and usually do below 1%.
As a side note, there is not good conversion to "email shots", there is only good conversion to "relationship building". To do that one has to have an opt in and give huge amount of good information to build trust and show the person that one knows the subject matter.
If you have a good relationship you need no gimmicks, therefore american, uk, australian way..... and any way - will do, because they know YOU, your individual style as a person. And even if you occasionally make a spelling mistake which happens to all of us, it will be forgiven (that doesn't mean you should not take care of your work quality, but it means that you will be easily forgiven because you are seen as human as a person not some selling company/consultant/machine).
Now if you have relationship with your customers you conversions will be higher than the 2% or 1% or even 7%, simply because people will love you for what you give them and buy from you because they trust you and look forward to you information and occasionally you can sell your products and they will buy because the know you are good and your word is good and your data is good.
Then, last point I can remember - the conversion rate will also depend on price ceiling and barriers. If your pricing and offer is right you conversions can be higher than normal. Example: would you buy a house that is worth 500K for 10K? Of course you will anyone will and they will jump. But that is rare and good and they will jump on the offer. Now if I say: Would you like to buy my home cooking course for 10,000 I promise it is really worth the money? The answer is logical NO, because no matter how good the course is and even if it will make you a million if you teach it later, you hit the psychological price barrier for the product line.
So, to know your conversion you also need to know what your offer is and is it priced right.
Now, for any beginner, I have only one suggestion. For the first email campaigns do not have high expectations, especially if you haven't done extensive market research..... because if you don't get results it will crush you and you won't be motivated to carry on and that is neither good nor constructive.
Email marketing takes time and permission marketing was invented because no one trusts no one anymore in this world, do don't expect anyone to trust you unless you show your worth and ......then.......... you get high conversions.
Last but not least. Landing pages to FREE opt-in for e-books and data are different and depend highly on the copywriting. I heard 35% conversion is good, I got more than that in the past, but traffic was extremely targeted.
Now converting the free opt-in to a sale. Is another story and without relationship will highly depend on HOW GOOD that free data was. If not good, ouch, you are just losing reputation, if good you will be winning clients.
First my comment on Karen's post. A very informative response and as pointed out by her, there are many variables for such a general question.
Originally posted by Debbiedle
Hi All
What do you guys consider a good return on mail shots?
It will be good to define return first. Usually with email marketing you would set certain measurable conversion targets. That will be click through to a landing page, download of a free e-book or a maybe a sale. It can even be the different measurable up to the point of sale. However, the email itself has one main objective, that is to get the click through to the landing page, thereafter the responsibility is transfered to the website and more specifically the landing page. So I will then give you the percentages I have had in the past.
In terms of a cold list you will be looking at a percentage of 0.5% - 7%. As Karen explained there are several variables that can effect the success, the main factor will be the demographic composition of your mail list compared to your email offering. If you are selective with your mail list and ensure that it is well targeted your click through should be in the region of about 7%. This is a very rough estimate though.
A opt-in list will fall anything between 1,2% and as high as 70% once again there are several factors at play, but I think Karen has emphasized them enough.
I have posted this directly from "Make them think of you 1st" one of my books...It is copyright so please respect but I'm happy to share this on the forum.
How to be effective using E-mail
E-mail is becoming used more and more often to connect with others but unfortunately there are elements in our society who abused this medium. These abusers are referred to as spammers. This abuse makes it even more difficult for you to reach your prospects or clients even though you might have a great product or service which you genuinely believe will add value to their business or personal lives. I have made a habit of sending out a newsletter with something of interest to my client and prospect base on a monthly basis. What astounds me is that many of them do not even open the mail and hence do not read what I have sent them. Those with bad memories often don’t remember who I am and accuse me of spamming them despite having received several regular monthly newsletters with all my details on them. What I find terribly sad is that, to date this spamming accusation has only ever come from people who have approached me via one of my companies to purchase their goods and services. You can only guess at their embarrassment when I phone them to remind them of who I am and that my call is to confirm that their request or demand to be removed from my mailing list has been carried out which effectively also means that I’ve removed their name from the people I cared about (my clients and prospects list) and, unfortunately for them, also means that I’ve removed them as a potential supplier to my company!
I have a simple networking rule. If you deal with me, I will deal with you. If I put business your way, I expect you to give me a fair opportunity with the products and services I provide, should you need them. So, when I deal, I will always give preference to people who deal with me. That’s co-operative networking for mutual benefit.
I have learned that if you want to improve the chances of your e-mail being read, your subject line needs to attract the attention of the recipient. In other words, it needs to follow the same principles of the teaser concept we mentioned earlier.
Here are some subject-line teaser examples about networking that will assist you to design your own teasers around these themes:
If you want to network effectively don’t stay at home.
The five big secrets of networking for profits.
How to network more efficiently
He who can network gets lucky more often than he who cannot.
How to be at the right place at the right time more often using networking.
How to make people instantly like you.
The latest research on networking found that …
Banish bad luck using these effective networking skills.
If you are only wanting to keep in touch with contacts by telling them what you are up to, they are more likely to read something along the lines of “News just in…â€, “The latest news from…†or “Guess what we have been up to …?†as opposed to some unconvincing comment in the subject line of your e-mail message.
If you are asking for action regarding a limited time offer you might broadcast “Act now to enjoy this limited time offer….†Or “Only 7 days to go before this opportunity is lost forever…â€. Don’t do this with every e-mail that you send out or you will lose credibility.
I have a simple networking rule. If you deal with me, I will deal with you. If I put business your way, I expect you to give me a fair opportunity with the products and services I provide, should you need them.
Oh yeah. That's a big one with me too. Frankly, if someone gives me business and I need something they provide, most times I don't look much further. The cost of sourcing alternative suppliers often exceeds any potential "savings," plus with the relationship already built, service levels are generally not a problem either.
Frankly, if someone gives me business and I need something they provide, most times I don't look much further. The cost of sourcing alternative suppliers often exceeds any potential "savings," plus with the relationship already built, service levels are generally not a problem either.
I agree with this in B2C completely.
I do not agree with this in B2B. In essence you should have 2 to 3 suppliers in anything you need supplied, good relations with all.
Ones business can suffer greatly if:
1. one supplier is the only one - and they go out of business
2. they increase prices to the extent that it decreases your margins and profit and you have to continuously buy until you get a new supplier.
3. They find out that you are buying only from them and don't continuously search for efficiencies they take advantage of that.
4. If you ever need to negotiate you have a very weak standing point.
and there is more... but that is just to give a few examples.
Of course that you won't have 3 hosting companies for one site and stuff like that, but in B2B when you talk about suppliers of materials etc., and wherever you can you should have more than one supplier and good relationships.
In some companies this is a rule. Buyers/purchasers are not allowed to buy materials only from one company all the time. When they need a new "item", they have to go through 3 quotes minimum to get approval to buy.... and more stuff like that.
Now that was a very generalized post, so just to make the differentiations: B2B is not the same as B2C as service company vs product based company are also not the same in many ways.
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