AJAX. No not the cleanser. The newest web tool. Ajax is changing the face of websites and now web measurement tools as well and making life much easier for users. Ajax allows sites to be faster, more interactive and provide a more personalized experience for users.
Ajax is an acronym “Asynchronous JavaScript and XML”. That means that the loading is independent of (not synchronized with) the regular page loading process we are all familiar with. It is written in the JavaScript language, and retrieves data using XML. It can be used on a variety of systems, architectures and browsers. So, what does this all mean for companies and users?
Page Views Are Now An Almost Meaningless Statistic To Marketers…..
When a website user requests a change or information, it used to be that the entire web page was sent to the server, then back to reload. This caused a time delay and increased the need for users to go to multiple pages. The Ajax program exchanges small amounts of data, only the data needed, with the server so that the entire page does not need to be reloaded.
With new products like Ajax, it is getting easier for users to conduct faster inquiries and transactions on the web. It is also impacting the way websites are measured. Advertisers, affiliate marketers and corporate internal departments used to look at page views as a key indicator of web success (in tandem with other measures). Page views are losing relevancy, since, with Ajax, users often do not need to go to another page for their information. In fact, Nielsen/Net Ratings, one of the leading measurement services, has removed page views from their criteria for ranking top sites. Instead they are using total minutes spent and total sessions.
It is exciting that we are getting these great new products that improve the user experience. Deming always said you can’t manage what you can’t measure, however for today’s marketing digerati, the yardstick changes size frequently.
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Sunday, July 8, 2007
email Campaigns 101: Lessons Learned from Successful email Campaigns
While most of us have inboxes bursting with emails, there is always room for the ones you enjoy receiving and opening. If you have a good message or story to tell, it’s not too late to start a great email marketing campaign to broadcast your products or services. Multi-channel customers tend to be the most loyal and have larger average order sizes, so it’s time to get started or to perfect your existing campaign.
Understand your relevance to your audience
First, always put yourself in the mind of your audience. Whether he is a business (B2B) or consumer (B2C) target, he is busy and is already receiving a downpour of email. Keep the message clean and brief. Understand how important you are to the recipient. Learn what is important to the customer and what subjects they want to hear about.
Give a reason to continue opening your email
Don’t have a hard sell on every email. Vary the content and format. You may have a couple of branded templates you use, but keep the customer wondering what she will find when she opens.
In a campaign to college students, open rates soared over time when we would intersperse good content with messages to buy. For example, some humorous emails with great design on “how to tell your parents you flunked you mid-terms”, “do’s and don’ts for your sweetheart on valentines day”, and “the world’s worst roommates” ; some serious content on the job market outlook, career trends, and NCAA sports commentaries; interspersed with messages to purchase books and apparel, kept open rates as high as 32%.
Interesting “subject” and “from” lines
If your name is recognized, be sure to put it in the “from” line. If it is not, try experimenting with interesting names and you will see open rates will vary. Once you find a good one, stick to it and become recognized.
Change your subject names to be interesting, yet accurately descriptive. Try not to use terms that are caught by spam filters, such as “free!”
Don’t overlook the value of a good plan
Plan out your email content for the next 4-6 months. Write several in advance. That way, if you are having writer’s block or other priorities come up, you will not have to interrupt the campaign. It is amazing how the content flows when you think it through months in advance. If a great “hot” topic comes up, you can be flexible and change your plan.
Unsubscribe Option
Always offer the recipient the opportunity to unsubscribe. One of the fastest ways to alienate a customer prospect is entrap him in email prison with no way out!
Measurements
Be sure to measure your campaign. You will want to look at open rates, clickthrough rates, bad addresses and unsubscribe rates at a minimum. Beware of opt-in email recipients who give you “good addresses” that they never open again! These will not be captured in your bad address numbers.
Understand your relevance to your audience
First, always put yourself in the mind of your audience. Whether he is a business (B2B) or consumer (B2C) target, he is busy and is already receiving a downpour of email. Keep the message clean and brief. Understand how important you are to the recipient. Learn what is important to the customer and what subjects they want to hear about.
Give a reason to continue opening your email
Don’t have a hard sell on every email. Vary the content and format. You may have a couple of branded templates you use, but keep the customer wondering what she will find when she opens.
In a campaign to college students, open rates soared over time when we would intersperse good content with messages to buy. For example, some humorous emails with great design on “how to tell your parents you flunked you mid-terms”, “do’s and don’ts for your sweetheart on valentines day”, and “the world’s worst roommates” ; some serious content on the job market outlook, career trends, and NCAA sports commentaries; interspersed with messages to purchase books and apparel, kept open rates as high as 32%.
Interesting “subject” and “from” lines
If your name is recognized, be sure to put it in the “from” line. If it is not, try experimenting with interesting names and you will see open rates will vary. Once you find a good one, stick to it and become recognized.
Change your subject names to be interesting, yet accurately descriptive. Try not to use terms that are caught by spam filters, such as “free!”
Don’t overlook the value of a good plan
Plan out your email content for the next 4-6 months. Write several in advance. That way, if you are having writer’s block or other priorities come up, you will not have to interrupt the campaign. It is amazing how the content flows when you think it through months in advance. If a great “hot” topic comes up, you can be flexible and change your plan.
Unsubscribe Option
Always offer the recipient the opportunity to unsubscribe. One of the fastest ways to alienate a customer prospect is entrap him in email prison with no way out!
Measurements
Be sure to measure your campaign. You will want to look at open rates, clickthrough rates, bad addresses and unsubscribe rates at a minimum. Beware of opt-in email recipients who give you “good addresses” that they never open again! These will not be captured in your bad address numbers.
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