Check out Hootsuite and Twitterberry as management tools for your twitter accounts. They allow you to schedule tweets in advance and tweet directly from your blackberry saving you time and energy and allowing you to delegate research and scheduling to your in office or virtual assistants.
Creating and Tracking Successful Email Campaigns
The Subject Line
“Personalized emails boost open rates”, according to a MailerMailer study. “The email service provider found that personalized subject lines in particular increased the number of times recipients opened their mailings.” Now, I myself have often found that some pretty clever spammers somehow found my name and use it regularly to try to get me to open their “special offer” emails – so I’m leery of using names in subject lines. However, I have found that having a meaty subject line that is specific and clear and not “salesy” can lead to more emails being opened and read – and responded to…
“The Subject line is so important that even when marketers have recipients permission, the WRONG line can still mean trouble – since the from and subject lines are key elements that help recipients quickly decide whether the email is spam,” said David Hallerman of eMarketer.
A December 2006 study by the Email Sender and Provider Coalition and LPSOS confirmed how crucial “From” and “Subject” lines are – “About seven in to US internet users said they judged these lines when deciding whether to report an email as spam.” Yet even legitimate marketers confuse the issues by sending messages from different groups or individuals within their companies with various from and subject lines – making their email campaigns more likely to be flagged as spam by the recipient. Building a trusted relationship between sender and recipient will greatly increase the overall effectiveness of marketing spending – especially when there are links within email content that lead to a website with more information available.
Here are some easy subject line tips:
• Be Unique but Descriptive – You want your message to stand out in a crowded “inbox” and make people curious about what you have to say without being too bizarre, For example, “Margarita Happy Hour Marks the Launch Of Marketing Campaign To ‘07 Law School Grads” – definitely unique but you get a sense of what the email will be about. This would probably be a press release of some sort.
• Desirability Factor – A subject line that inspires the reader to fin out how to achieve a specific result works well if you have a product or service that explains how to achieve a particular goal. For Example, “How To Write Effective Newsletter Copy”
• Quick Results – A subject line that promises fast results tens to be hard to resist. For Example, “The Quickest Way to Build a Subscriber Database.”
• Something Worth Mentioning– If your list is targeted (and it should be for the best results), you will have an understanding about what topics your readers will relate to and what they will not be interested in. If something happens in the press or society in general you feel that is worth commenting on or incorporating into your email message because you think your readers will be interested – don’t be afraid of mentioning it in your subject line. For Example, “Legal Industry is John McCain’s #1 source of Campaign Donations to Date – Attorneys are A Politically Active Group this year.” The Email might be about political issues related to the industry of your readers – and you might provide some upcoming events where they can get involved in their community, etc.
The key of successful subject lines is communicating that you have something of value that they will want to read or learn about – then delivering the value in the content of your email. The Follow Up
When US customers say they are interested in a company – more than one half of them are open to getting an interactive follow up such as a personalized email or text message – and when they don’t receive a follow up – they are often confused or frustrated – which degrades the whole e-marketing process. Still – according to a 2006 Email Data Source study – “more than two thirds of companies do not sent either a follow up or welcoming email or sales offer after their initial emails have been responded to”. For a small business owner – it can be tricky to make sure you follow up with everyone who reaches out to you – I have been guilty of it myself. This is one reason why putting a contact management system in place along with an email program that an track responses and opens is so important – you can always go back and follow up with those customers that requested more information – even if you missed the initial email or phone call.
Nearly All e-mail marketers measure their campaigns but many do not use the results to support their budgeting goals. Though nearly all respondents in a a survey conducted by EmailStattcenter.com said they measure results 24 to 48 hours after email deployment, fewer than one fifth said they measured their annual results or considered them in their budget forecasting for the next year. Still, at the end of 2007 more online marketers planned to increase their budgets for in-house email lists than for any other online ad tactic except for search marketing, according to MarketingSherpa. This means that spending on direct marketing email in the United States will hit $600 million in 2008. Why? Because Email produces the highest response rate for lead generation and is generally the lowest cost way to run a campaign with the average ROI being $45.65 for every dollar spent.
SENDING & TRACKING
The days where you could send a single email and blind copy hundreds of other people are over – thank goodness. Email Service Providers – ESP’s – are companies that provide one or more of the following commercial e-mail services:
• Improved Email Deliverability
• Database and List Management
• Email Template Design
• Email Message and Content Creation
• Tracking Reports
• Advice and Consulting along with tutorials
• Survey options
• Graphs & Response charts for tracking survey responses and email opens
• Unsubscribe services and spam filtering and alerts
• Storage of your email lists and tracking bounced and blocked emails
They can assist you with template design of newsletters, promotions, announcements, press releases, invitations, greeting cards, business letters, etc.
Here are some ESP options that have good reputations, I use both.
1. Constant Contact www.constantcontact.com
2. aweber http://aweber.com/?315736
Direct Mail Marketing – Dead?
It can be expensive – but many vendors and services swear by its’ effectiveness. Here are some general pros and cons to help you decide if it might be right for you.
Advantages to Using Direct Mail:
- By targeting a very specific group and taking your message directly to them, you have the ability to have complete control over who receives your advertising message, and who doesn’t. For example, if you are targeting opportunity seekers, a quality mailing list can let you focus on that specific group.
- A well-planned direct mail campaign can result in the most consistent and predictable method of customer generation, and it provides great flexibility in message presentation. ·
- Direct mail makes couponing and sampling practical. It can help isolate advertising response to a single segment, and compare returns in one area with those of another.
- Each letter campaign gives you the ability to precisely track your return on investment (ROI This way you know to the penny whether or not your marketing plan is working.
- You can test a promotion on a small scale before committing a huge budget.
- You can develop a distinctive personality for your business. It can be used to enhance your image, give your customers or clients information, and persuade them to place an order.
Disadvantages of Direct Mail:
- Direct mail is often considered to be junk mail. Seldom does a one-shot mailing have the desired result. You must have a long term, well thought out marketing plan.
- Your piece is competing with dozens of other pieces for attention. If you don’t know what you are doing, it is easy to waste a lot of money.
- There is a relatively high cost per contact.
- It may be difficult to obtain updated, accurate mailing lists.
Define Your Target Market
Determine who you want to reach before you develop your direct mail program. This allows you to specifically target your message to fit specific needs. It is the best advertising medium for customizing your appeal. With improved database resources and demographics, you can effectively precisely target the prospect you are aiming at.
The task of deciding your mailing package content, its design, and its message is up to you. However, remember to attract the reader’s interest, it must be clear, concise and easy to respond to. Coordinate your mailing with other advertising methods to significantly increase your return. Also, presenting one specific offer instead of a variety of options is usually more effective.
Diligently test and track your campaigns, and direct mail can become a profitable piece of your marketing mix!
PR – The Basics
Considerations in Logo Design
Many small companies do not invest in a professional-looking logo. But, the right logo, with the right characteristics, will boost your visibility, credibility and memorability – which means more business for you!
These characteristics include:
- Memorability, so that your logo sticks at the forefront of your potential clients’ minds. That way, they’ll think of you next time they have a need.
- Uniqueness, which helps you stand out from the crowd. For example, if everyone in your industry uses a particular symbol (i.e., travel agencies often use globes in their logos), try to use something else – that way, your logo doesn’t just look like everyone else’s.
- Meaningful logos spread the message about the distinguishing characteristics of your business.
- Consistency in use of your logo, tagline, materials. Repetition helps people to remember who you are and what you do.
- Scalability, so that your logo looks equally good on a business card and on a sign for your business (or a billboard!), and at every size in between. A second part of this is legibility of your business’s name at different logo sizes, and making sure that your designer chooses a font that is readable
- Professional, in the quality of the graphics, the printing and the paper your materials are printed on.
- Timelessness in your logo will ensure that you don’t have to redesign your logo in just a few years, and that your investment and equity in your design will be lasting.
- Differentiation between the colors in your logo – and not just in terms of hue, but in terms of value as well, so that it translates well to black and white or greyscale, and so that color blind people can read it.
Having a professionally designed logo can really give your business a jump start, and help your business to get the attention – and clients – you need to succeed.