10 rules for successful permission-based e-mail marketing
By Derek Scruggs
Attention, online marketers. Do your part and adhere to
these rules.
1. Send e-mail only to those who have "opted-in" to receive
it.
Ideally you should use "confirmed" opt-in, in which a confirmation
message must be sent to the recipient, who in turn must reply
to the message for the opt-in to take effect. Avoid "opt-out,"
which forces the recipient to receive messages until he says
no.
The widespread practice of opt-out appears to actually discourage
e-commerce. A 2001 survey by the research firm Millward Brown
IntelliQuest found that 63% of Web users agreed with the statement,
"If I buy online, I'll end up getting junk e-mail." And the
trend is up — IntelliQuest found only 58% agreed with that
statement in 1998. Perhaps this is why many people use fake
e-mail addresses when buying online; Shop.org found in a 1998
survey that 60% of surfers have given false information when
filling out online forms.
Bottom line: Consumer trust is something you have to earn.
One of the best ways is to respect consumers' wishes when
it comes to e-mail.
Always honor user requests to opt-out.
Make it a simple process and include a Web site URL in every
message that allows the user to opt-out. (A simple "reply
to unsubscribe" does not always work if the user has multiple
e-mail accounts, which can be extremely frustrating for the
end user.)
For some companies, it might make sense to "down-sell" the
end user. For example, a news site that provides daily deliveries
may have success in offering the user an opportunity to "downgrade"
to weekly digests. After all, many opt-outs are simply a natural
reaction to too much e-mail in general; a reduced burden is
often welcome.
3. Confirm everything by e-mail: The initial opt-in, orders,
shipping notification and changes in the customer profile.
This blunts the problem of false information. If a fake e-mail
address has been entered, the confirmation will either bounce
or be delivered to someone who possibly has never heard of
you, in which case he will contact you and let you know your
database needs to be updated. Always include an opt-out mechanism
in these messages. As an added bonus, use these messages as
an up-sell opportunity. For example, an airline could offer
the user a reduced rate for renting a car from a particular
sponsoring vendor.
4. Allow users to specify their preferences.
What kind of information do they want to receive? How often?
Encourage the user to give you as much information as necessary
to allow you to effectively target them in your e-mail promotions
and other e-commerce activities. But avoid asking for her
life story. Instead, structure your program so that you gain
more information over time — with her permission, of course!
5. Give and you shall receive.
Customers don't give you their e-mail address and other personal
information out of altruism. They do it in exchange for something
of value. It could be information (on your Web site, via e-mail
or through some other media), a free gift, a coupon or a chance
to win a sweepstakes. Be creative, but also follow through
by delivering real value to the recipient with every message.
6. Your list is an asset that only you can use; do not sell
or rent it.
If you want to realize incremental revenue beyond your own
offerings, allow the users to opt-in to receive offers from
your partners. If you do this, make sure you control the mailings,
and that your brand "introduces" other brands. Example: "Because
you opted to receive promotional offers from our valued partners,
we at ABC Corp. are pleased to give you a special offer from
XYZ Corp." Ask the company doing the promotion to give you
an exclusive on the offer for a limited time; limiting the
offer to only your customers increases the value of opting
in.
7. Develop and post a privacy policy for your Web site.
It reinforces how valuable they are to you and reminds them
that there are real, live people "behind the scenes" of your
Web site.
8. Respond to customer e-mail inquiries promptly.
9. Don't use rented lists.
The only exception is vendors who use the method described
in No. 6.
10. Always remember the network effect.
Bad news travels much faster than good on the Internet.
An angry online customer can broadcast his ire to millions
by creating an "I hate [your company]" Web site, e-mailing
the experience to friends, posting it on message boards and
other ways. Remember, in this economy the customer is in control.
Do not make the mistake of treating e-mail and the Web like
the telephone and snail mail.
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