"Email is dead." "Brands can no longer derive value from email marketing." "Other communications methods like social media and texting have replaced email." "The inbox will soon be a wasteland." Each one of the statements above has been uttered by consumers, marketers and respected thought leaders alike. But is email marketing really taking its last breath? Or are we just doing it wrong? In a discussion filled with relevant stats, real examples and best practices you need to know, Chris Sietsema of Teach to Fish Digital discusses email's future and what agencies can do to today to improve email marketing programs.

1. Email Extinction?
October 20, 2014

2. 3
“EMAIL IS DEAD”

3. 4
“EMAIL IS DEAD”
Killed by SPAM
Replaced by Social Media
Irrelevant for Younger Audiences
Ineffective for Retailers
Not Ideal for Team Communication

4. 5
A STERLING REPUTATION

5. 6
DIRTY SPAM

6. 7
“I’m just not getting
enough email.
I’d really like more.”
- No One Ever

7. 8
WHY PEOPLE UNSUBSCRIBE
TOP BRANDS BY UNSUBSCRIBE RATE
52.5% 45.0% 42.0% 41.6%
Source: UnRoll.me - January 2014

8. Purchased Lists
» A practice that should die
» Just don’t do it
!
!
!
!
» Source: MailChimp - July 2014
9

9. 10

10. 10

11. 11
NOT MOBILE FRIENDLY
Mobile Opens Mobile Friendly
64% 48%
Sources: YesMail / ExactTarget - August 2014

12. 12

13. 12

14. 13
DIGITAL TACTICS RANKED
Email
Website/Blogs
SEO
Social Media
Content
Paid Search
Mobile/SMS
eCommerce
19
Most Effective Most Difficult
34
23
24
23
43
42
48
49
39
11
8
9
38
47
54
0 15 30 45 60
Source: Ascend2 & Research Partners - September 2014

15. 14
RETENTION PROGRAMS RANKED
8%
7%
6%
4%
13%
12%
26%
32%
Source: Gigaom - June 2014
Email
Social Media
Content Marketing
Referral Marketing
SEO
Display Ads
Mobile Ads
Video Ads
Affiliate
Paid Search
37%
56%
0% 15% 30% 45% 60%

16. 15
NO ACCIDENT

17. There’s A Better Way
» Design
» Mobile Optimization
» Automation
» Measurement & Testing
16

18. 17
“We don’t make mistakes.
We make happy little accidents.”
- Bob Ross

19. Images in Email
» From:
» Phoenix Suns
» Subject:
» RSVP For An Inside Look
At The Suns Open
Practice
18

20. Images in Email
» From:
» Phoenix Suns
» Subject:
» RSVP For An Inside Look
At The Suns Open
Practice
18

21. 19
IMAGES IN EMAIL
43% OF EMAIL
RECIPIENTS VIEW EMAIL
WITH IMAGES OFF
Source: Litmus - August 2014

22. Images in Email
» From:
» Volvo
» Subject:
» The feature-rich, Volvo
V60 Sportswagon
20

23. Images in Email
» From:
» Volvo
» Subject:
» The feature-rich, Volvo
V60 Sportswagon
20

24. Defensive Design
» Planning ahead for an
images-disabled experience
21

25. Defensive Design
» Planning ahead for an
images-disabled experience
21

26. Defensive Design
» Planning ahead for an
images-disabled experience
21

27. Defensive Design
» Planning ahead for an
images-disabled experience
21

28. 23
“Simplicity is the ultimate
sophistication.”
- Leonardo DaVinci

29. Charity Water
» Compelling image
» Scannable text
» Obvious call to action
24

30. 25
SCANNABLE TEXT

31. 25
SCANNABLE TEXT

32. Evernote
» Helpful message
» Large, legible text
» Responsive design
» Beautiful buttons
26

33. Buttons.cm
27

34. Mobile Aware
» Same email used for
different devices
» Scaleable
» Spacious
» Large buttons, images,
type
28

35. Pei Wei
» Responsive layout
» Beautiful image
» Well-timed delivery
» Useful resources
» Obvious call to action
29

36. 30
IMPROVED METRICS
EMAIL PERFORMANCE AFTER GOING RESPONSIVE
+20%
Click Rate
+8%
Click Rate
+18%
Click Rate

37. 31
CLICK TO OPEN RATES
15%
10%
5%
0%
9.8%
11.9%
Responsive Non-Responsive
Source: YesMail - May 2014

38. Fairytale Brownies
» Responsive Email
Project
32

39. How It Works
» Wrap/Stack
» Center/Reposition
» Hide
» Resize/Scale
34

40. The @media Query
35
IF THE EMAIL DISPLAYS ON A THIN AND NARROW SCREEN,
THEN MAKE THAT EMAIL THIN AND NARROW

41. 36
@MEDIA QUERY
<style type=”text/css”>
@media screen and (max-width: 600px){
*[class].hide{ display:none !important;}
*[class].blockwrap{ display:block !important;}
*[class].width320{ width:320px !important;}
*[class].padding5{ padding:5px !important;}
}
</style>
<img src=“goaway.jpg” class=“hide”>

42. 36
@MEDIA QUERY
<style type=”text/css”>
@media screen and (max-width: 600px){
*[class].hide{ display:none !important;}
*[class].blockwrap{ display:block !important;}
*[class].width320{ width:320px !important;}
*[class].padding5{ padding:5px !important;}
}
</style>
<img src=“goaway.jpg” class=“hide”>

43. Free Responsive Templates - Zurb.com/Playground
37

44. 38
MEDIA QUERY SUPPORT
NOPE

45. 39

46. 41
VIDEOEMAIL.COM

47. 42
KNOW YOUR (EMAIL) CLIENTS

48. 43
EMAIL PREVIEWS

49. 44

50. 45
BATCH & BLAST!?! PSHHH…
TRANSACTIONAL MESSAGES IMPROVED:
OPEN % CLICK % CLICK
Source: Silverpop - June 2014
CONVERSION
4x 60% 52%

51. B2B Adoption Is Getting Silly
46 Source: SiriusDecisions - April 2014

52. Transactional Campaigns
» Introductions
» Shopping & Purchases
» Events
» Customer Service
» Lead Nurture
» Loyalty
» Re-Engagement
47

53. Setting Expectations
» Michaels Welcome
48

54. Timely Relevance
» Hipmunk Fare Alerts
49

55. Real Personalization
» Blue Nile Reminders
50

56. Weather Triggered
» Yeah, that’s right -
weather triggered
!
» Bonobos Offers
51

57. 52

58. Data Dependent
» Email Address
» Order Status
53
» Product SKU
» Delivery Timing
» Name
» Shipping Address
» Preferred Payment Details

59. 4 .
54
THE AUTOMATED PROCESS
1 2
3

60. 55
“If I had eight hours to chop
down a tree, I would spend six
sharpening my ax.”
- Abraham Lincoln

61. 56
MAPPING THE STORY

62. Automation Providers
57

63. SharpSpring for Agencies
» Anonymous ID
58
» ZoomInfo Reverse IP Lookup
» Tracks Page Visits and Asset
Views/Downloads
» Lead Scoring
» Multiple Device Tracking
» Aggregate Data from Web,
Email, Social & Adwords

64. 59
“We’ve been so busy keepin’ up with the Jones.
Four-car garage, and we’re still buildin’ on.
Maybe it’s time we got back to the basics of love.”
- Waylon Jennings

65. 60
METRIC
OPEN RATE = OPENS / DELIVERED
BETTER METRIC
OPENS PER UNIQUE = TOTAL OPENS / UNIQUE OPENS

66. 61
METRIC
CLICK RATE = CLICKS / DELIVERED
CLICK CONVERSION = CLICKS / OPENS
BETTER METRIC
CORE CLICK CONVERSION = “IMPORTANT” CLICKS / OPENS
(NOT INCLUDING WEB VERSION, UNSUBSCRIBE, FORWARD, ETC.)

67. 62
METRIC
UNSUBSCRIBE RATE = UNSUBSCRIBES / DELIVERED
BETTER METRIC
EVASION RATE = UNSUBSCRIBES / CLICKS

68. 63
EMAIL’S HALO EFFECT

69. 64
DEAD ON ARRIVAL
PERMISSION-BASED MESSAGES
6% 11%
83%
Received
Spam
Blocked
Source: ReturnPath - September 2014

70. 65
KNOW BEFORE YOU GO

71. 66
EMAIL METRICS

72. 67
ANALYTICS PARADIGM
MONTH 3
CLIENT VIEW AGENCY VIEW
HISTORY FUTURE

73. A Ridiculous Quantity of Questions
» How many opened the email?
» Who opened the email?
» Who clicked the email?
» What percent of of those that opened also clicked?
» What did people click?
» What percentage of the list actually received the
68
email?
» What are the most popular email clients?
» What portion of our audience is opening via
smartphones?
» Did anyone forward/share the email?
» Is there a better time to send the email?
» Are there opportunities to improve our subject line?
» What should our “from” name be?
» Was the primary call to action utilized?
» Are there complimentary or supporting elements
that deserve higher priority?
» How many unsubscribed?
» Did the email garner any complaints?
» How can the list be segmented?
» How much revenue/sales did we drive?
» What is the revenue per recipient?
» How should the layout be modified?
» Are the visuals utilized truly compelling?

74. 69
“He who knows best knows
how little he knows.”
- Thomas Jefferson

75. Basic Testing Protocol
70
DELIVERY TIMEFRAME A/B TESTING ELEMENT METRIC
Send #1 Subject Line Open Rate
Send #2 “From” Name Open Rate
Send #3 Primary/Support Content Click Rate
Send #4 Graphics / Layout Click Rate
Send #5 Call to Action Click Rate / Revenue
Send #6 Offer Click Rate / Revenue

76. 71
NEXT LEVEL TESTING

77. Small Bites, OK?
72

78. The Email Email
» TheEmailEmail.com
!
» Monthly email marketing
insight, news and tips
» Please don’t subscribe
if you are not interested in
receiving the most
important updates
affecting our industry 73

79. Chris Sietsema
» teachtofishdigital.com
» @sietsema
» 480.570.1636
74