1. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
Step Away From the Open Rates!

2. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
Why do we use the open rate?
Uniquely accurate
Key to reputation and delivery
High open rate = success

3. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
Email best practice advice... who is it for?
Common Problems
Familiar Answers
Standard Message
• inactive data
• volume
• relevancy
• clean lists
• send to active data
• improve targeting
•
•
•
•
You are sending too many emails
inactive data is bad
improve your open rates
improve your sender reputation

4. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
Email Marketing - Chapter 1
Collect permission-based data for marketing
Use that data to target, segment and personalise
Trigger and automate campaigns to improve relevancy
and timeliness
Re-engage and reactivate dormant and sleepy customers
on your list
Don’t send emails to long-term inactive data

5. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
Email Marketing - Chapter 2
Open rate not relevant to evolving email marketing techniques
You should send more emails
You should repeat email sends
If you want to engage with your customers, it is your customers, not your
campaigns which you should measure (Tim Watson)
Inactive is normal (Dela Quist)
Use „Big Data‟ techniques to increase segment size

6. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
High Open Rates and Campaign Success
High open rates are seen
in successful
campaigns, but…
Campaign success comes
from relevancy and
recipient interaction
What does the
open rate
indicate?
Open rates are a measure
of that interaction
High open rates are a
consequence of a
successful campaign, not
the cause

7. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
Send Email of Value,
not Volume

8. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
Volume and Value
Case Study 1:
Welcome Campaigns
Moved from a single welcome
email to a welcome series
StudentBeans
•13% Revenue increase
•“We found that it is actually
making the list more engaged”
More people opened
welcome emails
•Open rates after welcome
campaign increased by 67%
because list was more engaged
•It was not the same people
opening each welcome
email, which is what lead to the
increased overall engagement of
the list
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/article/c
ase-study/sixemail-welcome-increasesrevenue-13
67% more people opened
subsequent emails
13% revenue increase over
subscription lifetime

9. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
Volume and Value
Case Study 2:
Cart Abandonment
Moved from a single email
to an email series
SaleCycle – MandM Direct
Email 1 – within a few minutes of
cart abandonment
4.04% conversion rate
Email 2 – 24 hours after cart
abandonment
2.8% conversion rate
2nd Cycle influence
36% of conversions generated by
the 2nd cycle
37% of cart recovery revenue
generated by the 2nd cycle
http://www.salecycle.com/ourresources/c
ase-studies/content/mandm-direct.aspx
More people opened
emails
More people revisited
abandoned carts
Increased conversions

10. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
How multi-phase and re-targeting works
More chances to open emails
More people open emails
Relevancy must be maintained

11. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
Multi-phase – open rates
Email campaign
Recipients Openers
Open
Rate
Week 1 full list news and offers
10,000
2,000
20%
Week 2 full list –
discount voucher
10,000
2,500
25%
Discount Voucher
priority follow-up
Phase 1
2,000
800
40%
Discount Voucher
priority follow-up
Phase 2
1200
200
17%
Follow-up campaign 1: Success
Follow-up campaign 2: Failure?

12. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
Multi-phase – engagement and revenue
Email campaign
Combined
Openers
Recipients
Openers
Week 1 full list news and offers
10,000
2,000
£4000
Week 2 full list –
discount voucher
10,000
2,500
£5000
Look at overall and
incremental revenue
£1600
Incremental costs are close
to zero with automation
£400
Discount Voucher
priority follow-up
Phase 1
2,000
800
3300
(33%)
Discount Voucher
priority follow-up
Phase 2
1200
200
3500
(35%)
Revenue
Email campaign open rates
show only a single point-intime measure of success
Look at overall impact to
mailing list

13. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
Multi-phase and re-targeting – further examples
Welcome
campaign
series
Multi-cycle
cart
abandonment
Time-limited
event or offer
Priority
customer
rewards
A one-off offer
to push

14. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
Engagement, not open rates
Increase the
reach of
individual
campaigns
Long term aim:
increase
openers within
mailing list
• Re-target
• Multi-phase
• Repeat campaigns
• Increase size of mailing list
• Increase quality of new and existing data
and reduce unsubscribes
• Interesting, useful, engaging, timely and
relevant content

15. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
Open Rate Strategy:
Targeting active email addresses
Increases open rates
Remedial only – targeting same, decreasing list
Inactive is normal (Dela Quist)
Use inactive data differently
Remove long-term inactive email addresses

16. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
Open Rate Strategy: Targeting to segment
Filter Criteria

17. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
Open Rate Strategy: Targeting to fan-out results
Fan-Out Filter Results

18. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
Open Rate Strategy: Targeting to fan-out results
Big Data modelling
techniques to
identify recipients
with similar
demographics
Analysis used for
targeting can be
used to grow
segments

19. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
Summary
Open rate is a single measure of a single campaign, not relevant to many
modern email marketing techniques
Open rate maximisation advice is to fix basic delivery problems and
long-term can result in small number of people being retargeted
If you want to engage with your customers, it is your customers, not
your campaigns which you should measure (Tim Watson)
Maximise revenue by improving the reach of each campaign and your
mailing list engagement.

20. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
A new strategy for the next 12 months
Increase email revenue and ROI
Increase number of actively opening, engaged
customers
Increase number and quality of customers in lists
Use multi-phase campaigns to increase the reach of
each campaign

21. @CommCorp
#InternetWorld2013
#askCommCorp
Questions?
Some of the brands we work with...
Meet the team at stand E6056