No matter what the content, subscribers interact with email messages across a dizzying variety of apps, devices, programs and platforms. In fact, 50% of emails are viewed on a mobile device. How can you ensure an effective email experience across a range of screen sizes? This presentation discusses how to find out who is opening your emails on mobile, the implications of various screen sizes and operating systems, along with common pitfalls and easy wins for optimizing email for mobile devices. This presentation will teach you: - Examples and key best practices - Strategies for approaching mobile-friendly emails - Actionable advice to take back to your team and implement right away This presentation was developed by Justine Jordan, Director of Research and Education at Litmus, and was given at NEDMA's 2014 DM Innovations Symposium.

1. Tips and Tricks for
Small Screen Success
March 13, 2014
The Mobile Inbox

2. Who Am I?
Justine Jordan
Wearer of Many Hats, Litmus

3. @meladorri @litmusapp
#NEDMAInno14
Join us on Twi er
@meladorri @litmusapp
#NEDMAInno14

4. 1
The crazy growth of mobile
We’ll cover…
2
Knowing your audience
3
Your subscribers on mobile
#NEDMAInno14
4
Strategies + best practices

5. Got Screens?image credit: helpmyhelpdesk.com

6. Mobile is big, but how big?
Mobile:
Smartphones (iPhone, Android)
and tablets
Desktop:
Installed email programs
(Outlook, Apple Mail)
Webmail:
Email accessed through a web
browser (Gmail, Hotmail,
Yahoo!)
Source: Litmus Email Analytics
25%
Webmail
48%
Mobile
27%
Desktop
#NEDMAInno14

7. Looking back to 2011…
Source: Litmus Email Analytics
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
Desktop Webmail Mobile
10%
33%
50%
#NEDMAInno14

8. 400%
mobile opens have increased
since 2011
#NEDMAInno14

9. There’s a few options out there…
Large
Medium
Small

10. The unifying characteristic?
TOUCH.
#NEDMAInno14

11. 31%of marketers don’t know their
mobile email open rate
source:
marketingsherpa.com
#NEDMAInno14

12. Your mileage may vary
Litmus = 15%MapMyRun = 70%+
#NEDMAInno14

13. It’s as easy as copy, paste, send

14. How does a poorly designed email
affect your perception of the
brand?
If you get a mobile email that doesn’t look good, what do you do?
BlueHornet Study: Consumer Views of Email Marketing, 2012 and 2013
80.30%
30.20%
13.50%
3.80%
6.30%
Delete it
Unsubscribe
View on computer
Don't know
Read anyway
+68%
+15%
75%
‘negative’
One chance to make an impression
51%
Slightly
negative
25%
Neutral
24%
Strongly
negative
#NEDMAInno14

15. The mobile experience is
different than the desktop
experience
Conversion
Page/Site
Click/Tap
Preview/Open
Preheader
Subject Line
From Name
The Subscriber
Experience
#NEDMAInno14

16. From and subject are front and center
???
Page/Site
Tap/Click
Preview/Open
Preheader
Subject Line
From Name

17. From and subject are front and center
???
Page/Site
Tap/Click
Preview/Open
Preheader
Subject Line
From Name
• Large and bold =
top hierarchy in
the mobile inbox
• Cuts off a er ~25
characters

18. ???
Page/Site
Tap/Click
Preview/Open
Preheader
Subject Line
From Name
From and subject are front and center

19. ???
Page/Site
Tap/Click
Preview/Open
Preheader
Subject Line
From Name
From and subject are front and center
• Second in the
hierarchy
• Android wraps to the
next line
• iPhone cuts off at ~35
characters

20. ???
Page/Site
Tap/Click
Preview/Open
Preheader
Subject Line
From Name
Preheader = tertiary inbox content

21. Good vs. bad preheaders
✔
✔
✔
✘
✘
???
Page/Site
Tap/Click
Preview/Open
Preheader
Subject Line
From Name

22. Each phone and app is different
???
Page/Site
Tap/Click
Preview/Open
Preheader
Subject Line
From Name
#NEDMAInno14

23. Each phone and app is different
???
Page/Site
Tap/Click
Preview/Open
Preheader
Subject Line
From Name
#NEDMAInno14

24. #EmbraceTheScroll
???
Page/Site
Tap/Click
Preview/Open
Preheader
Subject Line
From Name
Scrolling is easier than clicking.
Scrolling is a continuation.
Clicking is a decision.
Hundreds or thousands of
decisions taken together add up
to real friction.
@bokardo
#NEDMAInno14

25. ???
Page/Site
Tap/Click
Preview/Open
Preheader
Subject Line
I like big bu ons…
From Name

26. ???
Page/Site
Tap/Click
Preview/Open
Preheader
Subject Line
Don’t forget the landing page
From Name
NO:
interstitials
horrible forms
Flash
#NEDMAInno14

27. ???
Page/Site
Tap/Click
Preview/Open
Preheader
Subject Line
Optimize the conversion path
From Name
YES:
Easy to use
Finger
friendly
#NEDMAInno14

28. ???
Page/Site
Tap/Click
Preview/Open
Preheader
Subject Line
Optimize the conversion path
From Name
#NEDMAInno14
• What is your goal?
• Can the CTA be achieved on mobile?
• Is it tappable?
• How many clicks/taps/actions are required?
• Is the landing page optimized? Should it be?

29. strategy #1
mobile first
aka agnostic, aware, scalable

30. Strategy #1: Mobile first
Considers the mobile user a priority
• One layout for all screen sizes
• 320-500px
• Large text & bu ons
• Generous white space
• Clear calls to action
• Short, concise body copy
#NEDMAInno14

31. Strategy #1: Mobile first

32. strategy #2
fluid

33. Strategy #2: Fluid
Email width
changes to fit
within the window
it’s viewed in
Percentage-based widths
Adapts to fit the screen
Text wraps automatically
#NEDMAInno14

34. Strategy #2: Fluid
Shorter learning curve
Best for text-heavy emails

35. strategy #3
responsive

36. Strategy #3: Responsive
• More than a “line of code”
• Set of conditional statements that enables specific styles
Ø If the screen size is x, then display y
Ø If the screen size is x, then increase headline size to y
Ø If screen size is x, then show image at 100%
• Detects screen size, not device type
Uses media queries to detect screen size and alter
content accordingly
#NEDMAInno14

37. Strategy #3: Responsive
• Resize content: make images
fit, make text larger
• Hide content on mobile
• Stack columns
• Move a two-column design to a
one-column design
• Learning curve; but plenty of
pre-tested templates exist
• Mixed support for media
queries across mobile
h ps://litmus.com/blog/the-how-to-guide-to-responsive-email-design-infographic

38. Strategy #3: Responsive

39. Email
is a unique medium
with unique
considerations

40. Click is now tap
The finger is the new mouse
#NEDMAInno14

41. Your users have fat fingers (we all do)
image: webdesignerdepot.com #NEDMAInno14

42. Bigger is be er
• Body copy: 16px+
• Headlines: 22px+
• Bu ons: 44px by 44px
• Space: 10px+
• Tappable touch
targets
#NEDMAInno14

43. Blue links on iOS

44. • 24% market share
• Automatically scales to fit
• Excellent support for media queries
• Images on by default
• Resizes fonts under 13px
What to know: iPhone
#NEDMAInno14

45. What to know: BlackBerry
• 0.097% market share
• Media query support
• Blocks images; supports ALT text
• Does not scale/auto-zoom
• No separate app; email joins social,
SMS and voice in the “hub”
#NEDMAInno14

46. What to know: Windows Phone
• 0.163% market share
• Mixed media query support
• Inconsistent font display
• Blocks images
• CTAs require 2 clicks for image-based
emails
• No ALT text
#NEDMAInno14

47. What to know: Android
• 9% market share
• Support for ALT text
• Various screen sizes, OS and app
versions
• Mixed support for media queries
• Some auto-scale, some do not
#NEDMAInno14

48. What to know: Tablets
• iPad: 12% market share
• Touch screen considerations
apply, but with more screen
real estate
• Consider tablet-specific
media queries for unique
audiences
• 68% of US owners use
tablets while watching TV
• Conversion rates are
typically higher for tablets
than smartphones
#NEDMAInno14

49. Wide variety of ways to access email
Device ≠ email client

50. Wide variety of ways to access email
Device ≠ email client
Email is an applica&on

51. Rendering is inconsistent
across devices and operating systems
Wide variety of ways to access email

52. Testing is crucial
#NEDMAInno14

53. Testing is crucial
#NEDMAInno14

54. 1
Know your audience & consider
the mobile users’ needs
2
3
Tap your way to success
-TAKEAWAYS -
4
Rendering is tied to app,
not device
Responsive is not impossible,
but it’s not a silver bullet, either

55. Thanks!
Thanks!