Listrak: One To One Newsletter
Vol 2: Q4 2003
"One to One" discusses email marketing intelligence and best practices for permission-based marketers. Each edition explores aspects of response-based modeling, segmentation, real-time reporting, testing, and message composition.
In this issue look at the latest email marketing forecast, learn more about Listrak’s new HTML Editor, get news from the Listrak frontier, discover the importance of the all-mighty preview window, and find out how a Rollerblade campaign made it into our Email Showcase.
Enriching e-Relationships
The success forecast for email marketers looks very promising, according to new data reported in DoubleClick's Email Trend Report. Over the past several months email-related sales have risen, or remained consistent, giving marketers new hopes.
Performance statistics were measured tracking 2 billion email messages sent through DoubleClick's DARTmail service. The following statistics represent result averages across a diverse band of clientelle.
UP: Open rates, up from 37.6% in Q2 2002 to 38.8% in Q2 2003.
UP: click through rates, up from 7.5% in Q2 2002 to 8.3%in Q2 2003.
DOWN: Bounce rates, down from 13.6% in Q2 2002 to 11.5% in Q2 2003.
Although the average total order per sale declined, the retail and catalog category experienced the biggest improvement, reporting gains in delivery success, open rates and click rates.
Tech Know - HTML EDITOR
Thanks to Listrak's newly designed HTML Editor, you can now type a message and modify its appearance while working directly within the Listrak program itself. The HTML Editor is easy to use, and provides you with several design options.
Using Listrak's HTML Editor you can control text appearances, such as font, size and color. There's no need to use an outside program or transfer data. Listrak even offers you an HTML Template Manager, which gives you a choice of five different graphical templates to work in.
If you don't have FrontPage, DreamWeaver, or some other HTML editor, you'll find Listrak's HTML Editor to be a handy tool.
For more information on the HTML Editor—or other Listrak features—contact a Listrak representative at 717-627-4528.
News Flash - LISTRAK SPONSORS EMAIL MARKETING DAY 2003
Nearly 100 marketers gathered in Lancaster, PA to attend Email Marketing Day 2003, a free seminar created and hosted by Listrak. The half-day seminar examined the best practices of email marketing and presented turnkey tactics for email message creation, data collection and campaign refinement. The August 18 th event, held at the Eden Resort, provided two seminar tracks; the first explored general email marketing topics, the second specifically focused on Listrak application tools and usage.
Two new Listrak features were also debuted during Email Marketing Day—the HTML Editor and a Template Manager. Unlike other email marketing applications, Listrak's HTML Editor allows you to modify all aspects of the content while working directly within the message itself. The Template Manager feature lets you to easily choose the type of background, or shell, your message will be delivered in.
Presenters at Email Marketing Day included Listrak President Ross Kramer, Anthony Campisi of Annodyne Interactive in Philadelphia, Alex Hartzler of WebClients.Net in Harrisburg and other members of the Listrak team.
An overview of the information presented at Email Marketing Day 2003 is available at Listrak.com/emd.asp. This information includes slide handouts, white papers and photographs of the event.
LISTRAK TEAM GROWS BY TWO
John Lozzi joins Listrak as the new Director of Business Development. Bringing over 20 years of outstanding sales and marketing achievement to the Listrak team, John is a proven leader with a firm handle on the best practices of business development. Previously the Vice President of Marketing at Lightship Telecom, LLC, John played a key role in helping the company exceed revenue of over $30 million in just three years. John earned his MBA at St. John Fisher College and is the primary contact for the Listrak Email Marketing application.
As the new Production Manager, Keith Brown brings over 18 years of Information Technology experience, plus three years of Internet related technology to the Listrak team. Formerly a Senior Project Manager at PPT in Lancaster, Keith successfully managed multiple, concurrent 100K projects for State Agencies. His role at Listrak is to effectively initiate and govern client accounts plus Listrak project development.
YOU GOTTA SEE THIS
Listrak, sponsors of Ben Witter, PGA Pro, Golf Long Drive Champion and golf trick-shot artist is proud to announce Ben's appearance on FOX Sports Net TV Show, “You Gotta See This”.
See the most amazing golf shots ever hit and what the top instructor on the PGA tour called, “impossible”.
Tune in to FOX Sports Net“You Gotta See This” on Monday, October 20th to see for yourself. Check your local listings for times or you can find them on the FOX Sports home page on the web at www.foxsports.com. This show will repeat on November 25th, 2003
Please visit Ben on line at www.benspowergolf.com.
Listrak is proud to sponsor Ben Witter. Ben will be with us at the PGA's annual Merchandise Show in Orlando on January 29th through February 1, 2004.
GET FREE TICKETS TO @D:TECH 2003!
Listrak™ is giving away FREE tickets to the “@D:TECH Exhibition 2003” in New York City to be held November 3rd , 4th and 5th! This is your opportunity to network with thousands of Interactive industry decision-makers as they showcase their newest tools and technology. To receive your complimentary tickets from Listrak, contact John Lozzi at 717-627-4528, ext: 308, or jlozzi@listrak.com.
P.S.—When you're at @D:TECH, be sure to stop by the Listrak booth, #212.
LOOK FOR US!
Listrak will be exhibiting at the following venues:
| October 27, 2003 | Central Penn Tech Fest |
| Harrisburg Hilton Towers | |
| November 3-5, 2003 | @D:TECH |
| Booth #212 | New York City |
To receive FREE tickets to the @D:TECH show, compliments of Listrak, contact John Lozzi at 717-627-4528, ext: 308, or jlozzi@listrak.com.
| PGA Merchandising Show | January 29 - February 1, 2004 |
| Booth #11939 | Orlando, FL |
| Travel Commerce | April 19 - 21, 2004 |
| Booth #200 | New York City |
Composure - THE ALL-POWERFUL PREVIEW WINDOW
If you want to increase open and read rates, you'll need more than an intriguing Subject Line—you better have Preview Window content that compels and sells.
Ahh, the Preview Window—those short lines of text appearing with the Subject Line that give you an idea of what the email is about. Bet you almost forgot the Preview Window even existed, didn't you? Yet its strategic positioning is so powerful, it can single handedly decide the success and failure of an email campaign.
What many marketers fail to realize is that most email recipients use the Preview Window as a decision making tool. The first second of readership is devoted to the Subject Line. If it's compelling, the eye moves on to the Preview Window. Then based on its content, BAM! In just two to three seconds a decision is made to delete or open the message.
So what crucial information should be presented in the Preview Window? Nothing but the main offer.
According to ClickZ.com, when the Preview Window is purged of clutter and noise—such as irrelevant copy—and only the main offer exists, open rates become dramatically higher. Preview Windows that require readers to scroll down or open the message to learn more have lower open rates.
NEW RULES TO ADD TO YOUR CONTENT CHECK LIST:
#1. Use the Preview Window to simply state the most intriguing elements of your offer.
#2. Place disclaimers, unsubscribe policies, and fluff copy below the content that appears in the preview panel.
#3. Design the key elements (i.e., the major benefits) of your offer to work within the preview window so the recipient instantly understands the entire marketing proposition.
If you're looking for a way to boost open rates, start designing your email messages around these three steps. You'll be surprised at how much power the Preview Window commands.
Email Showcase
In the off-line world, customers seeking a pair of Rollerblade
skates go to a store, learn about the product, try a pair on,
then make a purchase decision. However, in the on-line world,
Rollerblade needed to take a different approach.
Using a house list Rollerblade had compiled itself, two HTML email campaigns were deployed through Listrak. The goal of these campaigns was to inspire and maintain customer interest, while giving Rollerblade an opportunity to clean out their list (e.g. eliminating bouncebacks, faulty addresses, etc.) in preparation for their big Spring email campaign.
Rollerblade then joined forces with Listrak Partner, Annodyne Interactive, to create a Flash piece that would introduce the newest skate model. The idea was that Flash would be a more accurate way to depict the skate technology and its components, rather than simply providing content about the skate. Flash was also deemed a better medium to reach their target audience.
With a solid list and a high-energy Flash promotion tied into an email message, Rollerblade deployed their campaign, using Listrak, in May of 2003.
Using various Listrak tracking features, Rollerblade determined that the rich media message outperformed the first HTML e-mail with a 19% click through rate. Of those click through's, a whopping 63% clicked through to the web site.
