maximizing b2b email performance 2014
DESCRIPTION
Maximizing B2B Email Performance 2014 by Kevin Miller CMO at SalesfusionTRANSCRIPT
Tips for optimizing your B2B email campaigns
Who we are
• Pioneer in lead to revenue management - the only MA platform built on a CRM database
• The best marketing automation platform in the industry for integrating marketing to sales
• 750+ Clients in 22 countries
• Known for unique approach to client services & training
• All-in-one approach to marketing platform
What we’ll cover today• The state of B2B email marketing
• 4 most commonly used email campaigns
• Email design considerations
• Building for mobile
• Ensuring high deliverability
Trends
www.SalesFUSION.com© 2013 SalesFUSION
State of B2B email marketing
Overall spending and growth increases• Social has not killed email• Email usage continues to grow despite
budget dilution from other channels• Newer types of email marketing
(drip/trigger/nurture) have increased where/when email can be used
The fundamentals of B2B email marketingRelevancy Ensure you are delivering relevant content
Personalization It's no longer good enough to greet a recipient by name. Use purchase history, website activity and customer relationship management (CRM) data to learn about your audience and create the exact content they want to see
Optimization Testing has moved beyond simple A/B to optimized outcomes and optimized content flows
Mobile Optimization Responsive design is quickly becoming the norm to ensure your emails read read and digested on mobile devices
4 Most commonly used B2B campaignsBulk/Blast Single, linear blast email targeting lists & segments
Drip Date-based, linear, multi-thread email targeting lists, segments and responders
Trigger Relative date, personalized, linear email targeting dynamic segments and individuals who have taken an action
Nurture Non-linear, relative date, multi-thread combing both marketing actions and sales actions targeting lists, segments, individuals and responders
How are B2B marketers optimizing?
• Content Optimization
• Mobile Optimization
• Delivery Optimization
Content Optimization
Simple ways to optimize email content to improve CTR
• Trigger-based emails from web forms
• Multiple choice questions• Product
• Industry
• Role
• Nurture campaigns based on web activity• Identify interest based on activity (specific web content)
• Time email communications based on last web visit
Content Optimization
Simple ways to optimize email content to improve CTR
• Content Quality
• Content funnel • Educational
• Use Case
• Product
Mobile Optimization
Over 50% of your audience is opening up your email on a mobile device:
www.Salesfusion.com © 2014 Salesfusion
More email is read Mobile than on a desktop email client. Stats say 51% of email is now opened on a mobile device Litmus –”Email Analytics” (Jan 2014)
Mobile email opens have grown with 21% in 2013, from 43% in Jan to 51% in December. Litmus –”Email Analytics” (Jan 2014)Mobile received the largest percentage of unique clicks (40%), webmail was a strong second with 35% – Experian “Quarterly Email Benchmark Study” (Q2 2013)
78% Of US Email Users Will Also Access Their Emails Via Mobile By 2017 – Forrester Research “Email Marketing Forecast 2012 – 2017″ (2012)
What is Responsive DesignOptimize your Email Marketing
Responsive email identifies a device’s screen or display size using the @media query and serves the appropriate layout determined by the designer.
www.Salesfusion.com © 2014 Salesfusion
As opposed to Scalable design, Responsive design allows room for a designer to modify, hide, stack, add or expand/collapse content to optimize usability for narrow screens.Responsive design offers the most flexibility and control.
Some email clients strip out CSS style sheets and don’t support @media queries. However optimization will be supported if synced with the phone’s native email application.Responsive design uses flexible grid and fixed-width layout in the HTML template, and should be tested problematic clients.
Tips for Responsive DesignOptimize your Email Marketing
www.Salesfusion.com © 2014 Salesfusion
Tips for Responsive DesignOptimize your Email Marketing
www.Salesfusion.com © 2014 Salesfusion
1. Design for mobile first
Begin with the mobile experience and work up to desktop. This approach is much easier than to try to fit a desktop experience into a mobile phone.
2. Stack your content
Rather than scale down images, transform horizontal assortments into vertical at the 480px breakpoint.
3. Design for the masses
Design your email template around Android and iOS users. Don’t compromise your design to perfect the experience on a less popular device.
4. Optimize for touch
Position CTAs in a way that aligns with how people hold and use touch-enabled devices. Simplify for mobile and decide what needs to stay on the screen.
5. Make it legible
Optimize your content on mobile by choosing easily readable fonts, increase line spacing, and font size.
6. If it doesn't sell – expel!
Consider hiding extra text and menus that push down your most important content.
Delivery Optimization
Ensuring your email gets to the inbox & gets opened
• Trigger-based emails from web forms
• Multiple choice questions• Product
• Industry
• Role
• Nurture campaigns based on web activity• Identify interest based on activity (specific web content)
• Time email communications based on last web visit
Delivery Optimization
Subject Lines• Single biggest driver of open rates• Keep simple, honest and compelling• 45-65 characters max• Avoid obvious issues – Free, Offer, Expire – or adjectives that are over the top (Massive,
huge)• Avoid Characters in subject lines *&%$@!• Use A/B Testing and optimize on open rates
Delivery Optimization
Call to Action• Big buttons – simple CTA messages• Limit CTA to one – no extraneous links in email• Big buttons tend to show best in mobile• A/B Testing on CTR – test on color/placement/verbiage
Delivery Optimization
Spam and device optimization• Test emails against myriad of clients & devices• Ensure optimal viewing• Test against spam filters for deliverability
Delivery Optimization – tips & tricks
Subject Swaps• Send multiple variations of the same email with varied
subject lines at different time intervals• Vary subject lines between formal/casual• Progressively send to non responders over the course
of 1-2 weeks• On average this practice doubles open rates• Does not increase unsubscribe rates
Delivery Optimization – tips & tricks
Subject line variations• Informal
“Hey ++FirstName++, I wanted to share a cool infographic with you• Formal
“New industry report available for download”• Categorical
“[Live Webinar] – Join us tomorrow for an industry best practice session”• Time-based
“Some reading materials for the weekend” – sent Friday late PM“Hi ++FirstName++, I wanted to send this to you before the week gets too busy” – early AM Monday
Delivery Optimization – tips & tricks
Time variations (used in subject swaps) for North America• Industry accepted norms
Tues – Thursday between 11AM and 2PM US EST• Weekenders
Saturday early (before noon); Sunday Evening or Morning• Early Birds
Monday early AM• Last Chance
Friday between 3-6PM US EST
Delivery Optimization – tips & tricks
1 – 2 Punch• Trigger a complimentary product asset within 1-2 days following standard email open• Trigger an analyst report within 1 hours of asset download • Trigger link to a complimentary blog post relative to the email asset
• Triggers of this nature average open rates of 40-50%
Delivery Optimization – tips & tricks
Humor versus Serious• Humor in email marketing can dramatically improve open rates• Making fun of yourself a little can lead to a lot of good will• Use in both subject lines and content
“yeah yeah….I know your busy and you didn’t open my last email, but seriously, this is really important”
“alligator attack” or “alien abduction”
Delivery Optimization – tips & tricks
Give a little to get a lot• If you don’t need to gather info in a form, don’t require it• Mix content and offer some with no CTA (video is optimal)
Final Thoughts
• Be relevant – deliver the right content to the right people• Always lead with educational content• Always ask if you can send more• Create opt-ins on everything (forms, blogs, emails…etc.)• Build long-term trust in your house file
Q&A
• Learn more at www.salesfusion.com• See a live demo• Follow our blog for tips/best practices• Thanks for joining us today!