Archive: March 2008
A tale of two APBs
Earlier today, we announced a new feature to the Emma community, letting our customers know they now have a bit more flexibility when they upgrade and downgrade their monthly email sending plans. As a part of the release, we wanted to include a screenshot of the new feature in action (people *love* action, right?). But to actually quantify the screenshot’s impact, we decided to create two versions of the campaign – one with the image, and one without it – and divide our audience list randomly between the two versions.
The twist: at the bottom of each email, we let people know that they were receiving one of two versions of the campaign, with a link to compare the two (it points to this blog post). So take a look at the two campaigns, let us know what your predictions are, and check back in a few days for the exciting conclusion.
Update: the RESULTS are in, and they surprised us. Read all about it, won’t you?
Version 1, without the screenshot (click the image to see the full campaign):
Version 2, with the screenshot (click the image to see the full campaign):
[tags] a/b test, a/b split, email marketing, myemma.com, emma apb[/tags]
You’re so vain. You probably think this email is about you.
You might imagine, since I work in the email marketing industry, that I would have a little compassion on the retailers whose emails fill up my inbox every morning. But most days, I’m just a typical consumer, rolling through about ten emails from Barnes and Noble, Circuit City, etc. in under two minutes.
Included in that batch this morning was the first edition I’ve received of the Priority Rewards Club newsletter from the IC Hotels Group. It, too, got the ol’ delete button after a momentary glance, but something I noticed in that momentary glance made me drag the message out of the trash and take a closer look:
That something I noticed was just my name. So vain, I know. And sure, we all understand it’s nothing fancy with databases these days to drop in a first name or other personal information. In fact, so many emails contain the “Dear Bob” style of personalization that it can be easy to overlook. But this newsletter gives the whole idea of personalization a bit of a fresh twist – first, by making it more of an “account profile” style of personalization, and second, by devoting some prime real estate of the newsletter to it. The fact that my name was strategically placed in the upper left hand corner is probably why it’s the only thing I saw in my momentary glance. It’s certainly something to consider if you use email as a loyalty-building and retention tool – it clearly worked on me today.
Now if I can just get the Carly Simon song out of my head.
[tags]email newsletter, email marketing tips, personalization, myemma.com, IC Hotels[/tags]
Ode to the Emma SXSW lanyard
Today, we got the funniest note from one of our customers, Michelle Riggen-Ransom at Batch Blue Software. She was one of 5,000 people who descended upon Austin last week for South by Southwest Interactive and had the pleasure of sporting an Emma-sponsored lanyard for the five days of the festival. Here’s how Michelle described it, in her funny, cheeky way:
“Hello Emmateers-
I just wanted to say thank you for providing such a durable and attractive lanyard from which to hang our South by Southwest badges. As a new Emma customer, I was pleasantly surprised to see Emma’s name and sexy/geeky girl logo gracing the necks of thousands of sexy/geeky conference attendees. Then I thought, of course! Emma is the perfect company to be usefully, tastefully embracing the SXSW masses.
I’m pleased to report that the lanyard held up very well. Its bright green color looked so smart with conference attendees’ spring wardrobes in a way that was both fresh and modern. And what craftsmanship! Even in a sudden downpour, the lanyard steadfastly displayed my badge, serving the all-important job of providing me access to conference panels, parties, unlimited events and opportunities. The magnetic release clasp was like a love letter from home – if you get in trouble dears, it seemed to say, I will sacrifice myself so that you may be safe.
It was very bittersweet when, on the last day of SXSWi, the cheery green Emma lanyards began to be overtaken in number by the gothy, navel-gazing black of the music lanyards. I took a look around, packed my badge and Emma lanyard in a special spot in my suitcase and cleared out.
SXSWi2008 may be over, but thanks to the lanyard, I will always have my memories. Thanks again for being part of the magic.”
Thanks for the note, Michelle, and for coining the term “Emmateers.” Like a well constructed lanyard, it’s a keeper.
[tags]sxsw, sxswi, sxsw2008, batch blue software, myemma.com[/tags]
Send some email, plant some (more) trees.
Every month, we plant 5 trees for each new customer who chooses Emma for their email marketing efforts. Last month, you voted to plant 1,685 trees in beautiful Georgia, and now it’s time to decide where to put March’s little forest. And not to worry – we partner with Plant-It 2020 for our planting efforts, so these are indigenous trees – planted in non-harvest locations – which are cared for and protected their whole lives. All that’s left to do now is decide where they go, and that’s your job, compadre:
Where should July's trees be planted?
- Ohio (34%, 12 Votes)
- New York (29%, 10 Votes)
- Oregon (20%, 7 Votes)
- Rhode Island (17%, 6 Votes)
Total Voters: 35
Will we see you at SXSW?
South By Southwest kicks off this Friday with the Interactive portion of the festival. For geeks like us, little gets us more excited than to sit in a room full of other geeks talking tech (yeah, we need to get out more). But don’t be fooled. SXSW began (and remains) high on the cool chart, because it all started as a music festival. What’s cooler than a music festival, right? Over the years the conference has expanded to include three categories: Interactive, Film and Music. All categories are now considered equally cool. Even though The Sadies aren’t playing at the Interactive portion. Whatever.
Anyhoo, we’re proud to be a sponsor of SXSW this year. You won’t miss us if you’re attending the Interactive portion because we’ll be wrapped around your neck, um, literally, as this year’s lanyard sponsor. Have a closer look at the lanyard and you’ll see a special project we’re working on with Plant-It 2020. You can help us plant 1,000 trees if you’re attending, and more information is available here.
If you’re planning to be at SXSW Interactive, we would love to meet you in person. Whether you’re an Emma client, a fan or just interested in learning more about what Emma does, perhaps we could find time to grab a beverage, or a snack, or even a meal.
To get in touch:
Email Dave Delaney, New Media Specialist or find Dave on Twitter.
Email Erik Jones, Emma Database Architect or find Erik on Twitter.
We hope to see you there!
[tags] sxsw interactive, sxsw, myemma.com, Emma[/tags]
Fresh ink from Inc.
We’re downright flattered to be mentioned in this month’s edition of Inc. Magazine as a part of their profile of several email service providers out there. Emma’s featured as the best email marketing service for design help, which is just lovely.
[tags]Inc. Magazine, email marketing, design, myemma.com[/tags]
Emma is a member of the Email Sender & Provider Coalition and the Messaging Anti-Abuse Working Group.
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